Editing Porridge (section)

===Oat===
[[File:Porridge oats.JPG|thumb|right|Porridge oats before cooking]] [[File:Oatmeal with raisins and chopped walnuts 5.jpg|thumb|Oatmeal with raisins, butter, chopped walnuts, cinnamon, brown sugar, and shredded coconut]] 

*[[oatmeal|Oat porridge]], traditional and common in the [[English-speaking world]], [[Germany]], and the [[Nordic countries]].<ref>The Danish cultural historian [[Troels Frederik Lund]] (1840–1921) published a work later known as "Everyday Life in the North". In his comments (1883) about the development of foods, he highlights porridge as one of the oldest Nordic meals. No other meal is described as frequently as this "from the moment the written sources begun."<br />See: {{cite book |last1= Troels-Lund|first1=Troels Frederik |author-link1=Troels Frederik Lund |title=Danmark og Norges Historie i Slutningen af det 16de Aarhundrede <!-- later editions: Dagligt Liv I Norden I Det 16de Aarhundrede --> |trans-title=History of Denmark and Norway to the End of the Sixteenth Century |date=1883 |publisher=C.A. Reitzel |location=Copenhagen |isbn=978-1247189857 |language=da |chapter=Fødemidler}}</ref> Oat porridge has been found in the stomachs of 5,000-year-old [[Neolithic]] [[Bog body|bog bodies]] in Central Europe and Scandinavia.<ref>{{cite book|author1-link=John Lloyd (producer)|last1=Lloyd|first1= J|author2-link = John Mitchinson (researcher)|last2 = Mitchinson|first2= J|title = The Book of General Ignorance|title-link=The Book of General Ignorance|publisher = Faber & Faber|year = 2006|isbn = 9780571233687}}</ref> Varieties of oat porridge include:
** [[Groats]], a porridge made from unprocessed oats or wheat.
** [[Gruel]], very thin porridge, often drunk rather than eaten.
** Yod Kerc'h, a traditional oat porridge from the north-west of France, primarily [[Brittany]], made with oats, butter and water or milk.<ref>{{cite book | title = French Impressions: Brittany | page = 24 | url = http://www.peoplesbookprize.com/Extracts/i541.extract.pdf|first = George|last = East|year = 2010| publisher = La Puce |isbn = 978-0-9523635-9-0|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170304194634/http://www.peoplesbookprize.com/Extracts/i541.extract.pdf |archive-date = 4 March 2017}}</ref>
** Owsianka, an east European (Russia, Poland, Belarus, Ukraine) traditional [[breakfast]] made with hot [[milk]], oats and sometimes with [[sugar]] and [[butter]].
** Porridge made from [[rolled oats]] or ground oatmeal is common in the UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, North America, Finland and Scandinavia. It is known as simply "porridge" or, more commonly in the United States and Canada, "[[oatmeal]]". In the US, oat and wheat porridge can both be called "hot cereal". Rolled oats are commonly used in England, oatmeal in Scotland and [[steel-cut oats]] in Ireland.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://nutritiondiva.quickanddirtytips.com/are-steel-cut-oats-healthier.aspx |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110602185112/http://nutritiondiva.quickanddirtytips.com/are-steel-cut-oats-healthier.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-date=2 June 2011 |title=Nutrition diva: Are Steel Cut Oats Healthier? |publisher=Nutritiondiva.quickanddirtytips.com |date=31 May 2011 |access-date=23 February 2014 }}</ref> In the [[Royal Navy]] during the [[Napoleonic Wars]], cooks made ''burgoo'' for the men for breakfast, from coarse oatmeal and water.<ref>{{cite book |last=Nasty-Face |first=Jack |title=Nautical Economy, or Forecastle Recollections of Events during the last War |publisher=William Robinson |place=London |year=1836}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/05/05/3208495.htm?site=sydney|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110508161651/http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/05/05/3208495.htm?site=sydney|url-status=dead|archive-date=8 May 2011|title=Last male WWI veteran dies|work=abc.net.au|date=5 May 2011}}</ref>
** Porridge (Parrige) – Anglophone Caribbean (Guyana, Jamaica, Trinidad etc.) Also known as Pap. The most common type is [[Cornmeal|corn meal]], and they are always made with milk. Varieties include oatmeal, grated green plantain, barley, cream of wheat, sago (tapioca). Oatmeal porridge is often flavoured with cinnamon, nutmeg, brown sugar or almond essence.
** Stirabout – Irish porridge, traditionally made by stirring oats into boiling water
** ''Terci de ovăz'', traditional oatmeal in Romania.
** ''Zabkása'', traditional oatmeal in Hungary.

====Types of oats====
[[File:William Hemsley Porridge.jpg|thumb|''Porridge'' by [[William Hemsley (painter)|William Hemsley]] (1893)]]
Oats for porridge may be whole ([[groats]]), cut into two or three pieces (called "pinhead", "steel-cut" or "coarse" oatmeal), ground into medium or fine [[oatmeal]] or steamed and rolled into flakes of varying sizes and thicknesses (called "rolled oats", the largest size being "jumbo"). The larger the pieces of oat used, the more textured the resulting porridge. It is said that, because of their size and shape, the body breaks steel-cut oats down more slowly than rolled oats, reducing spikes in [[blood sugar]] and making the eater feel full longer.<ref name=redmill>{{cite web |title=Steel Cut, Rolled, Instant, Scottish? (Marisa's comment, November 10, 2012 at 9:46 am) |url=http://www.bobsredmill.com/blog/2011/01/20/steel-cut-rolled-instant-scottish/ |work=Bob's Red Mill |access-date=9 October 2012 |archive-date=23 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121023092958/http://www.bobsredmill.com/blog/2011/01/20/steel-cut-rolled-instant-scottish/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> The US ''[[Consumer Reports]]'' website found that the more cooking required, the stronger the oat flavor and the less mushy the texture.<ref name=cu>{{cite web |url=http://www.consumerreports.org/health/healthy-living/diet-nutrition/healthy-foods/cereals/oatmeal/overview/oatmeal-ov.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120410215224/http://www.consumerreports.org/health/healthy-living/diet-nutrition/healthy-foods/cereals/oatmeal/overview/oatmeal-ov.htm|archive-date=10 April 2012|title=For best oatmeal taste, be patient |date=November 2008|access-date=3 April 2013 |work=[[Consumer Reports]]}}</ref>

Oats are a good source of dietary fibre; health benefits are claimed for [[Oat#Soluble fiber|oat bran]] in particular, which is part of the grain.

====Preparation====
The oats are cooked in milk, water or a mixture of the two. [[Scotland|Scottish]] traditionalists allow only oats, water and salt.<ref name=cloake>[https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2011/nov/10/how-to-cook-perfect-porridge How to cook perfect porridge], Felicity Cloake, ''The Guardian'', 10 November 2011.</ref> There are techniques suggested by cooks, such as presoaking, but a comparative test found little difference in the end result.<ref name=cloake/> Various flavourings can be used and may vary widely by taste and locality. [[Demerara sugar]], [[golden syrup]], [[Greek yoghurt]] and [[honey]] are common. Cold milk or single cream may be used.<ref name=cloake/>