Oats are a versatile grain with huge culinary potential, and we love to see how people around the world are incorporating oats into their traditional meals in innovative ways, just like we’re doing here at Oats Everyday.
Our goal has always been to get people to think outside the bowl. The oatmeal bowl, that is. We want to show how oats can be used in unexpected ways to put an exciting and healthy new twist on all of your favorite dishes – from biscuits and gravy to stuffed peppers.
Many recipes for stuffed bell peppers call for rice, but why not switch things up and try this savory oatmeal stuffing instead? (Hint: this is also our go-to stuffing recipe for chicken, turkey and pork tenderloin.)
Oats can be used in place of rice in many other dishes, too, especially steel cut oats, with their distinctive, chewy texture. What’s that? You just bought a new rice cooker? Awesome! You can use it for cooking oats.
We’re not the only ones substituting oats for rice. In China, oatmeal has been gaining popularity as a breakfast alternative to congee, a traditional savory rice porridge.
Another way oats are being used in China is in oat flour, which is another favorite of ours! In China oat flour is most often used to make dumplings and noodles. Oat noodles have been a staple food in northwestern China for generations, but now they’re gaining popularity across the rest of the country.
One of the most popular types of oat noodles is youmian wo wo, which roughly translates to “oat noodle honeycomb.” To make youmian wo wo, oat flour noodles are rolled into cylinders and arranged to resemble a honeycomb.
If you want to try your hand at oat noodles, you don’t have to make yours into a fancy shape, but we do encourage you to give it a go. Using noodles made with oat flour is a great way to pump up fiber and reduce calories when preparing classic noodle and pasta dishes. Lasagna with oat noodles? Yes, please!
Incorporating oats into your traditional meals lets you shake things up while still enjoying the classic dishes you grew up with. Maybe it’s time for a few new traditions.
Oat Stuffing
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup onion diced (125 ml)
- 1/2 cup celery diced (125 ml)
- 2 Tbsp canola oil (30 ml)
- 1 Tbsp parsley chopped, fresh (15 ml)
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1 tsp poultry seasoning (5 ml)
- 1/4 tsp curry powder (1 ml)
- 1 cup rolled oats (250 ml)
- 1 cup chicken broth low sodium (250 ml)
- 1/4 cup flaxseeds ground (50 ml)
- 1 Tbsp flaxseeds whole (15 ml)
- black pepper to taste
- 1 egg large
Instructions
- In a medium fry pan over medium to medium high heat, sauté onion and celery in oil until soft, 3 minutes.
- Reduce heat to medium low, stir in parsley, garlic, poultry seasoning and curry powder. Stir 30 seconds.
- Add oats, stir well and remove from heat.
- Add chicken broth and stir until almost absorbed.
- Add flaxseed and pepper.
- Let cool 10 minutes stirring occasionally.
- Stir in egg.
- Use mixture to stuff cavity or under the skin of chicken before roasting. Can also be spread on flattened turkey or chicken breast, rolled and baked or stuff peppers or zucchini, cover with foil and bake.
Note:
- Cranberries, chopped apricots, apple, nuts, etc. can also be added to the stuffing.