Savory Oatmeal With Mushrooms and Eggs. (Photo by Rey Lopez for The Washington Post; food styling by Carolyn Robb for The Washington Post)
I think of porridge as a cold-weather breakfast food, served in a bowl with a spoon, hot enough to melt a pat of salted butter and teaspoon of brown sugar. But when I had dinner at chef Rob Rubba’s Oyster Oyster restaurant in July, it was a savory dish of rice grits that commanded my attention - and inspired this recipe for a bowl of oats with mushrooms, miso and eggs.
Though I recalled the flavors - savory, earthy, sweet, sour - I couldn’t remember the details, so I called Rubba, the man behind the sustainability-focused restaurant in Washington. "We generally have a rice, or some type of grain, course on the menu. We work with Next Step Produce, which is run by Heinz Thomet and Gabrielle Lajoie in Southern Maryland. They create these beautiful ecosystems on their farm, and usually grow a varietal of short-grain rice that originated in Asia, but they use an upland method.
The flavor is amazing,” Rubba said. "We have that rice on the menu now, actually, but when you dined with us, they had sold out of it. We’re close with them, so they told me about some broken grains, rice grits, they had, and I said, ‘I’ll take them!’”
Oyster Oyster’s ethos is scrupulous when it comes to seasonality, sourcing locally and avoiding waste. So, last summer, the grain dish was rice grits with summer squash shaved into ribbons and marinated. Squash scraps were simmered into a stock, which was used to cook the grits like a risotto. There was a nutty element, too. And even a touch of sweetness.
Many dishes on Rubba’s menu incorporate mushrooms (it’s in the restaurant’s name, after all), including this one. "This past summer was such a dry summer, one of the worst mushroom seasons we’ve ever seen. So when we got a delivery of chanterelles, we didn’t know if we’d get them again,” Rubba explained.
The restaurant quick-pickled the precious mushrooms, letting acidity and salt plump and soften them.
Around this point, my conversation with Rubba dipped into cooking theory. We started talking about balance in a dish, about how a great plate of food hits several different notes. "Anyone who eats, even if they’re not aware of it, they’re looking for balance in every bite,” Rubba said.
"When we’re talking as a team about a dish, I always ask about the diner. Imagine when they’re eating it, they’re going through these layers, tasting through everything. As a cook, you’re always willing food to taste better. We should play around with food more than we do. A recipe will guide you, but it’s not meant to be dogmatic. Only you know how to make yourself smile.”
It reminded me of "Goldilocks and the Three Bears.” That "just right” bowl of porridge? It was just right - to her.
For this savory porridge, you’ll need both dried and fresh mushrooms. The dried ones are soaked in boiling water, which rehydrates them and leaves you with, essentially, mushroom stock as a by-product. That stock is then used to cook the oats. Stir in some miso for added umami.
Baby spinach and Asiago cheese enhance and offset the earthiness, but feel free to play around with additions here, using what you have or whatever sounds delicious to you. I like steaming a couple of eggs into sunny-side-up ovals right on top of the saucy oats. The fat from the yolks enriches the porridge, turning it into a humble meal for any time of day.
To finish, add a spoonful of quick-pickled mushrooms. I’ve come to love pickled mushrooms so much that I’ve been putting them on all sorts of things, but they’re ideal here, a punchy surprise on top of a bowl of porridge that’s, in my opinion, just right. But tweak as much as you’d like. After all, only you know how to make yourself smile.
Store the quick-pickled mushrooms in a nonreactive container, such as a glass jar, in the refrigerator. (Photo by Rey Lopez for The Washington Post; food styling by Carolyn Robb for The Washington Post)
Savory Oatmeal With Mushrooms and Eggs
2 servings (makes 3 1/2 cups oatmeal)
Total time: 35 mins
Pantry staples come together in this pot of savory mushrooms, oats and eggs. Dried mushrooms create an almost-instant mushroom broth. Toasting the oats in butter deepens their flavor. Miso adds salinity and umami, forming a well-seasoned base upon which to poach eggs. It’s optional, but if you have time and fresh mushrooms, make the quick-pickled mushrooms for a bright finishing touch.
Make ahead: The mushroom broth and pickled mushrooms can be made up to 2 days in advance.
Storage: This dish is best the day it’s made.
INGREDIENTS
For the quick-pickled mushrooms
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1/4 cup boiling water
1/2 teaspoon fine salt
1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar
1/2 cup (2 ounces) fresh mushrooms, such as oyster, lion’s mane or cremini, stemmed if needed, separated into individual pieces or thinly sliced (see Notes)
For the mushroom broth
1/2 ounce dried mushrooms, preferably a blend, chopped or torn into pieces
1 small sprig fresh rosemary or 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
2 cups boiling water, plus more as needed
For the oatmeal and eggs
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons olive oil, divided
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
Fine salt
1 tablespoon white (shiro) miso, plus more to taste
2 cups (2 ounces) baby spinach
1/4 cup water (optional)
1/4 cup (1 ounce) shaved or shredded Asiago cheese, plus more as needed
2 large eggs
Freshly cracked black pepper
STEPS
Make the quick-pickled mushrooms: In a small saucepan over high heat, combine the vinegar, water, salt and sugar, and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Add the fresh mushrooms and reduce the heat to medium. Simmer for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool for 20 minutes, or refrigerate until needed.
Make the mushroom broth: In a medium nonreactive, heatproof bowl, combine the mushrooms, rosemary, and onion and garlic powders, and cover with the boiling water.
Make the oatmeal and eggs: In a 3-quart Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed lidded pot over medium-high heat, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil and melt the butter. As soon as the butter begins to sizzle, stir in the oats and a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture smells nutty, 2 to 3 minutes.
If you used a sprig of rosemary in the mushroom broth, pluck out the stem. Add the mushroom broth with its mushrooms, and cook, stirring and scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot, until the oats are soft and cooked through but remain soupy, 2 to 3 minutes.
Reduce the heat to medium and stir in the miso until incorporated. Add the baby spinach and cook, stirring constantly, until wilted and the oats thicken but are not dry, about 2 minutes. Taste, and season with more miso or salt, if desired. If the bottom of the pot appears dry, stir in the water to incorporate.
Stir in the cheese, just until halfway melted, then make two divots in the oats. Add 1 teaspoon of oil to each divot, then crack an egg into each. Cover the pot and cook until the egg whites are opaque, 2 to 3 minutes, or until the eggs are done to your liking.
Remove from the heat and divide evenly between two bowls. Garnish with more cheese, if desired, and pepper, and serve warm, with pickled mushrooms on the side.
Substitutions:1/2 ounce dried mushrooms >> 8 ounces fresh mushrooms, roasted until deep brown. Onion powder >> 1/4 cup grated onion, any type. Garlic powder >> 2 garlic cloves, grated (about 2 teaspoons). Pickled mushrooms >> pickled onions, peppers or garlic, or skip them. Oatmeal >> rice or farro, though the cooking time will increase. Miso >> mushroom or other stock concentrate, or bouillon powder. Baby spinach >> baby kale or other tender greens. Asiago >> pecorino Romano, parmesan or Gruyère.
Nutrition per serving (1 3/4 cups oatmeal and 1 egg, without the pickled mushrooms): 499 calories, 42g carbohydrates, 200mg cholesterol, 29g fat, 7g fiber, 18g protein, 10g saturated fat, 743mg sodium, 3g sugar
This analysis is an estimate based on available ingredients and this preparation. It should not substitute for a dietitian’s or nutritionist’s advice.
