I picked up a bag of Quaker Oats large flake oatmeal yesterday. I was
surprised to see "Cooks in 4-5 minutes" printed in the front of the bag.
Large flake oats usually take more like 15 minutes to cook. When I
prepared to make some for breakfast this morning I looked for the
instructions and had some confusion. Among all the small print on the
side of the crinkled bag was a list of numbered steps. I scanned down to
the bottom and step 3 was "COOK uncovered for the specified amount of
time."

I had to go searching again. Stove Top Instructions it said for single
servings cook 10-15 minutes, for 4 servings cook 20-25 minutes.

Then... I spotted the microwave instructions, and it says 4-5 minutes
for one serving.

I have been cooking oatmeal porridge for decades. It was early morning.
I got thrown off by that 4-5 minute thing. I hate to imagine what it
would be like for someone who has never cooked oats before to try to
figure out how to cook this item, which I always thought easy so simple.


They did have a very handy hint..... for thicker oatmeal use less
water... for thinner oatmeal use more water.

"Dave Smith" > wrote in message
om...
>I picked up a bag of Quaker Oats large flake oatmeal yesterday. I was
>surprised to see "Cooks in 4-5 minutes" printed in the front of the bag.
>Large flake oats usually take more like 15 minutes to cook. When I prepared
>to make some for breakfast this morning I looked for the instructions and
>had some confusion. Among all the small print on the side of the crinkled
>bag was a list of numbered steps. I scanned down to the bottom and step 3
>was "COOK uncovered for the specified amount of time."
>
> I had to go searching again. Stove Top Instructions it said for single
> servings cook 10-15 minutes, for 4 servings cook 20-25 minutes.
>
> Then... I spotted the microwave instructions, and it says 4-5 minutes for
> one serving.
>
> I have been cooking oatmeal porridge for decades. It was early morning. I
> got thrown off by that 4-5 minute thing. I hate to imagine what it would
> be like for someone who has never cooked oats before to try to figure out
> how to cook this item, which I always thought easy so simple.
>
>
> They did have a very handy hint..... for thicker oatmeal use less
> water... for thinner oatmeal use more water.

Fortunate that they did not offer the obsolete hint of using more
oats for thicker, fewer oats for thinner; both assuming the same
volume of water.

pavane

On Saturday, February 25, 2012 9:53:12 AM UTC-5, Dave Smith wrote:
> I picked up a bag of Quaker Oats large flake oatmeal yesterday. I was
> surprised to see "Cooks in 4-5 minutes" printed in the front of the bag.
> Large flake oats usually take more like 15 minutes to cook. When I
> prepared to make some for breakfast this morning I looked for the
> instructions and had some confusion. Among all the small print on the
> side of the crinkled bag was a list of numbered steps. I scanned down to
> the bottom and step 3 was "COOK uncovered for the specified amount of
> time."
>
> I had to go searching again. Stove Top Instructions it said for single
> servings cook 10-15 minutes, for 4 servings cook 20-25 minutes.
>
> Then... I spotted the microwave instructions, and it says 4-5 minutes
> for one serving.
>
> I have been cooking oatmeal porridge for decades. It was early morning.
> I got thrown off by that 4-5 minute thing. I hate to imagine what it
> would be like for someone who has never cooked oats before to try to
> figure out how to cook this item, which I always thought easy so simple.
>
>
> They did have a very handy hint..... for thicker oatmeal use less
> water... for thinner oatmeal use more water.

Quaker makes three kinds of oat meal; regular, quick, and instant. Of the three, I like the texture of the quick least. I cook my morning oatmeal i an open saucepan, one measure (1/2 or 2/3 cup) of oatmeal and two measures of water. I use hot water and start with the heat on high. When bubbles appear around the edges, I turn the heat down to lowest and set the timer for ten minutes. That gives me a thin crust on the bottom of the pot that I scrape into the rest. It adds a toasty flavor. I cut two minutes off the cooking time if I don't want that. I often sprinkle a handful of dried currants (I find raisins too sweet) on top as it begins to cook. YMMV

Jerry
--
Engineering is the art of making what you want from things you can get.

On 25/02/2012 10:40 AM, Jerry Avins wrote:

>>
>> I have been cooking oatmeal porridge for decades. It was early
>> morning. I got thrown off by that 4-5 minute thing. I hate to
>> imagine what it would be like for someone who has never cooked oats
>> before to try to figure out how to cook this item, which I always
>> thought easy so simple.
>>
>>
>> They did have a very handy hint..... for thicker oatmeal use less
>> water... for thinner oatmeal use more water.
>
> Quaker makes three kinds of oat meal; regular, quick, and instant. Of
> the three, I like the texture of the quick least.

That and the flavour, which is a lot like paste. I have quick cooking
oats on hand for baking, like cookies and date squares. For porridge I
prefer large flake or steel cut.



> I cook my morning
> oatmeal i an open saucepan, one measure (1/2 or 2/3 cup) of oatmeal
> and two measures of water. I use hot water and start with the heat on
> high. When bubbles appear around the edges, I turn the heat down to
> lowest and set the timer for ten minutes. That gives me a thin crust
> on the bottom of the pot that I scrape into the rest. It adds a
> toasty flavor. I cut two minutes off the cooking time if I don't want
> that.

I just bring the water to a boil, add a pinch of salt and a handful of
oats, turn it town and st the timer for 15 minutes. If it is too thin I
cook it a little longer.


> I often sprinkle a handful of dried currants (I find raisins
> too sweet) on top as it begins to cook. YMMV>

How about fewer raisins? Dried blueberries are nice on oatmeal.

In article >,
Dave Smith > wrote:

> I picked up a bag of Quaker Oats large flake oatmeal yesterday. I was
> surprised to see "Cooks in 4-5 minutes" printed in the front of the bag.
> Large flake oats usually take more like 15 minutes to cook. When I
> prepared to make some for breakfast this morning I looked for the
> instructions and had some confusion. Among all the small print on the
> side of the crinkled bag was a list of numbered steps. I scanned down to
> the bottom and step 3 was "COOK uncovered for the specified amount of
> time."
>
> I had to go searching again. Stove Top Instructions it said for single
> servings cook 10-15 minutes, for 4 servings cook 20-25 minutes.
>
> Then... I spotted the microwave instructions, and it says 4-5 minutes
> for one serving.
>
> I have been cooking oatmeal porridge for decades. It was early morning.
> I got thrown off by that 4-5 minute thing. I hate to imagine what it
> would be like for someone who has never cooked oats before to try to
> figure out how to cook this item, which I always thought easy so simple.

I've always been peeved by this. It used to be that there was large
print all over the package saying, "COOKS IN FIVE MINUTES!". But when
you read the instructions, it does say five minutes, but then you need
to let it sit until done. If you eat it after five minutes, it tastes
uncooked to me. I cook it for 20 minutes. I boil the water, and after
adding the oats I turn the stove all the way down. This is for regular
oats in the US.

--
Dan Abel
Petaluma, California USA