gluten free porridge

the best gut friendly porridge

Yes – there is an online abundance of gluten free porridge recipes, yet I am eager to proclaim this, the best #gutfriendly gluten free porridge around! The reason for this bold statement is that the texture of this gluten free porridge resembles the texture of rolled oat porridge, which is so hard to replicate with gluten free grains. Most gluten free alternatives for porridge like quinoa flakes and buckwheat flakes turn to mush when cooked. This is okay if you don’t mind that type of texture, but for many of you I know it doesn’t really float your boat.

At this time of year, at The JCN Clinic, we are creating a lot of food plans that have porridge highly on the breakfast recipe rotation list. Majority of people love a good porridge. I have created porridge recipes before like my spiced chai millet porridge , wild rice ‘batch cooked’ porridge and my protein boosted quinoa vanilla porridge to name just a few. I do love all of these and they have been used in many JCN nutritional food plans, but to date it’s always a compromise between a porridge that cooks quick (using quinoa flakes, which brings the aforementioned issues) or using the whole-grains, meaning the porridge has a long cooking time. I’ve found due to this it becomes problematic when our clients want a quick and easy, wholesome porridge breakfast without the mush factor. Fair enough too.

This dilemma lead me to create this new Gluten Free Porridge recipe. The concept is to use the whole grains partially broken down combined with seeds and nuts to create a texture similar to rolled oats when cooked. To make it even easier, I have also included brazil nuts and coconut that create a lovely combined creaminess that makes instant ‘milk’ when cooked up in the water. This means no added nut milk when cooking is required!

how to make gluten free porridge FODMAP friendly or SIBO friendly

The great thing about this Gluten Free Porridge is that it pretty much ticks the boxes for being low FODMAP and suitable for SIBO diets. In fact, for a low FODMAP diet, really the only ingredient that could be a trigger is the coconut, though the amount is quite low, so it does fit into the Monash FODMAP app guidelines per serve.

To make the porridge suitable for SIBO diets, it will require the brown rice to be changed up. You can swap the brown rice for white jasmine rice or buckwheat groats, depending on what best suits you.

Other than this, the rest is about choosing your own adventure for toppings. Here I have topped with stewed quinces, nashi pear, peanut butter and honey, so for those needing to navigate dietary protocols you can top with options to suit you. A classic SIBO friendly & low FODMAP topping might be strawberries & macadamia nut butter.

healthy porridge for winter victorian lockdown

I think we often think of porridge as winter comfort food. The trance like state of stirring the porridge over the stove, spoon in hand, watching the simmering bubbles splutter and pop. Pouring the porridge into a bowl and topping with steaming hot milk. The feel of the warm bowl in your hands and finally the warm creamy and sweet taste as you take your first mouthful. This type of comfort is really helping me in lockdown number 2.

Some of you may not realise due to the location of The JCN Clinic in Brisbane, but I am physically now located in the Yarra Valley, which falls under the shire districts of the current lockdown. While the clinic and the JCN team are back into more of a normality in Brisbane city, Hubbard and I are bunkered down again with masks close by for any anticipation of leaving the house.

To be brutally honest, this time around suxs. I know many Melbournites would agree. First time round there was a sense of solidarity as the rest of the country (and the world) was in the same boat. This time around it’s brutal for two reasons. One, the #fomo is next level as social media shows you your friends and families (and well, the rest of the nation) kicking on with a more normal life, off to cafes for breakfast and generally enjoying the outdoors. Two, having a few weeks coming out of lockdown was like having a carrot dangled. A few weeks of #yay with back to gym, a few breakfasts out and some plans for future trips to Brisbane dare I say.

Now, whilst I might be venting about lockdown round two, I am in no way disputing is absolute necessity – please don’t think that for a minute. I am glad we are taking this seriously, masking up and locking on down. The numbers are still very up and down at the time of writing, but hopefully #fingerscrossed we keep this all localised to this area and there are no similar large outbreaks within the rest of Australia. I am ‘happy’ (maybe not the best word) to sit this out, just me and my laptop, Hubbard and the chickens for more weeks to come if it means freedom in the future.

For now, I’ll continue to stay 100% online for consultations and be a ‘talking head’ on Zoom and Skype – or down a phone line to clients. Again, the rest of the nation is cautiously back swinging and The JCN Clinic is a reflection of this. Super busy, guns blazing and rocking a new Nutritionist – Alexa Tran. We are now a team of six practitioners which is pretty bloody exciting.

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further adaptions gluten free porridge

Let’s finish off with some talk about how to play with this base recipe a little further. There are quite a few added extras that you can add to the saucepan as it simmers, creating a variety of flavour profiles. Here are some to consider:

• Creamy AF Gluten Free Porridge: cook the gluten free porridge in your milk of choice instead of water for a super creamy finish
• Spiced Gluten Free Porridge: add spices such as cinnamon, ground ginger and cloves to the porridge
• Chocolate Gluten Free Porridge: add raw cacao and vanilla to the porridge
• Caramel Gluten Free Porridge: add maca, mesquite and vanilla to the porridge
• Apple Pie Gluten Free Porridge: add stewed apple or grated apple with cinnamon and ground cloves to the porridge
• Savoury Gluten Free Porridge: cook the gluten free porridge in broth instead of water and top with avocado, basil & hemp seeds

As usual, I could go on and on but this will give you some thoughts on how you might like to adapt this base recipe after you have tried it a few times. I’m very keen to hear your feedback on this porridge so please make sure you leave me your comments below. ?

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gluten free porridge recipe

serves

makes 2

preparation time

5 min + optional overnight soaking time

cooking time

5 – 6 min

ingredients

• 2 tablespoons millet grain
• 2 tablespoons brown rice (or buckwheat groats)
• 2 tablespoons pumpkin seeds (pepitas) 
• 2 tablespoons sunflower seeds
• 4 brazil nuts
• 2 tablespoons shredded coconut
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1.5 cups water

method

There are 2 ways of making this porridge. One involves soaking overnight for super sensitive digestive systems. The other involves just a quick rinse before cooking. Either way works fine, although keep in mind that pre-soaking does soften the grains making them quicker to cook.

To batch prepare this porridge, triple the recipe to make six serves. Prepare to the blended stage before adding to the saucepan. Store ground gluten free porridge mix in fridge for 3 days, otherwise freeze. You could also dry blend the ingredients in a batch amount and then rinse the portion you are cooking up on the day.

If soaking overnight, place millet, brown rice (or buckwheat), pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds and brazil nuts in a bowl and cover generously with water. Leave overnight to soak. In the morning, strain them through a sieve and rinse well.

If you are not soaking, take the same ingredients above and place them in a sieve and rinse under the tap for a few minutes.

Once you have your rinsed grains, seeds and brazil nuts, place them in a blender or spice grinder with the shredded coconut. Essentially you need a blender that will break up the softened grains a little. Pulse a few times, stopping to scrape down the edges. You want the porridge mix to be broken up and still a little chunky (like the image above), so be careful with a hi-speed blender so you don’t end up with a paste.

Once the gluten free porridge mix is ready, scrape out all the mix into a saucepan and add the water and salt. Bring the gluten free porridge to the boil and the turn down to a low simmer.

Leave to simmer for around 5 – 6 minutes until the grains are softened. You can taste of course as you go. If you feel the porridge needs more liquid then add more depending on the consistency you like.

Once the porridge is ready, pour into two serving bowls and top with warmed milk, fruits of choice and a drizzle of honey.

Any left over gluten free porridge will keep in the fridge in an air-tight container for 4 days.

nutritional information for gluten free porridge

• Millet provides a wonderful mix of carbohydrates and protein in a grain base. Just cup of millet (approximately 50 grams) contains 5 grams protein and 23 grams complex carbohydrates. Millet is also quite abundant in magnesium and phosphorus and manganese. When combined with the nuts and seeds the plant based protein increases again. If you feel you require more protein, especially if used as a post work out meal simply whisk in an egg or add a quality protein powder.
• This protein porridge also contains a good amount of pumpkin seeds. Pumpkin seeds (pepitas) are one of the highest plant based sources of zinc. Zinc is used in hundreds of enzymatic pathways in the body. It is paramount for a healthy immune system, skin and hormonal health. Adequate zinc levels are also vital for fertility in males (1).

Jessica Cox

Jessica Cox is a qualified practicing Nutritionist with a Bachelor Health Science (Nutrition) and over 15 years of clinical experience. She is the founder and director JCN Clinic, published author and established recipe developer. Jessica is well respected within health and wellness space for her no fad approach and use of evidence-based nutrition.