Savory Oats with a Fried Egg and Cheddar

Savory oats are rolled oats cooked in chicken broth instead of water, finished with sharp cheddar and topped with a fried egg.

The step that separates this bowl from oatmeal with cheese stirred in is toasting the dry oats in butter for two minutes before any liquid goes in.

Toasting gives them a nutty, almost risotto-like flavor and keeps the texture creamy rather than gluey.

The whole thing takes 15 minutes and makes two bowls.

Why You’ll Love It

• One saucepan and one small skillet, 15 minutes
• About 20 grams of protein per bowl (one egg at about 6 grams, 1½ ounces of cheddar at about 10 grams, and ½ cup of oats at about 5 grams)
• Pantry ingredients: oats, broth, cheese, eggs
• The oats reheat for 4 days, so it works as weekday meal prep
• Naturally gluten-free if your oats are certified

Ingredients

For the Oats

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats (not instant, not steel-cut)

2 cups low-sodium chicken broth

¼ teaspoon garlic powder

¼ teaspoon kosher salt

¼ teaspoon black pepper

¾ cup shredded sharp cheddar (about 3 ounces), shredded from a block

For the Eggs and Toppings

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

2 large eggs

2 green onions, thinly sliced

2 slices cooked bacon, crumbled (optional)

Hot sauce (optional)

Flaky salt (optional)

Steps

1. Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat, add the oats, and stir for 2 minutes until they smell nutty and a few flakes turn golden — skipping this is why most savory oats taste like porridge with cheese in it.

2. Pour in the broth, add the garlic powder, salt, and pepper, bring it to a simmer, then drop the heat to medium-low and cook for 5 to 6 minutes, stirring every minute, until the oats are thick and most of the liquid is gone.

3. Turn off the heat while the oats still slide slowly off the spoon rather than sitting in a stiff mound (they keep thickening while the eggs cook), stir in the cheddar in two additions until melted, and put the lid on.

4. Heat a 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat, add the remaining tablespoon of butter, and crack in both eggs once the foaming stops.

5. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes until the whites are set and the edges are lacy and browned, tilting the pan and spooning a little butter over any clear patches of white near the yolk.

6. The yolk should still wobble when you nudge the pan; for a firmer yolk, flip the egg with a thin flexible spatula and give it 20 more seconds, then season both eggs with a pinch of salt and pepper.

7. Stir the oats, loosen them with a splash of broth or water if they seized up, divide them between two bowls, set an egg on each, and finish with the green onions, bacon, hot sauce, and flaky salt.

Helpful Tips & Substitutions

Use old-fashioned rolled oats and nothing else for this ratio.

Instant oats turn to paste in broth, and steel-cut oats need a 1:3 ratio and 25 minutes, so they are a different recipe.

Quick oats work if that is what you have, but cut the simmer to 2 to 3 minutes and expect a softer bowl.

Shred the cheddar yourself with a box grater, because bagged pre-shredded cheese is coated in cellulose and melts grainy instead of smooth.

Sharp cheddar has more flavor per ounce than mild, so you use less and the oats stay loose.

Gruyère or pepper jack swap in at the same amount, and Parmesan works at half the amount since it is much saltier.

Vegetable broth works the same way, and if you only have regular-sodium broth, leave out the salt entirely.

Water plus 1 teaspoon of Better Than Bouillon chicken base is a reasonable stand-in for broth.

A handful of baby spinach stirred in during the last minute of simmering wilts into the oats without changing the cooking time.

Sautéed mushrooms, a teaspoon of white miso whisked into the broth, or everything bagel seasoning on top all fit the flavor without adding steps.

If you would rather not fry eggs, a soft-boiled egg (6½ minutes in boiling water, then an ice bath) halved on top does the same job of saucing the oats with yolk.

For a no-stove version, combine the oats and broth in a large microwave-safe bowl, microwave on high for 3 minutes, stir, microwave 1 more minute, then stir in the cheese.

You lose the toasted flavor that way, but the texture is close.

Serving Ideas

A fried egg on top is enough for a weekday breakfast, and a side of sweet potato hash turns it into a weekend plate.

If you are feeding four or more people, frying eggs one at a time slows everything down, so bake a tray of high protein cottage cheese sheet pan scrambled eggs and lay a square on each bowl instead.

For a lunch version, skip the egg and top the oats with leftover shredded chicken, a spoon of salsa, and sliced avocado.

A few drops of hot sauce or a spoon of chili crisp cut the richness of the cheese, which matters more here than it does in sweet oatmeal.

Crumbled bacon or a slice of torn prosciutto adds salt and texture if the bowl feels soft all the way through.

Make-Ahead & Storage

The cheesy oats keep in an airtight container in the fridge for 4 days, and they firm up into a solid block as they chill.

To reheat, add 2 to 3 tablespoons of broth or water per serving and microwave for 90 seconds, stirring halfway, or warm them in a small saucepan over low heat with the same splash of liquid.

Fry the eggs fresh each morning, because a reheated fried egg has rubbery whites and a chalky yolk.

Frying an egg takes 3 minutes, which is less time than the oats take to reheat.

Do not freeze the oats once the cheese is in, since the texture turns watery and grainy when thawed.

For a week of breakfasts, double the oat ingredients, cook them in a 3-quart saucepan, and portion into four containers before adding anything on top.

Cooked bacon keeps 5 days in the fridge, so crumble a batch on Sunday and add it cold to each bowl.

The oats keep absorbing liquid for a few minutes after the heat goes off, so what looks slightly loose in the pan is the right texture by the time the egg lands on top.