Made by grinding hulled oats into flour or meal. Oatmeal is generally prepared in grades according to its texture – coarse, medium or fine; medium is the one we use most.
Oatmeal is among the most nutritious of all the grains, and rolled oats, the steamed grain flattened between rollers for faster cooking, have been used to make breakfast porridge for generations of families throughout the world. Oatmeal is also used to give bulk to sausages, to thicken soups and stews or to bake oatcakes, breads, scones, biscuits (cookies; see Anzac Biscuits) and puddings. The Scots have many splendid dishes containing oatmeal, including Oatcakes (see Bannock), Crispy Herring in Oatmeal, and, of course, porridge, while the Swiss breakfast muesli contains uncooked rolled or toasted oats. Quick-cooking oatmeal is readily available from supermarkets and grocery stores, and can be used in many recipes as well as for a quick breakfast cereal.
Rolled oats are said to have been invented by the Quaker Oat Company in 1877. Quick-cooking oats are thinner and finer than rolled oats and have been pre-cooked.