VisitScotland creates the Porridge Grand Tour: ideas for porridge-themed trips in Scotland where oat enthusiasts can indulge their love of porridge and even eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner
2016 was all about kale. This year you couldn’t move without hearing people discussing the best avo on toast or Instagramming their turmeric latte; but what faithful dish has been there for us through thick and thin? Porridge of course! In fact, the tag #porridge pops up almost two million times on any given day on Instagram with an array of toppings. But porridge isn’t just for breakfast anymore. Nowadays it can also be a delicious lunch, dinner and dessert, with chefs and foodies creating ever more imaginative sweet and savoury porridge options suitable for any hour of the day.
To celebrate this VisitScotland, working together with Scotland Food & Drink, has launched The Porridge Grand Tour of Scotland: a range of unique porridge-themed adventure recommendations where oat enthusiasts can indulge their love of porridge and even enjoy porridge for breakfast, lunch and dinner whilst admiring the view of rolling hills, lochs or castles.
The Porridge Grand Tour of Scotland aims to get taste buds tingling by transporting visitors on an adventure through history and heritage as well as the country’s famous landscapes and vibrant cities. It recommends some of the best places to stop off in Scotland to try a variety of porridge recipes – with the option of eating it over seven times in one trip!
There’s a porridge for everyone and any time of the day, with dishes including porridge benedict with seared Scottish pigeon breast, an Italian inspired cannelloni porridge and porridge with whisky jelly, oatmeal cream and raspberry.
There will also be porridge themed cultural learnings and activities to get involved with along the way, such as a visit to the Devil’s Porridge museum in Dumfries & Galloway – so called for the cordite that was produced in the munitions factories in the area during the Second World War. All the while, visitors can soak up Scotland’s famous landscapes, attractions and breathtaking scenery with six suggested itineraries to choose from which head out of the easily accessible Edinburgh, Glasgow, Inverness and Aberdeen.
The options for journeys in Scotland are plentiful, as visitors can also follow their taste buds to Ayrshire and Arran, the Outer Hebrides and beyond.
Fiona Richmond, Head of Regional Food at Scotland Food & Drink, said: “Porridge is becoming more fashionable than ever, with many chefs and food fanatics getting creative with this staple Scottish dish. Whether you like it the traditional way, topped with something sweet or prefer a more savoury offering, The Porridge Grand Tour of Scotland highlights just some of the best places across Scotland to enjoy this iconic dish in a new, fun and exciting way.”
Neal Robertson, Double World Porridge Making Champion and owner of Tannochbrae Tearooms – which is a destination on the tour – said: “It’s amazing to see how much fun people are having with porridge across Scotland and around the world. The possibilities are endless with the humble oat and I can’t wait to show people how to make the perfect bowl of porridge on this Porridge Grand Tour. If I’m feeling generous I might even lend them my winning spurtle invention – the double backed ‘spon’ spoon to try out.”
To book a masterclass in ‘how to cook the perfect bowl of porridge’ with Porridge Making World Champion Neal Robertson.
Visitors who might not want to eat porridge for every meal, can of course dip in and out of oaty experiences as they see fit. The six Porridge Grand Tour of Scotland itinerary suggestions can be adapted and tweaked to suit individual appetites and offer lots of great recommendations for things to do and places to see.
A map and suggested itineraries for The Porridge Grand Tour of Scotland is available to download from www.visitscotland.com/porridge