The popular breakfast that Andrew Zimmern considers the worst

If you happen to be making breakfast for chef Andrew Zimmern, you can probably serve him eggs or pancakes without a problem, but avoid one food he openly detests: oatmeal. In a Wall Street Journal video, Zimmern expressed his hatred for the cereal-based dish, calling it "a horrible, disgusting thing." He goes on to describe oatmeal as "prison porridge," suggesting it's a breakfast often forced on children. "What a horrible thing it is to subject children to that, to give them porridge for breakfast... to turn my oatmeal into plump raisin cookies."

Oats are on a very short list of foods that Zimmern has declared off-limits for him (at least publicly). Several years ago, on Twitter, he also criticized oats, but noted that he doesn't eat raw cookie dough (perhaps rightly so, as it's considered a food safety risk), nor nuts, which he previously stated taste like soap. He also stated that he dislikes durian, a fruit with a very strong odor.

In that video, Zimmern detailed his breakfast preferences: "I want eggs, a couple of slices of bacon, and a glass of orange juice." Besides this classic, the chef has also published a long list of oat-free breakfast recipes, ranging from his version of Mexican chilaquiles to shakshuka, pancakes with berries, and a savory version with kimchi.

What Andrew Zimmern thinks you should do with oats

To be clear, Andrew Zimmern isn't against oats in general; in fact, in the Wall Street Journal video, he calls them "magnificent" before suggesting some uses for this whole grain beyond oatmeal raisin cookies. First, he recommends toasting oats, as this is generally considered a way to enhance their flavor, giving them a richer, nuttier taste.

She has several preferences for how to use oats: she suggests adding the toasted (or even grilled) version to granola. She also has some less obvious tips: that it can be used in soups, stews, or even Scottish haggis, "dishes where flavor and texture are key."

Zimmern's own website offers at least a couple of recommendations on how to use oats. In one delicious suggestion, steel-cut oats are toasted together with flour and brown sugar to create a hazelnut granola that accompanies a spiced apple pie. But granola doesn't have to be just a dessert: another Zimmern-approved breakfast dish features a pine nut and honey granola served over ricotta cheese and sautéed cherry tomatoes.