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Sweet Potato Porridge

A Jamaican style breakfast porridge of sweet potato simmered in coconut milk with fresh nutmeg and cinnamon, thickened with ground oats and finished smooth, hot and loose.
Keyword sweet potato porridge
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Servings 4 servings

Ingredients

For the Porridge

  • 1 lb sweet potatoes peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
  • 13.5 oz canned full fat coconut milk
  • 1 ½ cups whole milk
  • ⅓ cup rolled oats ground to a coarse flour
  • 1 teaspoon nutmeg freshly grated
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
  • ¼ teaspoon fine salt

To Finish

  • ⅓ cup sweetened condensed milk plus more to serve
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 2 tablespoon toasted coconut flakes optional, to serve

Instructions

Simmer

  • Grind the rolled oats in a spice grinder or blender for about 15 seconds until they look like coarse flour. Set aside.
  • Put the cubed sweet potato, coconut milk, whole milk, nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger and salt in a heavy saucepan. Bring to a gentle simmer over low heat.
  • Cook 18 to 20 minutes, stirring every few minutes and scraping the bottom, until a cube collapses easily against the side of the pot.

Thicken and Finish

  • Sprinkle in the ground oats while stirring and cook another 6 to 8 minutes. The pot will thicken noticeably in the last two minutes.
  • Blend with an immersion blender for about 20 seconds until completely smooth, or mash the cubes hard against the side of the pot and stir until it comes together. Do not over blend or it turns gluey.
  • Off the heat, stir in the sweetened condensed milk, vanilla and butter. Taste and add more condensed milk if your sweet potatoes were mild.
  • Serve hot in deep bowls, loose enough to settle level. Add a thread of condensed milk, toasted coconut and more grated nutmeg on top.

Notes

  • Ground oats, not whole: ground oats dissolve and give you porridge. Whole rolled oats stay chewy and give you oatmeal with sweet potato in it.
  • Fresh nutmeg: grate it from a whole nutmeg. Pre-ground is not close.
  • Sweeten off the heat: condensed milk added early scorches on the bottom of the pot.
  • The ribbon test: a spoonful should fall back in a thick unbroken ribbon and sink into the surface within a second or two.
  • It sets as it stands: pull it looser than you want it, it thickens between the pot and the table.
  • Reheating: it goes firm in the fridge. Reheat low with a splash of milk and a whisk.