Porridge Drawer

[g forgeron]

Does, or did,such a thing ever exist. The story goes that a drawer in the kitchen was scrubbed out and on a Monday it was filled with porridge. Each day a portion woluld be cut out and that was the lunch for that day for the man of the house.

Has anyone ever experienced this FIRST HAND ? I know there are lots of tales, "My Mum/ Aunty/ Granny/ etc etc  remembers it" But I suspect it is just an urban myth, did/does it happen ?

[hanes teulu]

Aberdeen Journal, 25 Nov 1941
PORRIDGE AND MILK

The report in the paper covered a number of aspects re. milk/porridge  including -

"An Aberdeen citizen, benighted in a remote part of the Highlands tells how he was sent to lodge for the night with a shepherd. The man lived alone and when breakfast time came in the morning, he pulled out a drawer for the porridge. He was accustomed to make a week's supply at a time, and simply cut off the portion for the day".

So - not from the horse's mouth and can you trust what you read in the local rag??

[JenB]

If you 'google' this you'll get loads of hits 

For instance http://www.scotlandmag.com/magazine/issue40/12008794.html
http://5dalmore.blogspot.co.uk/2008/03/ever-seen-porridge-in-drawer.html

[GR2]

It may be that some folk did this, but I have never come across any authentic evidence of it being widespread. My family has consumed vast quantities of porridge over the years without recourse to a porridge drawer. For one thing, it would have to be a pretty big drawer. For another, making fresh porridge is perfectly easy. As farm servants, my grandfathers were paid partly in oatmeal. The family porridge was made every morning and often in the evening too. My grandfathers themselves, however, never had porridge in the morning. For them it was brose, which is even quicker to make. I still have the wooden brose bowl made for my great grandfather. He died in 1912, but the bowl has never been out of use.

[ev]

The tale I heard was of a poor student , who tried this due to lack of money.
He became the first person in Aberdeen diagnosed with scurvy in more than 50 years.



ev


Added -
https://scottishfactorrubbish.wordpress.com/2012/07/24/scottish-student-contracted-scurvy-from-porridge-fact-or-rubbish/

http://www.snopes.com/college/horrors/scurvy.asp

[pinot]

Fascinated, GR2, to read of the 'brose'; 'brwes' or 'brywes' is an historical Welsh dish of oatmeal steeped in broth, water or milk. I was once offered it for breakfast by a friend as oatmeal with Marmite and hot water. It was delicious.

[Skoosh]

I've heard myth this for yonks, neither do we live on fried Mars Bars.

Skoosh.

[Archivos]

There is a brilliant sketch in one of the Broons annuals, when they're at the but 'n' ben.  The twins are eating cereal, and are looking for the toy car which should have come in the box.  Paw tells them they should be eating porridge instead, so makes some and then pours it into the kitchen drawer.  The next day, he cuts a slice and bites into it, breaking his falsers on the missing toy car which had been in the drawer when he poured the porridge in.  I used to love that story!

I have no idea if the porridge drawer was really a thing though, as that Broons story is my only experience of it.

[Flattybasher9]

http://www.scotlandmag.com/magazine/issue40/12008794.html

http://www.northsouthfood.com/fried-porridge/

http://www.scotsman.com/news/a-slice-of-porridge-has-always-been-top-drawer-1-1408827

http://www.scotsman.com/news/porridge-a-stirring-story-1-1407155

Regards

Malky. I must try fried porridge.