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In North America, oatmeal means any crushed oats, rolled oats, or cut oats used in recipes such as oatmeal cookies. The porridge made from this is also called oatmeal. However in other parts of the English-speaking world, oatmeal means coarsely ground oats (cf cornmeal, wheatmeal , peasemeal , etc.).

In Scotland, oatmeal is created by grinding oats into a coarse powder. Various grades are available depending on the thoroughness of the grinding, including Coarse, Pin(head) and Fine oatmeal. The main uses are: as an ingredient in baking; in the manufacture of bannocks or oatcakes; as a stuffing for poultry; as the main ingredient of the Scottish dish, skirlie , or its chip-shop counterpart, the mealy pudding. Occasionally it may be boiled as porridge or gruel. However rolled oats or crushed oats are normally used for this purpose nowadays, since they generally cost less.

Oatmeal is also used in some alcoholic drinks, cosmetics, soaps, and external medical treatments. It is also used as a thickener in some brands of canned chili con carne.

Oatmeal has a long history in Scottish society because oats are better suited to the short, wet growing season in Scotland than wheat is. Hence they became the staple grain of that country.

A grain, which in England is generally given to horses, but in Scotland supports the people.

To which his biographer, James Boswell, is said to have retorted

Which is why England is known for its horses and Scotland for its men.

There has been increasing interest in oatmeal in recent years due its beneficial health effects. Studies have shown that daily consumption of a bowl of oatmeal can lower blood cholesterol.

Some of the items added to oatmeal porridge to enhance its flavour include: salt, sugarThis article deals with sugar as food and as an important, widely traded commodity; the word also has other uses; see Sugar (disambiguation A sugar is a form of carbohydrate; the most commonly used sugar is a white crystalline solid, sucrose; used to alte, brown sugarBrown sugar is an unrefined or partially refined soft sugar consisting of sugar crystals combined with molasses. Brown sugar is produced similarly to white sugar, with two exceptions. Its crystals are left much smaller than for white sugar, and the syrup, maple syrupMaple syrup is a sweet condiment made from the sap of maple trees. It is most often eaten with pancakes or waffles, but can also be used as an ingredient in baking or in preparing desserts. Production Real maple syrup comes from Canada or the northern Uni, butterButter is a dairy product made by churning fresh cream. It consists of an emulsion of water and milk proteins in a matrix of fat, with over 80% being fat. It is used as a condiment and for cooking in much the same ways as vegetable oils or lard. It is sol or margarineMargarine is a generic term used to indicate any of a wide range of butter substitutes. In many parts of the world, margarine is now the best selling table spread, although butter and olive oil also command large market shares. It is used as an ingredient, milk or cream, diced apples, raisins, and cinnamon.