The Staffordshire Oatcake

Just had bacon, cheese and mushroom oatcakes for brunch. Very scrummy. For those not from Staffordshire or have not come across them I’ll tell you a bit more about them.

They are similar in shape to a pancake but made from oatmeal, flour and yeast and cooked on a griddle. We have shops that sell nothing but oatcakes – you can watch them being cooked before your eyes. There is nothing better than a freshly cooked still warm oatcake. Many years ago it was common for them to be sold from a window of a house. Supermarkets also sell them but they are mass produced and don’t taste quite as nice as the ones purchased from the Oatcake Shop. I’m quite lucky there is shop a few streets away from me.

Typically you fill your oatcake with things such as bacon, tomato, sausage, eggs, beans, etc and not forgetting the brown or red sauce. You can fill them with sweet things such as jam or honey but personally I’ve never tried as this would be SO wrong!

You lie the oatcake flat and you either put your filling down the middle and roll up or if you are having lots of filling fill half of it and then fold the other half over to make like a half moon shape. I believe there are two sides to an oatcake – the filling side and the outer side.... but friends have told me I’m daft. However if you ever have an oatcake made by me you will always get your filling on the “right” side of the oatcake. I’d never dream of putting my filling on the outer side.

I forgot to take a photo of my oatcake. Obviously too desperate to eat them. Maybe next time. However I found this page which gives loads more info on the Staffordshire Oatcake. http://www.theoatcakeguide.co.uk/