Dutch and Australian champions win global porridge titles in Scotland

Gina Saarberg of the Netherlands has won the Golden Spurtle at the annual World Porridge Making Championship in Carrbridge in the Scottish Highlands. Saarberg, 28, used organic pinhead oats, salt and water brought from the Netherlands to prepare the winning entry. The traditional competition permits only those three ingredients, and she used the recipe that helped her win the Dutch championship in July.

The speciality porridge title went to Australia’s Rob Reid, who made a porridge cannoli. His dessert combined an oat-based filling with shells prepared using a method associated with brandy snaps and Sicilian Marsala wine. Thirty competitors from 14 countries took part in the event, held annually at Carrbridge, north of Aviemore.

Saarberg said she began eating rolled-oat porridge as a student because it was inexpensive, but did not taste the traditional variety until she entered a Dutch competition as a joke. She said salt helped bring out the nuances and aromas of the porridge. Saarberg also believed the soft water she carried from her home city of Zutphen may have helped her result, although she said she was unsure whether its mineral content made a difference.

Reid, from Sydney, developed his speciality recipe after entering the Australian national championship. Drawing on his Scottish father and Sicilian mother, he created a cannoli filled with ricotta, mascarpone, sugar and porridge blended with toasted oats. He spent several weeks refining the recipe after winning in Australia.

Reid previously owned a café and now installs blinds and curtains, using his free time for cooking experiments. The championship began in 1994, established by a local hotel owner to promote porridge’s health benefits and raise the profile of Carrbridge. Organiser Alan Rankin described it as a humorous local tradition and a friendly international contest.