Do you say “Hot Cereal” or “Oat Meal”?

39 comments

1. I have never heard “hot cereal” in my life.

2. Never heard the term “hot cereal” before right now. It’s always been oatmeal.

3. I use both interchangeably, but I lean more towards oatmeal. I’ll also occasionally say porridge, but rarely.

4. Oatmeal. If someone said hot cereal I’d know what they were talking about, but I don’t think I have ever heard it in person.

5. I swear I’ve seen “Hot Cereal” written on signs in grocery stores to show which aisle has the oatmeal. But I’ve *never* heard someone refer to oatmeal as “hot cereal” in casual conversation.

6. Oat meal is oatmeal. Hot cereal can include things like maltomeal or grits. Gotta be specific.

7. Oatmeal is a type of hot cereal to me. Along with stuff like cream of wheat and grits.

8. hot cereal sounds like you made a nice bowl of honey nut cheerios & milk, and then put it in the microwave

9. Hot cereal is a general category including oatmeal, grits, cream of rice, cream of wheat, and other porridges.

10. Oatmeal. Never heard of the other term used ever.

11. All oatmeal is hot cereal, not all hot cereal is oatmeal (“hot cereal” can also include things like cream of wheat, but never grits. Grits are their own category).

    That said, I’ve only ever seen “hot cereal” in writing, like on a sign at the grocery store or on a diner menu. I don’t think I’ve ever heard someone actually say it out loud. You’d get weird looks.

12. Did you grow up in the 1800’s?

13. Oatmeal (one word). Hot cereal sounds like somebody microwaved a bowl of cornflakes.

    I suppose grits and the like are technically hot cereals, but I wouldn’t use the term for them either in everyday speech.

14. I get the idea of hot cereal as the opposite of cold cereal, but usually I would call it oatmeal, cream of wheat, or grits since there are like only three I could think of.

15. Oatmeal

16. Oatmeal is made from oats. Hot cereal includes oatmeal, cream o’ wheat, and any other common cereal grains that are cooked and eaten hot.

    If you asked me for oatmeal I’d immediately know what you wanted. If you asked me for hot cereal I’d ask follow up questions to figure out which one you were referring to.

17. There are many types of “hot cereal” that are not oatmeal.

18. Saying oatmeal is the only hot cereal is like saying all rectangles are squares. There’s also at the very least cream of wheat.

19. Oatmeal. Who the fuck says hot cereal?

20. I’ve never heard anyone say hot cereal and I’ve always said oatmeal

21. To me hot cereal is generalized term and could be oatmeal, cream of wheat, cream of rice or any number of other things. Oatmeal is specific.

22. There are other types of hot cereal besides oatmeal… grits, cream of wheat, cream of rice, etc.

23. I have always called it oatmeal. Never used “hot cereal”, or seen anyone use it. I would probably use it to describe standard cereal being used with hot milk.

24. i literally just learned what hot cereal is from this post. iv seen hot cereal at restaurants and stuff and i always just thought it was like regular cereal with hot milk or something. i always call it oatmeal.

25. Oatmeal is oatmeal but hot cereal I think of farina or malt o meal.

26. Oatmeal is one type of hot cereal. I prefer Wheatena (another type), but force myself to eat oatmeal because the soluble fiber is supposed to be better for improving cholesterol levels. I’ll treat Cream of Wheat as comfort food, but it’s probably the least healthy (but easiest to digest) of the bunch.

    I was disappointed when first going out into the great wide world and discovering that most restaurants and dorm cafeterias only carried oatmeal as their hot cereal choice. I’d never use the terms interchangeably but some people seem to think they’re the same since they never get any other type of hot cereal in restaurants.

27. I only see hot cereal as like, an option that *includes* oatmeal. If I’m having oatmeal, it’s oatmeal. If I’m having cream of wheat, it’s cream of wheat. If there are both options on a buffet, that’s where the hot cereal is.

28. This is my first time hearing oatmeal, or anything for that matter, being called “hot cereal.”

29. Oatmeal. Hot cereal is a general term that includes oatmeal, Wheatena, or Cream of Wheat (farina).

30. What is I am not eating a oatmeal cereal, say warm shredded wheat?

31. Have never heard hot cereal only oatmeal.

32. I would call non-oatmeal hot porridge a ‘hot cereal’. Like if someone asked “what is Malto Meal?” I would say “it is a hot cereal”.

    The grocery store aisle signs say “hot cereal”

33. I’ve never heard the term hot cereal in my life, I honestly wouldn’t have known what you are talking about if you had said that to me 5 minutes ago.

34. If you call it oatmeal it lowers your cholesterol.

35. I have never heard of hot cereal.

36. Hot cereal could be Oatmeal or it could be cream of wheat or muesli . So if I want Oatmeal I say Oatmeal.

37. “Hot cereal” is more general to me – it could be oatmeal, but it could also be cream of wheat or even grits.

    Due to the fact that I deliberately mispronounce half of the words that I actually say in a bizarre, immature baby-talk, I always pronounce “oatmeal” “goatmeal.” Sorry not sorry.

38. It was always Hot cereal for me growing up. I Didn’t even know the term oatmeal was used for human food until I was in college. As my mom used to say “Hot cereal for the boys and oats for the horses.” (My grandpa kept/ bred horses.)

39. Hot cereal would be cereal you toss in the microwave