CATEGORY
Hot Wheat Cereal
2007 CHEFSBEST® AWARD FOR BEST TASTE WINNER
Cream of Wheat
What Makes a Great Hot Wheat Cereal?
Similar to grits, but made of wheat instead of corn, cream of wheat is a hot breakfast cereal that acts as a mild, smooth and creamy alternative to oatmeal. Stir in some brown sugar or honey for a warm, sweet edge.
Our chefs define high-quality quick-cooking hot wheat cereal as having a creamy appearance that is not too gloppy or lumpy. It should have a color ranging from ivory to light brown with visible specks of bran or germ. The noticeable aroma should feature some grainy and toasty notes with no aroma or flavor off notes, including burnt, stale wheat or acrid notes.
Hot wheat cereal is in taste balance when sweetness that comes naturally from the grain is the dominant basic taste. This sweetness should be at relatively low levels, and it should not come from added sugars or sweeteners. A low bitterness will follow the sweetness, and there should be no sourness. These tastes, incidentally, are innate to wheat.
Among the flavors, wheat should lead. As a shelf-stable product, wheat cereal is not expected to have fresh wheat flavors, but its flavor should not seem stale either. The flavor character should be simple, and it should reflect the aroma’s grainy and toasty notes.
A high-quality hot wheat cereal’s cut may vary from coarse to fine. A gloppy consistency indicates a high starch/low liquid product. While wheat cereal is expected to be somewhat gloppy, a smooth, creamy consistency should balance it out. Hot wheat should not be so thick that it is difficult to stir, and its dissolve should be long enough that it takes some time to eat and swallow completely. Once swallowed, the cereal’s finish should be clean. If the cereal is inappropriately starchy, an undesirable coating may remain on the palate.
Product Category Definition
The product judged was defined as quick-cooking hot wheat cereal for the consumer market, not including quick oat cereal, ready-to-eat cereal, cereal bars, granola, oatmeal or any organic cereal products.
Other Leading Brands:
Malt-O-Meal
ONE-STEP IDEAS
Sprinkle into simmering soups and stew to thicken them up a bit.
Stir in some cocoa and sweeten with sugar for a choco-riffic breakfast.
Stir into meatloaf instead of breadcrumbs for an extra moist dinnertime staple.
TOOLS
Email This
Share This
TASTING
TERMINOLOGY
PRODUCT
FUN FACTS
- Historians believe that wheat has been cultivated since 9,000 B.C.
- The United States produced 2.2 billion bushels of wheat in 2004.
- The difference between grits and cream of wheat is that grits come from corn while cream of wheat comes from wheat.
The ChefsBest Award for Best Taste is awarded to the brand rated highest overall among leading brands by independent professional chefs.
