I discovered what our Honorable Ancestors already knew, that you don’t need to add sweetener to oatmeal, in fact it’s better if you use it to thicken a thin soup into a thick stew. From oatmeal I branched out and discovered several ways to make pearl barley better than rice. The simplest one is to simmer it in your leftover pickle brine, but there are other ways, such as using bouillon, broth, or stock. Simmered bulgur wheat can replace rice (though my stomach won’t tolerate it) and many Ukrainians also like buckwheat simmered gently with butter, onions, mushrooms—and I like to add canned corn.
Centuries? I’m guessing you never took a history course.