Willie Nelson Has Eaten the Same 1-Ingredient Breakfast Every Day for Years

Country legend Willie Nelson likes his meals like he likes his music: simple and sincere.

His 75+ years of playing heartfelt tunes have taken Nelson to all corners of the world, but there are certain parts of his routine he’s kept the same throughout, starting with his breakfast of choice.

The Breakfast Willie Nelson Eats Every Day 

So, what’s kept the 10-time Grammy winner fueled through an accomplished career and all those years of running around with “Waylon and the boys“? Surprisingly, it’s mainly his breakfast.

In an interview with Southern Living, the Red-Headed Stranger shared how he tries to eat “sensibly” and how that all starts with his morning meal: oatmeal. “Actually, if you want to know the truth,” he said, “about all I eat is oatmeal in the morning, and bacon and eggs in the evening.”

If you think about it, oatmeal is a perfectly sensible breakfast for a cowboy who lives life on a tour bus (and has no plans of retiring any time soon). A warm bowl of oatmeal can be a consistent comfort in an ever-busy life on the road. Plus, it’s available just about anywhere you go. 

Nelson isn’t alone in his fondness for oatmeal. Ina Garten has stuck to her oatmeal and coffee routine religiously for the past 10 years, while Olivia Rodrigo claimed it’s her go-to order from—believe it or not—McDonald’s.

Although Nelson hasn’t shared how he takes his oatmeal, we doubt he dresses it up with much. Maybe some berries or a drizzle of maple syrup, but we’d assume the less fussy, the better for this hippie cowboy’s breakfast. 

However, Nelson’s appreciation for breakfast extends way beyond the morning. He’s a big fan of the breakfast-for-dinner concept, much like fellow country icon Garth Brooks. Bacon, eggs, or even a loaded sausage and gravy biscuit (as shared by his sister Bobbie Nelson with Edible Austin) will hit the spot for Nelson any hour of the day.

As for how he likes his eggs, the singer isn’t too picky. “I don’t think you could fix ’em any way I wouldn’t like ’em. I eat them raw,” he joked. “Soft scrambled, scrambled’s good.” We wonder whose scrambled eggs recipe we’d like better—Nelson’s or that of his good friend Dolly Parton.

Now, that’s not to say Nelson doesn’t have a soft spot for the heartier Texas fare he grew up on. He’s still a sucker for chicken fried steak, fried chicken—“all that good stuff,” he shared. But when it comes down to it, Shotgun Willie will take a simple menu of oatmeal, scrambled eggs, and bacon any day.

In his 91 years, the father of country music has given his fans plenty to appreciate: soul-stirring songs, nuggets of wisdom, and a solid case for making oatmeal the breakfast routine of legends.