How to Make Oatmeal: Types, Cooking Methods & Variations

Full of plant-based whole grains, fiber and protein, oatmeal is a delicious and nourishing way to start your day! Today I'm going to talk about the different kinds of oatmeal, how to cook them and my favorite flavor variations. I hope you're hungry!

I can't believe I've never written a blog post all about oatmeal.

If you haven't noticed by now, we are an oatmeal-obsessed family!

I have an entire category centered around Vegan Oatmeal Recipes and even a separate category for all my favorite Vegan Overnight Oatmeal Recipes.

So yes, I eat oats almost every morning and I'm constantly enjoying different types, cooking methods and flavors.

Oats never get boring to me!

For example, one morning I might have these Healthy Cookie Dough Overnight Oats. Then the next day I'll enjoy some Vegan Brownie Batter Baked Oatmeal. Oh, and I never get sick of my veggie-filled Stovetop Oatmeal.

I've been making and eating oatmeal for years now, so I just figured everyone else knew how to make oatmeal as well. Hence why I've never dedicated an entire blog post to my favorite food.

However, I now know that so many people are new to oatmeal or don't know how to cook it and/or make it taste good.

So that's what we're talking about today!

I'll be diving into the following main topics:

• Types of oatmeal
• Oatmeal nutrition facts
• How to cook oatmeal
• Oatmeal recipes and flavor variations
• Fun oatmeal toppings

I hope you all are as excited as I am!

Let's jump in!

Different Types of Oatmeal

While I'm sure a lot of us grew up on packets of sugary, instant oatmeal, that's actually not the only type of oatmeal available!

When it comes to different types of oatmeal, there are three main types: steel cut oats, rolled oats and quick-cooking oats. Below I'll share more details about each type, all of which are delicious in their own way when cooked properly!

Steel Cut Oatmeal

Steel cut oatmeal is the least processed of all the oats. Basically, steel cut oatmeal is made up of oat groats that have been cut up into pieces.

Steel cut oats take the longest to cook, are chewy in texture and retain their shape best after cooking.

Old-Fashioned Rolled Oats

Rolled oats are oat groats that have been steamed and then "rolled" out into flat, disk-like shapes. Even though they are slightly more processed, absorb more liquid and cook faster than steel cut oats, they still maintain their shape fairly well after cooking.

Rolled oats are often used to make granola and granola bars and are often added to baked goods such as cookies.

Quick-Cooking Oats

Quick-cooking oats (also known as instant oats or 1-minute oats) are rolled oats that have been cut into small pieces. Therefore, they are the most processed of the three kinds of oats.

Because quick oats have been both flattened and cut, they take the shortest amount of time to cook and lose a lot of their shape when cooking, which creates a more uniform, creamy (or mushy!) texture.

Oatmeal Nutrition Facts

Oatmeal is such a nutritious food and today I want to highlight some of its health benefits.

Oatmeal is a whole grain. Even if you are eating the quick-cooking variety, you are still enjoying a whole grain food!

Oats are full of complex carbohydrates and fiber, which allow you to have sustained, slow-burning energy all morning long. AKA you won't be hungry 5 minutes after finishing a bowl!

Worried about getting enough protein? Oatmeal is a good source of protein, providing about 5 grams of protein per serving. Then, when you add in some mix-ins and fun toppings, it's easy to bump the protein count up to 15 grams!

Oatmeal is low in fat. The little fat that is found in oatmeal is mostly poly- and monounsaturated fats.

Containing a fair amount of manganese, iron, magnesium, zinc and selenium, oats are a good source of certain vitamins and minerals.

All of these aspects combined mean that oatmeal can provide some health benefits including the following:

• lower cholesterol
• aid in weight loss or management
• control blood sugar levels
• improve gut health
• AND MORE!

So if you're on the fence on whether or not to eat oatmeal on a regular basis, I'd definitely recommend giving it a try!

How to Cook Oatmeal

Below we'll talk about the main cooking methods for oatmeal including using the stove-top or microwave, soaking them overnight or baking them in the oven.

However, before we talk more in depth about the different cooking methods, let's hash out a basic oatmeal recipe.

Basic Old-Fashioned or Quick-Cooking Oatmeal Recipe

The recipe below is for cooking old-fashioned or quick cooking oats on the stove-top. For a single serving you'll need:

• ½ cup of oats (old-fashioned or quick cooking)
• 1 cup of liquid (water, milk or a combination of the two)
• Optional: sweetener to taste
• Optional: pinch of salt

Place the oats, liquid and a pinch of salt into a sauce pan. Bring the mixture to a simmer. Reduce the heat if necessary and then cook the oatmeal over the low heat, stirring often, until the oats absorb the liquid and become thick. Stir in sweetener to taste before pouring the thickened oats into a bowl and topping them with your favorite toppings (see below for ideas!)

Basic Steel Cut Oatmeal Recipe

Steel cut oats require more liquid than old-fashioned or quick-cooking oats as they are heartier and less-processed. Therefore they need to absorb more liquid in order to become soft.

To make a single-serving of steel cut oats on the stove-top, you'll need:

• ¼ cup steel-cut oats
• 1 cup liquid (water, milk or a combination of both)
• Optional: pinch of salt
• Optional: sweetener to taste

Place the steel cut oats, liquid and a pinch of salt into a sauce pan. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook the oats, stirring often, until they have absorbed the liquid and thickened. This will take about 20-30 minutes. Stir in sweetener to taste before before pouring the oats into a bowl and adding your desired toppings.

Oatmeal to Liquid Ratio: In general, when cooking old-fashioned or quick-cooking oats, you'll need 1 part oats to 2 parts liquid. So for a single serving of oatmeal, you'll place ½ cup of oats into a pot along with 1 cup of liquid.

For the liquid, you can use all water, all milk or a combination of water and milk. I find that a combination of half water and half milk provides the perfect amount of creaminess!

You can also use different brands/types of milk to add flavor to your oatmeal. Try coconut milk for a tropical spin or cashew milk for extra creaminess!

How to Sweeten Oatmeal: There are numerous ways you can sweeten your bowl of oats. Liquid sweeteners such as maple syrup or agave are great sources of sweetness. You can also use dry sweeteners such as coconut sugar, brown sugar or cane sugar. Lastly, fresh fruit also makes a great natural sweetener for oatmeal! I love to stir ½ of a super ripe, mashed banana into my oats!

It may sound counter-intuitive, but adding a pinch of salt to your oats helps to bring out the sweetness, so don't skip this step!

How to Cook Oatmeal in the Microwave

Yes, you can cook your oats in the microwave! Old-fashioned or quick-cooking oats, that is. Steel cut oats should be cooked on the stove-top.

Depending on which oats you are making (whether quick or old-fashioned oats), the cooking time will vary.

To cook oatmeal in the microwave, combine your oats, liquid and a pinch of salt in a microwave-safe bowl. Then follow the cooking times below:

• Quick-Cooking Oats: 1 ½ - 2 minutes.
• Old-Fashioned Oats: 2 ½ - 3 minutes.

Once cooked, stir your oats and top them with whatever toppings you desire.

How to Make Overnight Oats

Another way to prepare oatmeal is to soak them overnight. This is called overnight oats!

To make basic vegan overnight oats, use the following ingredients:

• ½ cup quick or old-fashioned oats
• 1 tablespoon chia seeds
• Pinch of salt
• 1 cup milk
• Optional: sweetener to taste

Place the oats, chia seeds and a pinch of salt into a jar and stir to combine. Pour in your milk of choice and sweetener to taste and stir everything well. Seal the jar and place the oats in the fridge to soak for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight.

I have a whole blog post on different overnight oatmeal flavors, which you can read HERE!

How to Bake Oatmeal

If you enjoy cake or drier oatmeal, then you will love baked oatmeal! To make baked oatmeal, you combine all of the ingredients in a mixing bowl before pouring the mixture into a greased baking dish and baking the oats until dry and set.

I have a whole video on how to make baked oatmeal as well as 6 delicious baked oatmeal flavors on my YouTube channel. You definitely need to try out my Brownie Baked Oatmeal Recipe! You can watch the video by clicking on the thumbnail below!

Vegan Oatmeal Recipes and Flavor Variations

Like I mentioned at the start of this post, I have a plethora of oatmeal and overnight oatmeal recipes already on the blog. So if you decide to work through all my oatmeal recipes, you won't run out of flavors or recipes any time soon!

However, I wanted to highlight some of my favorite oatmeal recipes on the blog to help you get started. I'll list them out below:

• Maple Pecan Baked Oatmeal
• Healthy Cookie Dough Overnight Oats
• Brownie Batter Baked Oatmeal
• How to Add Vegetables to Your Oatmeal
• Protein Overnight Oats with Zucchini
• Make-Ahead Carrot Cake Baked Oatmeal

I'd love to know if you give any of these different recipes a try and what you think! Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!

Fun and Delicious Oatmeal Toppings

While oatmeal, when cooked properly, is amazing on its own, toppings can really take a simple bowl of oats to the next level.

Below I'll share with you some fun, vegan oatmeal toppings that I love and enjoy on a regular basis. Definitely give some of them a try! You can either keep things simple and just add one toppings or get fancy and add a bunch of different toppings.

The possibilities are endless!

• Fresh fruit
• Frozen fruit
• Dried fruit
• Nut/seed butters
• Chopped nuts
• Seeds
• Coconut flakes
• Shredded coconut
• Granola
• Crunchy cereal
• Chocolate chips/square
• Cacao nibs
• Maple syrup
• Sugar: brown, coconut or cane sugar
• Non-dairy yogurt
• Vegan butter

Mix and match different toppings to create some amazing oatmeal bowls!

📖 Recipe