In the world of oats, the steel-cut variety is at the top of the “good-for-you” food chain.
Why? They are:
- minimally processed
- nutrient-rich
- digest more slowly than quick oats (which means your kid won’t be sniffing around for a hit of sugar come 10 a.m.)
I’m crazy about steel-cut oats — also known as Irish oats — but not so fond of the fact that that they take FOREVER to cook. It’s the risotto of breakfast. And who has time for risotto at seven in the morning?
So, try this shortcut: overnight steel cut oatmeal.
All that’s required is giving your oats a little head start on the stove the night before.
In the morning, get them brewing again while you work on making coffee. Finish with milk, raisins, diced fruit, honey, or any other favorite toppings and you’ve got a breakfast that will hold you well into the lunch hour.
Overnight Steel Cut Oatmeal
Giving your steel cut oats a head start the night before makes all the difference for a quick breakfast come morning. Cook them until tender and serve with your favorite oatmeal fixings.
Servings 4 servings
Ingredients
- 4 cups water
- 1 cup steel cut oats (Irish oats)
- Pinch salt
Instructions
-
In a medium pot, bring water to a boil. Add the oats and salt, give it a good stir, bring it back to a boil. Once it boils, put on the lid and remove from heat.
-
Transfer to the fridge overnight.
-
In the morning, remove the lid and return the pot to the stove over high heat. When the liquid boils, drop the heat until it simmers and cook until warm and tender (like you are on your better days), about 10 minutes.
-
Serve with your favorite oatmeal toppings.
Comments
02.10.2011 at4:28 PM #
Humaira
This might be a good way to get my daughter who doesn’t drink milk to have a decent breakfast. Recently a friend told me she cooks her steel cut oatmeal in a rice cooker overnight, maybe another option. I don’t have a rice cooker so I will give your method a go.
02.10.2011 at9:56 PM #
Heather
I may actually finally cook steel-cut oats! Thanks for this tip; can’t wait to try it.
05.20.2011 at3:04 AM #
Sabrina
Purchased steel-cut oats for the very first time. Totally forgot about the 30 minute cooking time this morning so bagged it. Doing your overnight method right now.
05.20.2011 at3:04 AM #
momskitchenhandbook
Great. Let me know how it goes for you.
10.12.2011 at7:23 AM #
Erzsi
Marion Cunningham’s Breakfast Book’s recipe involves cooking the steel cut oats overnight in a slow-cooker. My family usually adds some combination of cinnamon, brown sugar or maple syrup or molasses, raisins and/or chopped apples to their bowls of oatmeal. What remains in the slow-cooker goes into yeast-raised bread dough to which I add a tbsp or two of wheat gluten for better rising. If there isn’t time to wait for the dough to rise and bake right away, I shape the kneaded dough into loaves, place them in greased bread pans, brush them with oil, cover them loosely with plastic wrap, and refrigerate them for 2 to 24 hours. When it’s time to bake them, I place the pans of dough on the counter for an hour to reach room temperature, preheat the oven to 375* F, and bake the loaves for 35-40 minutes. After baking and tipping out the loaves onto cooling racks, I brush the tops with butter. You can do this with any basic bread dough recipe, and regard the oatmeal porridge as a substitution for some of the flour and liquid in the recipe. Don’t worry too much about exact amounts, for the dough will reach the right texture as you adjust the flour quantity while kneading.
10.12.2011 at7:23 AM #
Katie Morford
I’m intrigued. I’ve heard of adding cooked oatmeal to muffin recipes, but never yeast-rising bread. I’m curious as to how the oatmeal impacts flavor and texture. I appreciate your sharing that.
Katie
12.16.2011 at7:07 PM #
Mary
Love this idea. Am definitely going to try this week!
Mary
05.05.2012 at8:54 PM #
Max Millard
5-5-12
Hi Katie,
This comment isn’t really for your Comments site but just a message to you. I hope it’s all right to send it this way.
I read about your blog in this week’s PAge, and tried your oatmeal idea last night. It worked perfectly. I love steel-cut oats, but don’t usually have the patience to make them in the morning and wait for an hour. I will check more of your recipes from now on.
I’m an ED teacher at SFFS and do cooking with the kids every Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday. Maybe you can recommend a cookie recipe for my Tuesday cooking club with middle school. It would have to be something without nuts that can be prepared and cooked in the space of an hour.
I remember Virginia from her drawing of a gingerbread house for the school literary magazine.
Cheers,
/\/\ /\ ><
05.05.2012 at8:54 PM #
Katie Morford
Hi Max,
Thanks for your comment. Maybe you could email me at [email protected] and let me know what kind of cookie you are looking for….do you want something fairly wholesome? Chocolate? A rolled cookie? I’m happy to share suggestions!
Thanks.
Katie
05.08.2012 at7:34 AM #
Christina
I made this oatmeal this morning for the first time. When I took the top off of the pot there was some green liquid on top of the oatmeal. Is that normal? Is it OK to eat it?
05.08.2012 at7:34 AM #
Katie Morford
Hi there. That’s a new one for me…but after a little poking around, it seems it may be caused by a reaction from cooking the oats in water with a high mineral content (hard water/well water). Here is a link with some details: http://www.ehow.com/info_8054241_causes-foam-steel-cut-oats.html Hope that helps!
09.29.2012 at2:23 PM #
Nichola Whitehead
Great blog! Although I’m dubious about making porridge without milk! Any suggestions for incorporating it?
Thank you! X
09.29.2012 at2:23 PM #
Katie Morford
I hear you. I would suggest substituting 1 to 2 cups of milk for the water and then storing it overnight in the fridge.
06.29.2013 at10:27 PM #
Maria
Hi are you sure you aren’t at risk for some bacteria leaving them sitting out afrer cooking?
06.29.2013 at10:27 PM #
Katie Morford
I would expect the risk to be minimal, but if you are concerned, you can simply store overnight in the fridge.
10.24.2022 at12:37 PM #
Deb
Just curious—I love steel cut oats – why not 3 minute steel cut oats ? …and they are steel cut .😊
10.24.2022 at12:37 PM #
Katie Morford
That’s a terrific option, too! That said, the 3-minute oats aren’t widely available (at least where I live), so I find this recipe comes in handy.