Perfect Steel-Cut Oats
Learn how to make the most delicious steel-cut oats here! These oats are ready in under 40 minutes and reheat beautifully. Find topping suggestions, too.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on August 29, 2024
Have you seen the prices that restaurants are charging for bowls of steel-cut oats these days? Six dollars! Eight dollars! Twelve dollars in New York! My goodness. Apparently steel-cut oats are the new overpriced grandpa cardigans of the food scene.
Today, I’m sharing my tricks for making the creamiest, dreamiest steel-cut oats at home. Your bowl will taste like a million bucks. Or, at least ten dollars. I’m concerned that my photos don’t do this oatmeal justice (it’s not easy to make porridge look sexy), but trust me here. We’ll talk toppings later so you can make yours however you’d like.
Steel-cut oats shine in the texture and flavor departments. They are exceptionally creamy and delicious, especially if you toast them beforehand as instructed in my recipe below.
Steel-cut oats are also a fun way to change up your morning oatmeal routine. Unlike old-fashioned or instant oats, they reheat beautifully, so you can make one big batch that lasts all week.
All About Steel-Cut Oats
Steel-cut oats are a less refined version of the old-fashioned and quick-cooking oats you already know. All oats start out the same, as an oat groat.
Steel-cut oats are oat groats that have been sliced into smaller pieces, whereas old-fashioned oats are oat groats that have been flattened. They all contain the same pieces and parts, but the difference between slicing and flattening explains why steel-cut oats take longer to cook (around 30 minutes).
Nutritionally speaking, they are pretty much the exact same and share all of the health benefits of oats, so don’t split hairs there. Oats lower bad cholesterol, help stabilize blood sugar levels and on and on.
Steel-Cut Oat Topping Ideas
- Peanut butter, almond butter or pecan butter
- Homemade chia jam or your favorite jelly/jam
- Applesauce, preferably the chunky homemade variety, or grated fresh apple
- Coconut whipped cream or regular whipped cream
- Yogurt or a splash of cream
- Sliced bananas, apples, strawberries, pears, mangos…
- Fresh or frozen blueberries, raspberries, blackberries or pomegranate arils
- Dried fruit, like dried cranberries, cherries, blueberries, raisins, chopped dates or apricots…
- Toasted chopped nuts like walnuts, pecans, almonds…
- Toasted pepitas or sunflower seeds
- Flaxseed or chia seeds
- Toasted or raw shredded coconut
- Dark chocolate, either chopped or mini chocolate chips
You’ll find my go-to steel-cut oat cooking method below. The only hard part is deciding what to mix in and how to top your oatmeal. Looking for inspiration? Here are my official variations: Apple Steel-Cut Oatmeal, Morning Glory Oatmeal and Cranberry Orange Steel Cut Oats.
If you find yourself on a steel-cut oats kick, you might want to check out the overnight oats cooking method or this individual serving freezer option. I haven’t tried either, but I’m intrigued.
Please let me know how your oats turn out in the comments! I’m always so eager to hear from you.
Watch How to Cook Steel Cut Oats
Perfect Steel-Cut Oats
Learn how to make the most delicious steel-cut oats here! These ultra creamy, toasted steel-cut oats are ready in under 40 minutes and reheat beautifully for the rest of the week. I suggest doubling the recipe if you’d like to make breakfast for the whole week. Recipe as written below yields 4 modest servings (about 3 cups total, or ¾ cup per serving).
Ingredients
- 3 cups water
- 1 cup milk of choice: almond milk, cow’s milk, coconut milk, etc.
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil or unsalted butter
- 1 cup steel-cut oats (choose certified gluten-free oats if necessary)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- Optional mix-ins: ground spices like cinnamon, dried fruit like cranberries or chopped dates, toasted chopped nuts like walnuts, lemon or orange zest, etc.
Instructions
- In a large saucepan, combine the water and milk. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat. In the meantime, melt the coconut oil (or butter) in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Once shimmering, add the oats and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden and fragrant, around 2 minutes. This toasting step greatly enhances the flavor of the oats.
- Stir the oats into the simmering liquid. Reduce the heat to medium-low, adjusting as necessary to maintain a gentle simmer. Cook for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is very thick.
- Stir in the salt. Continue to simmer the mixture, stirring occasionally and reducing heat as necessary to prevent scorching on the bottom, until almost all of the liquid is absorbed, about 10 minutes. (If you doubled the recipe, your oatmeal might need an extra 5 minutes cooking time here.) The oatmeal will be very creamy when it’s done.
- Remove from heat and stir in any mix-ins that you’d like. Let the oatmeal rest for 5 minutes before serving so it has more time to thicken up and cool down a palatable temperature.
- Portion oatmeal into bowls and add any toppings you’d like to portions that you intend to serve immediately. Let any extra oatmeal cool completely before covering and refrigerating for future breakfasts.
Notes
Recipe adapted from The America’s Test Kitchen Healthy Family Cookbook.
Make it dairy free/vegan: Use coconut oil or vegan butter instead of regular butter, and choose a dairy-free milk (or substitute water for the milk).
Make it gluten free: Use certified gluten-free oats and make sure your mix-ins/toppings are gluten free, too.
Make it nut free: Easy. Use nut-free milk and don’t add nuts.
Update 10/18/2016: Finally got around to taking better photos of this recipe, so it might look a little different, but the recipe is the same!
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
I double this recipe because my family likes it so much and it reheats so well! I like to reuse the already-hot pan the oats were toasted in to toast toppings like nuts or coconut flakes while the oatmeal cooks.
Thank you for your review, Emma!
I am quite happy I found this. I get my oats from an Amish store a short distance from home (Dodge County, Wisconsin)…and the steel cut oat groats are incredibly inexpensive (large bags). This recipe really lets the full taste of the oats explode! Thanks!
Loved these oats – I had never thought of toasting oats before – Brilliant, they were terrific :)
I love to hear that, Janie! Thank you for your review.
Can I use steel cut oats in baking?
Hi Dale, it depends on the recipe.
Love this recipe. Over the years I always come back to it. Thanks!
You’re welcome, Vickie!
Making a batch now as it starts and ends Monday to Friday in a delicious nutritious and well topped up morning. Love adding the oats toasted. Simple and marvellous recipe. Thanks Kate!
Oops I used steel cut organic oats in my cookie recipe, uncooked texture is it unhealthy?
Hi! What is the reason for using part milk and part water? Will it work ok if I use all milk?
I prefer this best as written. You can try it and see what you think.
I’m finding the measurement o do steal cut oats to liquid way off! There is way too much liquid. What are others doing?
Hi Erin, I have made this several times and it works well. Have you tired it? If so, what issues are you running into?
I have tried it a couple times and it’s takes twice as long as indicated in the recipe for the liquid to be absorbed. Otherwise it is soup. ♀️ I followed the directions too.
This was delicious! I would not have thought to toast the oats first, but wow!! Toasting them made such a difference in the flavor! I added 2 Tbl. pure maple syrup, slivered almonds and blueberries.
I am looking forward to eating it for the rest of the week!
I love to hear that, Joan! Thank you for your review.
I love this recipe! Doubling it and making it about once a week means I always have a filling breakfast at the ready. Topping it with Greek yogurt, nut butter, seeds, maple syrup and fresh blueberries gives every morning a hint of sweetness. Thank you for sharing it!!
You’re welcome, Dalynn!
Hi Kate! I made this recipe.coconut milk, added dates and raisins, diced apple and cinnamon. no need to sweeten as the fruit made it sweet enough. thank you! It was both filling and nutritious. Keeps great in fridge for several days covered. Yummy!
I added some shredded coconut during the last five minutes of cooking, then drizzled in some vanilla, and 1/8 tsp of cinnamon at the end and served it with Greek yogurt and fresh blueberries. VERY satisfying breakfast…all enjoyed!
Thank you for sharing how you made this, DJ!
Yummy, I doubled the recipe and I added in an extra 1/2 cup of oats. I did have to add an additional 10 minutes to the simmer time and 10 minutes for the cool down. Other than that it’s perfect! Thank you
You’re welcome, Brittney!
Just querying your statement that steel cut oats have the same nutritional profile as rolled oats. They are less processed (which has to be a good thing!) and have a lower GI, is my understanding. So worth the extra effort!
That’s great to hear, Bec!
Hi. Does toasting the oats take the place of soaking them overnight in terms of softening them up? If I don’t soak steel cut oats overnight they are awfully firm. Thanks.
William
Hi William, have you tried cooking them this way? If they cook long enough, they cook up great. Toasting provides delicious flavor.
Another truly winning recipe. This is THE BEST oatmeal I’ve ever made at home. I love your recipes Kate! I’ve probably made well over 40 of them and they are always a delicious, nutritious highlight of my day. I have learned to cook (and to enjoy cooking!) so much better through your recipes over the years, many of them are my staples. I can’t thank you enough! Your recipes have helped me through some really difficult transitions and brought me so much comfort. Whenever I don’t know what to make, I return to your website and feel inspired!
That’s great to hear, Kelly!
Oh my gosh! This recipe is perfect! I did add a little maple syrup, vanilla, and cinnamon. The salt at the end brought out all the floors perfectly! It looks like so much liquid at the beginning…in the end it was thick and creamy! Thank you!
You’re welcome, Ann!
It tastes like a yummy brown rice chao/congee/jook!
I topped it with pork floss because it seemed so savory to me. I’ll try it with dried cranberries and nuts tomorrow. I don’t know what the original America’s Test Kitchen recipe is like but they usually have great albeit sometimes fussy recipes. This recipe was worth the effort though!
I bought the steel cut oats from the bins of my local co-op “health” supermarket in hopes of cutting down on packaging/plastic waste. I hope more stores listen to consumers, and that consumers pressure retailers to make better environmental decisions.
Thank you Kate!
I haven’t tried this recipe yet but for everyone who wants a more hands off approach with lower risk of burning, we cook steel cut oats regularly using a slow cooker (which takes a few hours) or the instant pot (8 minutes low pressure for 1.5 cups Bob’s Red Mill quick cook steel cut). Best to check your brand of oats for timing. With the instant pot, I will try sauteeing the oats first before cooking.
(With quinoa, we toast before cooking in the Instant pot.)