Where do I purchase steel cut oats?u003cbr/u003e

You can purchase steel-cut oats at any grocery store. My favorite brand is Bob’s Red Mill, but I’ve also used many excellent store brands. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eYou can find steel-cut oats in the cereal section or are often sold in bulk too.

Can this slow cooker oatmeal recipe cook while I sleep?u003cbr/u003e

I’m going to go against popular opinion here. u003cemu003eu003cstrongu003eNo, I don’t think this recipe can cook for 8 hours or longer. u003c/strongu003eu003c/emu003eu003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eOver the last ten years, I’ve made steel cut oats in the crockpot many times, and the few times I tried to cook it overnight, it resulted in mush that stuck to the sides.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eIn my experience, the perfect cooking temperature and time is 4 hours on low and then 2 hours on warm. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eI don’t recommend cooking it over 4 - 5 hours on low because it will burn and turn into mush. u003cemu003eAlso, I never recommend cooking slow cooker steel-cut oatmeal on the high setting.u003c/emu003eu003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eOf course, that’s been my experience using my slow cooker.

What is the water to oats ratio when cooking steel-cut oats?u003cbr/u003e

When cooking steel cut oats on the stovetop or in the slow cooker, you’ll need 4 cups of water for 1 cup of oats. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eDouble both when you want to make a larger batch.

Slow Cooker Steel Cut Oats

Jump to Recipe

This slow cooker steel cut oats recipe uses simple, inexpensive pantry ingredients to prepare a delicious healthy breakfast. Make a big batch on the weekend, store portions in the fridge or freezer for quick heat, and eat breakfast all week!

Top a bowl of warm oatmeal with fruit, nut butter, shredded coconut, or pure maple syrup for a wholesome meal that’ll keep you full until lunchtime.

We are big steel-cut oats fans, especially my youngest daughter. I make a batch every Sunday for her to eat all week for breakfast. She loves it with a swirl of maple syrup and likes to pile on the fruit and other toppings.

Most of the time, I’ll make this easy steel cut oats recipe on the stovetop. However, on busier meal prep days, I’ll break out the crockpot and let it do all the work.

Reasons You’ll Love This Slow Cooker Steel Cut Oats Recipe

Simple pantry ingredients – To make a basic pot of steel-cut oats, all you need are oats and water. I’ll give some other variations below, but essentially, all that’s required are two ingredients.
It’s an inexpensive, healthy breakfast – one serving of steel-cut oats is between .40 – .50 cents. And that’s for organic!
You can easily double the recipe – It’s easy to make a large batch of steel-cut oatmeal to feed a crowd or freeze for later.
Easiest breakfast meal prep recipe. Steel-cut oats can be made ahead for the week or frozen into portions for a quick healthy breakfast. I’ll give more meal prep tips below.

Ingredients

Steel-cut oats (also called Irish oats). These oats are less processed than rolled oats. Instead of being steam and rolled flat to speed up cooking time, steel-cut oats are the full groat cut in half with a blade. This is why steel-cut oats take longer to cook.

However, I prefer steel-cut oats over rolled when it comes to a warm bowl of oatmeal. Cooked steel cut oats are creamy and chewy with a little bit of bite to them.

Rolled oats often result in mushy oatmeal. However, rolled oats work better in other oatmeal recipes like overnight oats, baked oatmeal cups, or breakfast cookies.

Steel-cut oats are the perfect choice for cooking in a slow cooker.

Unsweetened almond milk – You can certainly make this crockpot steel cut oat recipe using just water, but I love to add unsweetened almond or coconut milk to the recipe for extra creaminess.

You could use dairy milk, but I like to keep this recipe vegan, so I use non-dairy milk instead.

Water – I use hot tap water when making this recipe.

Pure Vanilla Extract – A couple of teaspoons of vanilla extract infuses some extra flavor into the oatmeal. However, it is an optional ingredient, so you can leave it out of the recipe.

Cinnamon – This is another optional ingredient, but it does add a nice warm flavor to the oatmeal recipe.

Salt – A pinch of salt makes all of the other flavors pop.

FAQs

Where do I purchase steel cut oats?

You can purchase steel-cut oats at any grocery store. My favorite brand is Bob’s Red Mill, but I’ve also used many excellent store brands.

You can find steel-cut oats in the cereal section or are often sold in bulk too.

Can this slow cooker oatmeal recipe cook while I sleep?

I’m going to go against popular opinion here. No, I don’t think this recipe can cook for 8 hours or longer.

Over the last ten years, I’ve made steel cut oats in the crockpot many times, and the few times I tried to cook it overnight, it resulted in mush that stuck to the sides.

In my experience, the perfect cooking temperature and time is 4 hours on low and then 2 hours on warm.

I don’t recommend cooking it over 4 – 5 hours on low because it will burn and turn into mush. Also, I never recommend cooking slow cooker steel-cut oatmeal on the high setting.

Of course, that’s been my experience using my slow cooker.

What is the water to oats ratio when cooking steel-cut oats?

When cooking steel cut oats on the stovetop or in the slow cooker, you’ll need 4 cups of water for 1 cup of oats.

Double both when you want to make a larger batch.

Can I just use water when cooking steel-cut oats?

I like to use non-dairy milk to add creaminess but cooking steel-cut oatmeal using just water will work fine.

Do I need to toast the oats first?

Toasting the oats is an optional step, so you don’t need to do it. However, toasting the oats adds a delicious nutty flavor, so I highly recommend it if you have the time.

Do I need to rinse steel-cut oats?

I’ve been preparing slow cooker steel-cut oatmeal in the ten years I’ve never rinsed the oats. So, from my experience, no, you don’t.

cooked steel cut oats with shredded coconut and berries

Cooking Notes

To prevent sticking, spray the insert liberally with cooking spray. You can also use a slow cooker liner.

Sweeten the cooked oatmeal afterward. You might notice there’s no sugar in this recipe. I do this on purpose.

I find it easier to control the calories when I add the sweetener after it’s cooked. Also, we can all control the sweetness to our tastes.

Topping ideas to sweeten oatmeal:

Pure maple syrup
Brown sugar
Coconut palm sugar
Jam or jelly
Stevia or monk fruit
Chocolate chips
Banana

Add other toppings. You can enjoy a simple bowl of oatmeal or get creative and build the perfect bowl of oatmeal with your favorite toppings.

Keep in mind that if you’re trying to lose weight, then choose healthier toppings and measure out everything before adding it to the oatmeal. Even healthy calories can add up.

More topping ideas for oatmeal:

Yogurt
Nuts
Berries
Chopped apple
Dried fruit
Shredded coconut
Nut butter

You can even make savory oatmeal by adding eggs and sauteed vegetables.

Stir in superfoods. Including superfoods is a fantastic way to pack extra nutrition into a bowl of oatmeal.

Superfoods to add to oatmeal

Flax seeds
Chia seeds
Hemp hearts
Goji berries
Cocao nibs or powder
Coconut oil

Supplies to Prepare This Slow Cooker Steel Cut Oats Recipe

Slow cooker – I have a programmable Hamilton Beach 5 ½ quart slow cooker and 6-quart Crockpot; both work great cooking steel-cut oats.
Glass storage containers – I love these Pyrex and Ello containers for storing cooked steel-cut oatmeal in the refrigerator.
Souper Cubes – Using these silicone trays is my favorite way to freeze steel-cut oats into 1-cup portioned out blocks.

How to Make Slow Cooker Steel Cut Oats

Spray the insert of the slow cooker liberally with cooking spray.

Heat 1 tablespoon of butter or coconut oil in a medium saute pan. Once the butter melts, then add in the steel cut oats.

Cook for 1-2 minutes or until fragrant and toasty.

Add the oats, water, milk, pure vanilla extract, ground cinnamon, and salt to the slow cooker. Give it a couple of stirs.

Cover and cook on low for 4 hours and then on warm for 2 hours. If you can stir it a couple of times while it cooks, it will help prevent the oats from sticking and burning.

Serve with your favorite sweetener and toppings.

bowl of oatmeal with almond butter and strawberries on top

Storing and Reheating Tips

Steel-cut oats store and reheat perfectly, making it great for weekly meal prep.

To store in the refrigerator, place the cooked and cooled steel-cut oats into glass meal containers. You can use a large or container or portion it out into smaller ones. To reheat the oatmeal, put it into a microwave-safe dish and heat on high for 1-2 minutes or until hot. Add your favorite oatmeal toppings and enjoy.

To freeze steel-cut oatmeal, portion out into 1-cup Souper cube trays and freeze. After the steel-cut oats are frozen, remove the blocks from the trays and place them into a labeled gallon-sized freezer bag.

You can also freeze into portions using quart-size freezer bags.

To reheat, remove the oatmeal from the plastic bag and place it into a microwave-safe dish. Heat on high for 2-3 minutes or until hot. Top with your favorite toppings and enjoy.