This is my family’s favorite steel cut oats recipe! I do it on the stovetop, but I’ve also included tips for cooking steel cut oats in a slow cooker or pressure cooker (like the Instant Pot).
My family usually eats oatmeal for breakfast. We love it almost any way we can, like this easy oatmeal recipe with rolled oats, our baked oatmeal, and even turned into energy balls with peanut butter and honey. We call steel cut oats “sweet oats” in our house and we absolutely love them.
Steel cut oats are whole oat groats cut into small pieces (instead of being rolled into flat discs like rolling oats). They take longer to cook than rolled oats but are delicious. My recipe is super easy, too! I can’t wait for you to try it.
How to Make Steel Cut Oats
I like to cook steel cut oats on the stovetop. However, if you prefer the hands-free method, you can make them in the slow cooker or the pressure cooker! You will find detailed instructions for those methods in the recipe below. (Just a warning: we don’t recommend cooking steel cut oats in the microwave. If you need a quick oatmeal recipe, check out our easy oatmeal with microwave cooking tips.)
When I cook steel cut oats on the stovetop, I stick to a simple ratio: one part oats to three parts liquid, which ensures perfectly cooked, creamy oats every time. Keep in mind that the amount of liquid may vary slightly if you are using a slow cooker or pressure cooker. You’ll find some tips for those appliances in the recipe below.
To make steel cut oats, start by sautéing them in a tablespoon of butter, coconut oil, or vegan butter for about 2 minutes, adding a nutty flavor to the oats. Then, pour water and bring to a slow boil, uncovered. Cook for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the oats are soft and have absorbed most of the water.
For extra creaminess, skip in 1/2 to 1 cup of milk. Finally, customize your dish with spices, a pat of butter, and a touch of sweetness like maple syrup or honey. More top suggestions are below!
How to Serve Steel Cut Oats
You can stir whatever you like into cooked oatmeal, but here are some extra stir-fries:
- Grated or sliced fruit. I love bananas, strawberries, and blueberries
- Toasted nuts and seeds such as walnuts, pecans, hazelnuts, or roasted pumpkin seeds.
- Nut butter such as peanut butter, almond butter, or cashew butter
- Chia seeds, hemp seeds, or ground flax
- Splash cream, milk, butter, yogurt, or non-dairy milk (like homemade oat milk)
- Vanilla extract or spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, or pumpkin pie spice
- Brown sugar, honey, or maple syrup
- Dried fruits such as cranberries, mulberries, or raisins
- Sautéed spinach or kale and a scrambled or soft-boiled egg
Easy Steel Cut Oats
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Steel cut oats are whole oat groats that have been cut into small pieces (instead of being rolled into flat discs like rolled oats). They take longer to cook than other types of oats but are delicious. When cooked, steel oats have a creamy, chewy texture. We love them filled with fruit and peanut butter, but see our article above for top suggestions.
For a faster cooking time, consider soaking the oats in water the night before you plan to make them. Soaking them will cut the cooking time by about half.
4 Services
You will need it
2 tablespoons butter or vegan butter
1 cup steel cut oats
3 cups of water
Pinch of salt
1/2 to 1 cup milk, dairy or non-dairy
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon sweetener such as brown sugar, honey, or maple syrup
Optional oatmeal ingredients like peanut butter, fruit, nuts, and seeds
Directions
- Stovetop Steel Cut Oats
1Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the oats and sauté them in the butter for a minute or two or until they smell nutty.
2Mix the oats with water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat so that the water is not too expensive. Cook for about 20 minutes, stirring once or twice to lift any oats stuck to the bottom of the pan.
3Add milk, butter, cinnamon and honey. Cook for 5 to 10 minutes or until the oats are soft and chewy. If the oatmeal seems dry, add more water or milk. Serve with your favorite oatmeal toppings.
- Slow Cooker Steel Cut Oats
1Slow cooker steel cut oats are much creamier than when cooked using other methods (think creamy, sweet oatmeal pudding). To cook steel cut oats in a slow cooker, combine 1 cup of steel cut oats with 4 cups of water. Add any spices you like (I add 1 tablespoon butter, 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, and a pinch of salt). Close the pressure cooker and cook on LOW for 7 to 8 hours or on HIGH for 3 to 4 hours. Stir in the oats before serving. For an extra creamy oatmeal, skip 1/2 to 1 cup of milk.
- Instant Pot Steel Cut Oats
1To cook steel cut oats in a pressure cooker like the Instant Pot, combine 1 cup steel cut oats with 3 cups water, a pinch of salt, 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon, and 1 tablespoon butter (or -vegan). Add the oats, secure the lid, and cook on the manual or pressure cooker setting for 3 minutes on high pressure. When the cooking time is up, allow the cooker to naturally release the pressure. Stir well before serving. For creamier oats, add 1/2 to 1 cup of milk.
Tips from Adam and Joanne
- To save: Store cooked rolled oats in the refrigerator for up to 5 days and freeze for up to 3 months. Steel cut oats thicken as they sit, so you may need to add water or milk when you reheat them to achieve the right consistency again.
- Soaking steel oats: You do not need to soak rolled oats before cooking them. However, if you soak rolled oats in water (usually for 8 hours or overnight), they will soften a bit. Since oats are soft, they cook quickly the next day. Soaking can also help unlock some nutrients in the oats, making them more readily available for us to absorb. If you plan to soak the rolled oats, the stovetop cooking time will be cut in half.
- For gluten-free oatmealmake sure the oats and any toppings you plan to use are gluten-free.
- The nutrition facts given below are estimates. We did not include any of the above recordings in the calculation. We took all the milk from the figures.
Food Per Serving
Serving Size
1/4 of the recipe
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Calories
215 calories
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Perfect Oils
9g
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Saturated Fats
4.5g
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Cholesterol
18.3 mg
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Sodium
60 mg
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Carbohydrate
28.7g
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Dietary fiber
3.9g
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Total Sugar
5.9g
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Proteins
5.6g
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