Crockpot oatmeal

Another food & drink thread for me. I've been on a roll lately.

I am thinking very seriously of buying some steel-cut oats and giving them a try. My problem is that I don't have 30 minutes to cook breakfast during the week. I like the idea of a slow cooker. We have one of those. We don't have a rice cooker and I'm not going to buy one just yet.

Your recommendations for crockpot oatmeal? (FYI: my favorite oatmeal additions are apples, cinnamon, brown sugar, and raisins.)

I assume I'd eat this stuff from the crockpot on the first morning and then refrigerate the rest for reheating.

edit: not placing directly in the crock looks like a good idea; have you gents had any luck with this? Is it absolutely necessary? According to this link, the sticking crust is a symptom of not using enough water.

I don't know about cooking them in the crockpot, but I'm pretty sure if you soak them overnight you can do them in a few minutes of microwaving. It probably loses something, though. Bob's Red Mill does "Scotch" oats that are cut finer than typical Irish oats and cook faster, as well. I don't know if they're available or by what name they would be from other companies, though.

I buy steel cut oats in bulk and cook them in the crockpot at least once a week. I get 3-4 days worth of oatmeal for the family each time. No problems... I do get a little bit stuck to the bottom, but I'm going to check out the recipe you linked to and increase my water for sure. I don't use have what they suggest. Normally I just cook the oats and put sugar and whatnot it in afterward.

Where do you find them in bulk?

Alton Brown had a whole show on this a few years ago. You might check around to see if you can find the episode of Good Eats where he did this.

I made this last night and had it for breakfast today. Excellent. No sticking, good consistency, and it tastes pretty good. Rather than nonstick cooking spray, I wiped the inside of the pot with vegetable oil.

I left out the fruit (except apples, which cooked with the oatmeal). My wife likes apples & cranberries in her oatmeal and I like apples, raisins, & bananas, so we added the different things once the oatmeal was in our bowls. Wonderful stuff!

I recommend adding salt to this. Between the apples and brown sugar, you need salt to balance the flavor. Otherwise, though, it's great.

bishop said:

I made this last night and had it for breakfast today. Excellent. No sticking, good consistency, and it tastes pretty good. Rather than nonstick cooking spray, I wiped the inside of the pot with vegetable oil.

I left out the fruit (except apples, which cooked with the oatmeal). My wife likes apples & cranberries in her oatmeal and I like apples, raisins, & bananas, so we added the different things once the oatmeal was in our bowls. Wonderful stuff!

I recommend adding salt to this. Between the apples and brown sugar, you need salt to balance the flavor. Otherwise, though, it's great.

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Just be sure to add the salt later in the cooking process or right before you eat the oatmeal. If you add it in the beginning it can affect the release of the natural gums in the oats preventing the oatmeal from becoming as creamy as it should be.

biomesh said:

Just be sure to add the salt later in the cooking process or right before you eat the oatmeal. If you add it in the beginning it can affect the release of the natural gums in the oats preventing the oatmeal from becoming as creamy as it should be.

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Wow, I'm glad you said that. I'll keep adding it per serving like I did this morning.

Spacegeezer said:

I don't know about cooking them in the crockpot, but I'm pretty sure if you soak them overnight you can do them in a few minutes of microwaving.

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Yes. Saturday night I soaked oats overnight and then cooked them up Sunday morning. I cooked on the stove instead of microwave, and it was very quick, probably 10 minutes or less.

I'll have to eliminate the salt at the start though ... I hadn't heard that tip before.

Sabledog said:

Where do you find them in bulk?

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Many stores like Whole Foods have a bulk section.

Quaker Oats sells a large container of "old fashioned" oats, which means they're not the quick cooking oats, though they may not be steel cut. They're pretty good.

I put them in a saucepan with skim milk, s-l-o-w-l-y bring it to a boil and then turn it down till the liquid is absorbed. Takes about 15 mins. Makes for a nice creamy texture. Great for this time of year in Maine.

jim

Sabledog said:

Where do you find them in bulk?

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WinCo, has them bulk. I don't know if you have those in VA though.

Another cooking option is a Cast Iron pot. Boil the water, add the oats, kill the heat and cover it. Just need to warm them up in the morning. The cast iron does a really good job.

I thought the thread title was "Crackpot Oatmeal" ...

Here is a B&B oatmeal thread that was pretty good.

Doc4 said:

I thought the thread title was "Crackpot Oatmeal" ...

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For me, that totally works. Ask my wife.

I've seen "McCann's Quick & Easy Steel-Cut Irish Oatmeal" in some stores. Supposed to cook in 5 minutes. Haven't tried them though. I buy in bulk as it is much cheaper.

My girlfriend and I have used Alton Brown's recipe for overnight oatmeal several times, with various different dried fruits, and it's always fantastic.

I would advise against buying steel cut oats in bulk, since they contain more of the oat bran, which will make them go rancid if left for too long. You'll also want to refrigerate them, in an airtight container, once you open the package.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/overnight-oatmeal-recipe/index.html

A coworker swears by the crock pot method. I think she keeps it pretty simple, water and oats.