Nutritious Soaked Oatmeal
A satisfying and low effort breakfast optimized for digestibility and nutrient density
Ingredients
1 cup organic oats
3 cups raw milk
Pinch of natural salt
Your choicest toppings
How To
Combine oats, milk, and salt in a saucepan and let sit on the counter for 12-24 hours (if you are not using raw milk, please see the notes below).
After soaking, simply move the saucepan to the stove and cook on medium heat, stirring frequently, until the oats are thick and sticky— about 20-30 minutes. (You can add some collagen powder for extra protein at this point, if you choose).
Add whatever toppings you desire and enjoy! See the notes for some ideas.
Notes
I prefer using raw milk for this recipe because it offers some fermentation action during the soaking period; Lactic acid producing bacteria proliferate, break down some of the carbohydrates and sugar, and neutralize mineral binding antinutrients like phytic acid with their lactic acid byproduct. If you’re using pasteurized milk, these bacteria are not present and leaving your milk out overnight will present a health risk. As such, you’ll want to keep your pot in the fridge if you are using pasteurized milk. Alternatively, you can safely soak your oats in water with a splash of apple cider vinegar or whey.
It should be noted that this is a high carb and relatively low protein breakfast, especially if you don’t cook your oats in milk. I recommend adding collagen while the oats are cooking, as well as eating another protein source either in your oats or on the side. If you want to give savory oats a try, it’ll be easy… toppings like a fried egg and grated cheese are low effort and delicious.
With that in mind, following are some ideas for toppings. I purposefully listed them in order of nutritional preference, prioritizing nourishing fat and protein sources.
Raw egg yolks, for extra creaminess and a hefty nutrient boost
Grassfed butter
Breakfast sausage (mindfully sourced— watch the ingredients list and get pasture raised if at all possible)
Grated cheese
Fried eggs
Properly prepared nuts and seeds (use in moderation)
Spices
Fresh, dried, or canned fruit
Honey or maple syrup to taste
If you try this recipe, I’d love to hear your feedback and what toppings you use!
I’m looking forward to trying this recipe tonight/tomorrow morning! Thank you for sharing it. At first I thought it would be an overnight oatmeal type of recipe where you eat the oats cold the next morning (doesn’t sound appetizing to me), so I was pleasantly surprised to find you cook on the stove after soaking. That makes me wonder, are overnight oats - the kind you soak and then eat cold later - nutritious in the same way or does the process of cooking them improve the nutritional profile or perhaps just the digestibility? Another question this bring to my mind: is slow cooking oatmeal overnight similar to soaking them in any way or does the added heat change things? In general, I have been looking for clarification on “sprouting” grains and seeds. Is that the same thing as simply soaking them for a period of time? And one last (probably silly) question while I’m at it: Am I correct that sprouting grains doesn’t mean there will physically be a sprout of some sort growing from the grain? Thanks again for all your insight and thought provoking content!