Quote Originally Posted by Rai Sue View Post
I'm curious. I've always gotten rolled oats (right now I actually prefer the Bob's Red Mill 5 grain rolled hot cereal), and they cook a lot faster and are (to me) a nicer texture.

Recently my mother (I'm temporarily back living w/my parents) switched to my kind from steel-cut, because hers took 40 minutes to cook! Also, the steel cut ones were not optimal for baking with, we sadly discovered a loaf of persimmon bread later.

So, why are steel cut preferred? Is it just tradition?
Steel cut oats are less refined. Generally speaking, the longer the cooking time, the less refined. Less refined means more fiber in the case of oats. So steel-cut=best, rolled=good, instant=don't bother.

HTH,