the quest for the perfect easy bowl of oatmeal

[kelownagirl]

Didn't read all the replies - sorry, but just wanted to add a variation of your plan. 1/4 steel cut oats, 1 cup boiling water into thermos. Put on lid, sit on counter overnight. Still warm in the morning although I nuke it for 20-30 seconds to warm it up more. The thermos will have a slimy coating inside but no dried on oatmeal and it cleans up with hot water and soap, no scrubbing.

Not too long ago was a thread about cooking oatmeal. Me, being a biologist and all, had to contuct a scientific experiment.... This was in the name of science afterall.
The oats - steel cut, what else?
Methods of cooking: traditional simmer on the stove, crockpot (and I have to get those liners for my non-removal crock), and boil/let sit.

Simmer on the stove - you have to stir it, otherwise it burns which is Not Good. Stir - labor intensive. Low simmer and ignore - burned.

Crock pot - follow the recipe, add dried fruit to satisfaction, cook on low overnight. Result: creamy oats, really soft fruit. I happen to like the nutty texture of steel oats, and this did get somewhat creamy. But not like rolled oats. If you're cooking for a family - this would be my method of choice. Hot oats for all in the morning, little fuss.

Bring to boil, cover, and let sit overnight. I really like this one. Of course the oats are cold in the morning, so you have to portion out and reheat in the microwave. I put in dried fruit when I brought the whole thing to a boil, and the fruit didn't get real soft. Also the pot is easier to clean than if I did the simmer and stir method.

Preferred method after this highly scientific experiment: bring to boil, cover, and sit overnight.

Bonne Appetite!

[Aquila]

I'm another microwaver: 1/2 cup oats, 3/4 cup water, 45 seconds in the microwave, stir, add raisins, another 45 seconds in the microwave. Add milk, cream, sweetener, whatever and it's a good breakfast that sticks with me for hours. I cover the bowl with a small plate to keep things from going all over.

[Blueberry]

Has anybody tried the fuzzy logic rice cooker? I've heard it works well, but haven't seen the specifics...

CA

[NbyNW]

Has anybody tried the fuzzy logic rice cooker? I've heard it works well, but haven't seen the specifics...

CA

I have one, but the only thing I've ever cooked in it is rice. I think my little sis has done steel cut in hers, but this may have come up in conversation once five years ago, and my memory is fuzzy . . .

I use a small thermos for my oats when I don't have time to stand over a stove during the week. Can't stand instant. I use rolled oats here, but I am also a fan of steel cut, which I have not tried in the thermos as someone else did above.

Night before: 1/4 cu. rolled oats plus a bit of brown sugar, chopped walnuts, or flax seed, or whatever other dry ingredients I'm in the mood for, and maybe a pinch of sea salt.

Morning: fill with hot water from the thermal pot (really cool gadget that boils water then keeps it at 203 degrees -- available at any asian grocery store), and stir in a pat of butter. Seal thermos and put in pannier.

My commute is about half an hour, so oatmeal is ready by the time I get to work. I sometimes add a little bit of milk when I get there.

[Bruno28]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/...ds/7665854.stm

[michelem]

Has anybody tried the fuzzy logic rice cooker? I've heard it works well, but haven't seen the specifics...

CA

I don't know about the "fuzzy logic rice cooker," but I do make steel cut oats in a rice cooker/steamer combo thing made by Sunbeam (unfortunately, it appears to be discontinued -- we got ours as a wedding gift over 8 years ago and we use it at least once a week). I've found I do need to add more water than is called for in the usual boil-on-the-stove method, or it comes out like a brick!

[badgercat]

I guess this is sacrilegious, but I love my oatmeal sweet. I buy "regular" rolled oats and and usually add a couple pinches of brown sugar and/or a splash of (real) maple syrup. I don't often have them around, but my real favorite is to add chopped pecans on top of that. I usually cook my oatmeal in the microwave (another travesty!) in rice milk, or water if I don't have any rice milk on hand. This works very well for someone who doesn't have a slow cooker and likes having a hot breakfast that is a. ready in 5 minutes, b. very tasty, c. and requires next to no work.

[TahoeDirtGirl]

I switch bfast around alot and one of the things I like to do is take the oatmeal (steelcut or old fashioned or even scottish) and add skim milk to it and refrigerate. I also add in whatever else I would of if I was cooking it, brown sugar, berries, nuts, etc. I leave it in there over night and then microwave it. The micro way is okay but sometimes I put it in a pot and refrigerate overnight and put the pot, lid and all, on the stove while I"m getting ready. Either way you put it in the fridge, put a cover on it or the fridge is going to suck the moisture out of it. Just a warning, it's pretty soft and creamy, some people don't like that.

[OakLeaf]

Nobody has trouble with cleanup of your rice cooker?

Oats get so foamy and gummy on the stovetop - and when rice is foamy (seems to be worst with short grain regular brown rice) it's a real PITA to clean my Zojirushi cooker.

I tried barley in the cooker once and it sent foam all over my kitchen counters, the inside and outside of the cooker top, it was ugly.

So I've been afraid to try anything but plain rice.

[JaneE]

We're big oatmeal fans.

Alton Brown had an oatmeal episode of Goods Eats some time back. I believe that he explained that "steel cut" are chopped, uncooked oats, "old-fashioned, long cooking" oats are rolled (squished) oats that have been steam-cooked to an extent and "instant" are rolled oats that have been steam-cooked completely.

Alton's "Overnight Oatmeal" recipe is our absolute favorite:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/a...ipe/index.html

We use whatever dried fruits we feel like using but I think our favorite combo is half raisins, half dried cranberries. We use fat-free half & half and sometimes add a few tablespoons of flax seed that I grind in our never-used-for-coffee grinder.

I make this recipe several times every week. The leftovers keep very well for a couple of days. A little zap in the microwave to warm it up is all it takes.

I have found, however, that our old (30-year-old) wedding gift crock pot works the best. Our newer crock pots, I swear, are hotter than the old one and tend to scorch any low-liquid food I make in it. The old one makes a perfect batch which is ready to eat in the morning. Since finding this recipe I've used our old crockpot more than in all the years that we've had the thing!

[malkin]

Steel cut in the fuzzy rice cooker is great!
But daily, I go for old fashioned rolled, cold, stirred into yogurt with whatever fruit is handy.


And by the way, since I started eating oats/yogurt, I could be a statistic on those evangelical, "lower your cholesterol" ads!

[sgtiger]

Has anybody tried the fuzzy logic rice cooker? I've heard it works well, but haven't seen the specifics...

CA

I have one of these and I've been wondering how well it would work for oatmeal. I'll have to try it out. Though, I have used it to cook dried beans that weren't soaked and it worked fabulously.

[Colleen]

I never knew steel cut oatmeal could be so easy! It's one of those things I rarely make (and only on the weekends) because it takes 30 min or so. Somehow despite owning practically every other kitchen appliance (even obscure ones like a food mill and an ice cream maker), I don't have a slow cooker! I will have to get one so I can wake up to some oatmeal too

I'm enjoying all the things that I've learned from TE!

[jef09]

Didn't read all the replies - sorry, but just wanted to add a variation of your plan. 1/4 steel cut oats, 1 cup boiling water into thermos. Put on lid, sit on counter overnight. Still warm in the morning although I nuke it for 20-30 seconds to warm it up more. The thermos will have a slimy coating inside but no dried on oatmeal and it cleans up with hot water and soap, no scrubbing.

I had been using one of those mini crock pots to make my steel cut oats, but this is one of the most brilliant things I have ever read. It is so simple, and would work wonders for me. I am so short on time in the am and forget to put water in the crock pot to soak.

Thanks!