Overnight oats, five ways, once you have the ratio
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The ratio: equal parts rolled oats and liquid, plus a spoon of yoghurt and a pinch of salt. That is it. Everything below is a variation on those four things, and once you know the ratio you never need a recipe again.
Overnight oats are the most useful breakfast I know, and most recipes overcomplicate them enormously. There is one ratio. Learn it and you can improvise for the rest of your life.
The base
- 1/2 cup rolled oats
- 1/2 cup liquid (milk, oat milk, whatever you drink)
- 2 tablespoons yoghurt for body and slight tang
- A pinch of salt. Do not skip this. Without it the whole thing tastes like wallpaper paste.
Stir, cover, refrigerate overnight. Ready in the morning and good for four days.
Two mistakes
Instant or quick oats. They are pre-cooked and rolled thinner, so they dissolve rather than soften. Rolled oats, sometimes sold as old fashioned, hold their shape. Steel cut will not soften enough.
No salt and no acid. A pinch of salt and a squeeze of lemon or a spoon of yoghurt keep it tasting like food. Sweet-only overnight oats are flat by day two.
Five variations
| Name | Add to the base |
|---|---|
| Apple and cinnamon | Grated apple, cinnamon, a spoon of maple. Tastes like a pie and costs nothing. |
| Peanut butter and banana | A heaped spoon of peanut butter stirred in at night, banana sliced in the morning. |
| Berry and lemon | Frozen berries stirred in at night, so they thaw and bleed colour through. Lemon zest. |
| Chocolate and tahini | Cocoa, a spoon of tahini, a little honey. Adult, not very sweet, the one I make most. |
| Carrot cake | Grated carrot, cinnamon, nutmeg, raisins, a spoon of cream cheese in the morning. |
Add texture in the morning, not the night before
Nuts, seeds, granola and fresh fruit go soft overnight. Keep them in a jar and scatter them on as you eat. It takes five seconds and it is the difference between breakfast and porridge.
Frozen fruit is the exception. Stir it in at night and it thaws perfectly.
Batching a week
Mix the dry base for five portions in one bag, then add liquid to individual jars each evening. Or make four jars on Sunday and accept that days one to three are better than day four.
If you want them further ahead, mix the dry ingredients only and store them. Oats and liquid together for more than four days go slack.
For the dry base, a large bag is easier than five jars and takes up almost no room. Ours lies flat in the fridge and stands up while you fill it.
XXL Silicone Storage Bag on Amazon $23.99 · 4.3★ from 268 ratings · profit pays for the care of FreemanQuestions
What is the ratio for overnight oats?
Equal parts rolled oats and liquid, plus about two tablespoons of yoghurt and a pinch of salt per half cup of oats. Everything else is variation.
How long do overnight oats last in the fridge?
Four days. After that the oats keep absorbing liquid and the texture goes slack. If you want to prepare further ahead, store the dry base and add liquid the night before.
Can you use quick oats for overnight oats?
You can but the texture suffers. Quick and instant oats are pre-cooked and rolled thinner, so they dissolve into paste. Rolled or old fashioned oats hold their shape.
Do overnight oats need to be refrigerated?
Yes. They contain dairy or plant milk and sit for hours, so they belong in the fridge from the moment you mix them.
Full recipe: our overnight oats method, and more free breakfast recipes.