I am going to try this tonight, i hope it works right! It makes me a little nervous that leaving them in water overnight might make them super soggy. That is so funny you wrote this Fit, about 2 weeks ago i found certified gluten free steel cut oats on sale so i bought some but they've yet to be opened because every morning i'm running too behind to wait 30 minutes for them to cook so i always go for my trusty cold cereal. Thanks for the great tip!

p.s. Isn't it dangerous to let food sit in water that starts out at such a hot temp all night? because they will partially cook and then cool down? I just took my food handlers class and you're not supposed to let food sit in the "danger zone temperature" (41F-140F) and then re-heat it? i'm probably wrong but does anyone know?

You can also do this in a thermos. No reheating required. Fill a small thermos with boiling water, cover tightly for 10 minutes, drain. Fill with 1 part oats to 4 parts boiling water (I do 1/4 c. oats, 1 cup water) plus any mix-ins you want (I use brown sugar and cinnamon). Mix. Let sit overnight, open and eat. If you like it steaming hot you can of course dump it in a bowl and nuke it. It's perfect for work.

i love steel cut oats. I like to add brown sugar and cinnamon! Sometimes bananas and almonds! YUM!

So... is there a difference health-wise between steel cut oats and the quicker version? Mine takes 2 minutes, so it's the best pre-work breakfast.

It works better for me to cook them in a crockpot overnight. 1 cup oats, 4 cups water, dried fruit or diced apples, cinnamon and nutmeg to taste. 7-8 hours on low. Ready to go. Smells great too.

i loooooooooooooove steel cut oatmeal! i cook it in either soy milk or almond milk with a good dash of cinnamon and cardamon pods.then when it's done i put in some ground flax seed meal and then add frozen blackberries while it's hot! it's a whole heaping bowl of healthy plus fiber!! i feel soooooooooooooooooo full afterwards

It's a good idea for cooking that kind of oatmeal because they take forever otherwise. It's not dangerous to leave them on the stove overnight; any bacteria that DO grow (to be honest, it's not a great environment for most bacteria to grow anyway) will be killed when you bring the oats back up to a boil the next day. It's sort of the same principal as soaking dried beans overnight. I might have to try this...I love regular oatmeal, but I usually don't eat the steel cut variety because they take so long to cook.

I'd give it a try.

I just bought steel cut oatmeal so I definitely will need to try this

BrooklynSugar- I dont know about exact health difference but steel-cut oatmeal is not processed like the normal stuff. Its the first cut of the grain so its really in its more natural state

As I understand it, rolled oats (the ones that cook faster) have less fiber then steel cut oats as the outer layer has been removed with rolled oats.

Okay, I did a quick search ... rolled oats/instant oats have about half of the fiber of regular oats

so rolled oats are good ... just not as good as steel cut oats. but if you're getting ~ 25-35 g of fiber a day then go for the one that fits in your schedule. (most people don't get enough fiber)

Rolled oats have less fiber. This makes it easier for the high level of carbs to spike your blood sugar which releases free radicals into your blood stream.

Basically the steel cut version will keep you full for longer.

Steel cut oatmeal is great if you cook it overnight in a crockpot. 4 cups of water, 1/2 cup of half and half, 1 cup of oats, plug it in before bed and it is done when you wake up. I find that it works best in a small crockpot and if you spray the sides with cooking spray first it is much easier to clean. I make it Sunday night and have breakfast for 4 days!

I do this every week or so in my crockpot- works great for quick breakfasts!

I like mine after bringing to a boil, remove from heat and let stand until water is absorbed. I use less water because I like mine firm and a bit chewy. It is not slimy or gooey. If you cut your water it will steam like rice and be fluffy.

Dr. Weil has a really quick and simple way to cook these. I cook them and then add ground flax seed, cinnamon, and whatever fresh berries I have in the fridge. Yum!

Similar to the crock pot idea, I soak my oats overnight in a rice cooker, then flip the switch (on) in the morning before my shower.

I have heard of some people cooking their oats in apple juice instead of water

EmyAnne is right, this is a very dangerous practice. It's not just meats and dairy that can go bad from sitting out. Starchy foods - grains, rice, potatoes can grow a bacteria called Bacillus cereus, which can survive high cooking temperatures, so even though you are reheating the oats in the morning, they can still survive. They generally cannot survive below 40 degrees though. It is always a good idea to serve hot foods right away and refrigerate the left overs promptly.

I've done commercial food production and have my handlers card as well, it's better to be safe than sorry with these types of things.

Hmmm sounds yum...

Trader Joe's has a yummy frozen steel cut oatmeal pkg that heats up in the microwave in 2.5 minutes. Delish when I don't have time to ccok it on the stove!

I love steel cut oats. What I find works well is adding a stick of cinnamon to the boiling water before throwing in the oats. I still add more cinnamon (and a dash of soy milk) before being done, but it does require me using less cinnamon. Normally, I'm starving by the time noon rolls around, but when I eat oatmeal, I stay full much much longer and have a lot more energy. Yay, oatmeal!