Oat milk is a creamy, delicious, plant-based milk that only requires a few simple ingredients and about five minutes to make. Use oat milk to replace dairy milk in baked goods, pancakes, add to smoothies and coffee or pour over your favorite cereals.
What is Oat Milk?
Oat milk is a popular dairy-free milk alternative that’s made with oats. It is ultra creamy, very simple to make, and tastes great. It also calls on simple, inexpensive ingredients. You only need two main ingredients to make oat milk: rolled oats and water. From there, you can add extra ingredients to really make the oat milk your own. We’ve provided suggestions below.
Making Your Own Oat Milk From Scratch
Once I realized how simple oat milk is to make, I’ve found myself making it regularly. In fact, whenever I’m baking and realize I’ve run out of regular or other dairy-free milks, homemade oat milk is my hero!
- Add 1 cup of oats and 4 cups of cold water to a blender. You can also add optional ingredients like maple syrup or a pinch of salt, see the recipe for our tips.
- Blend for 30 to 45 seconds.
- Strain through a nut bag, clean cotton dishtowel, or multiple layers of cheese cloth.
- For the best results, strain the oat milk a second time.
Frequently Asked Questions
How can I prevent my homemade oat milk from being slimy?
Starches in the oats can contribute to a slimy texture in homemade oat milk. Here’s exactly what we do to minimize sliminess:
- Use cold water when blending.
- Don’t soak the oats.
- Don’t blend the oats too long. Stick to 30 to 40 seconds.
- Strain the oat milk, which removes excess starch (the main culprit for slimy oat milk). In fact, we prefer to strain twice.
Can I add sweetener or flavors like berries or chocolate to oat milk?
Absolutely! For a slightly sweetened oat milk, add a little maple syrup or honey. You can also add a pinch of salt to balance the flavors.
- For a berry flavored milk, add fresh or thawed frozen berries.
- For chocolate oat milk, add a tablespoon or two of cocoa powder.
Do I have to use rolled oats to make oat milk? Will instant or steel cut oats work?
For the best results, we recommend using rolled oats to make oat milk. Instant oats are more processed and risk a slimy oat milk. Steel cut oats are tougher to blend and won’t make oat milk that’s as creamy as when made with rolled oats. You can use them in a pinch, just make sure your blender is high powered.
Why did my oat milk separate? Is it ruined?
Don’t worry, some separation is completely normal. Simply stir or shake the milk before using.
Does homemade oat milk froth?
Unfortunately, no. Store-bought oat milks that froth have a few more ingredients added (like stabilizers) to help it froth and heat up without turning slimy.
More Recipes with Oats
- Our Apple Crisp with Oats has sweet tender apples and a crisp and crunchy topping.
- These Extra Easy Black Bean Burgers taste amazing and are ready to eat in about 20 minutes! We use oats for the binder instead of eggs and breadcrumbs.
- Simple, Soft and Chewy Granola Bars are delicious as-is or can be adapted based on your favorite dried fruits, nuts or chocolate.
- Thanks to melted butter, these Easy Oatmeal Cookies require very little time to make and taste amazing.
How to Make Homemade Oat Milk
- PREP
- TOTAL
Oat milk is a creamy, delicious, plant-based milk that only requires a few ingredients and about five minutes to make. Use oat milk to replace dairy milk in baked goods, add to smoothies, coffee or pour over your favorite cereals.
You Will Need
Oat Milk1 cup rolled oats
4 cups cold water
Optional Ingredients1 pinch salt
1 to 2 tablespoons maple syrup
1/2 to 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, for vanilla milk
2 tablespoons cocoa or cacao powder, for chocolate milk
Handful berries, for berry milk
Directions
1Add the oats and cold water and any optional ingredients to a blender. Cover with the lid and blend for 30 to 40 seconds. It’s okay if you see little speckles of oats. It is best not to over blend since it can cause a slimy texture.
2Strain the oat milk. This is best done with a nut milk bag, clean cotton dish towel or multiple layers of cheese cloth that has been set over a large bowl or pitcher.
3For the best results, double strain the mixture so that most of the solids are removed.
4Store homemade oat milk in a sealed container and store up to a week in the fridge. Shake or stir before using.
Adam and Joanne's Tips
- Gluten-free: Not all oats are certified gluten-free. If you are sensitive to gluten, make sure that the oats you use are certified gluten-free.
- Steel cut oats will not make milk that is as creamy as rolled oats, but they will work. For the best results, use a high powered blender. We do not recommend using instant oats since they are already processed, which adds more starch to the milk (risking a slimy texture).
- Nutrition facts: The nutrition facts provided below are estimates. We have used the USDA database to calculate approximate values.
If you make this recipe, snap a photo and hashtag it #inspiredtaste — We love to see your creations on Instagram and Facebook! Find us: @inspiredtaste
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Easiest and tastiest I have tried so far! Not over blending was the game changer for me. My oat milk used to come out slimy. Not anymore 🙂 And the use of cold water makes it so you can put it right on your cereal. Yum!
Easy Peasy. Added vanilla and honey for my powdered protien milk shake all week. Ah yum… and lost 4 lbs ! Score! Thank you both.