Instant Pot Steel Cut Oats

Instant Pot Steel Cut Oats in just 10-minutes! Learn how to make the creamiest Instant Pot Oatmeal with just 3 simple ingredients + get inspiration on how to flavor and top your bowl of oats!

We Love Steel Cut Oats

We are big fans of oatmeal here at Fit Foodie Finds. If you’ve been hanging out with us for a while now, you’ve been around for overnight oat week and oatmeal week.

Some of our all-time favorite and most popular recipes on FFF are our peanut butter banana overnight oats or our crock-pot maple cinnamon steel cut oats. We just love the endless combinations of toppings, mix-ins, and varieties of oats!

We especially love steel cut oats because of its glorious texture and the nutrition that it packs in.

Steel Cut Oatmeal Nutrition

What are steel cut oats? Steel cut oats are whole oat groats cut into 3 or 4 pieces to create smaller oat groats. Steel cut oats are also referred to as Irish or Scottish Oats. They feel like thick pieces of rice when uncooked and their cooked texture has a chewy bite to it. A typical bowl of stovetop steel-cut oats can take around 40 minutes to cook because it is less processed than rolled or quick-cooking oats.

Nutrition per 1/4 cup, uncooked | 170 calories | 3.5g fat | 31g carb | 4g fiber | 1g sugar | 4g protein

Instant Pot Steel Cut Oats in Just 10 Minutes!

Today’s steel cut oatmeal recipe takes a fraction of the amount of time it does in the slow cooker and takes less than half the amount of time than the stovetop. But how you ask? The Instant Pot AKA a pressure cooker!

Instant Pot Steel Cut Oats pressure cook so fast that the cooking time only takes 10 minutes to make the creamiest, most delicious oats ever. I do want to note that your Instant Pot will take up to 10 minutes to build pressure before it starts to count down, but that is still way less time than 40+ minutes on the stovetop!

What does steel cut oatmeal Instant Pot taste like? Instant Pot Steel Cut Oats are creamy and a bit chewy. They’re meant to be eaten warm and make for a healthy breakfast idea!

3 Ingredient Oatmeal in Instant Pot

We thought we’d keep this Instant Pot steel cut oats recipe as basic as possible so that you can deviate and flavor it as you wish! Here’s what you need to get started:

1. Steel Cut Oats – make sure you buy original steel cut oats and NOT the quick-cooking kind. Our favorite brand is Bob’s Red Mill.
2. Milk – we used unsweetened almond milk in this Instant Pot steel cut oats recipe, but you can use any kind of milk or liquid your heart desires.
3. Salt – a pinch of salt goes a long way!

Can you use rolled oats?

While you can absolutely make a rolled oats recipe in the Instant Pot, it really doesn’t make sense because it won’t save you any time. You see, you can easily make rolled oats in the microwave in 2 minutes or even on the stovetop in under 5!

Can you use quick-cooking steel cut oats?

The short answer to this is yes, but the long answer is that the liquid to oats ratio will change. You need less liquid for quick cooking steel cut oats.

Can you use any kind of milk?

Good news! Use whatever liquid your heart desires. The only requirement is a 1:3 ratio of steel cut oats to liquid. Here are some liquid suggestions to test out:

How to Make Instant Pot Steel Cut Oats

1. Place steel cut oats, your choice of liquid, and salt into the Instant Pot. Mix.
2. Close Instant Pot, turn the valve to seal, and set your Instant Pot to manual > high pressure > and set the timer to 10 minutes. It will take a few minutes to build up enough pressure, but it will count down from 10.
3. When the timer goes off, quick release your Instant Pot and let the steam pour out. Open your pressure cooker and stir the steel cut oats. There may be some liquid on top, but this is normal. Just stir to combine.
4. Serve immediately with your favorite toppings!

Flavor Variations

You already know that this is as basic as it gets with Instant Pot steel cut oats and that’s why we’re here to give you some epic flavor variations to really make this recipe your own!

• Apple Cinnamon: grate a medium apple before cooking your oats and add it to the Instant Pot. Then add a teaspoon of cinnamon and cook as directed.
• Maple Pecan: Add in 2 tablespoons of maple syrup before cooking and then top your cooked steel cut oats with a few tablespoons of pecans before serving.
• Blueberry Cream Pie: Add in a cup of fresh blueberries before cooking and then top with your favorite granola.
• Chocolate Protein: Once the oats are done cooking, stir in a few tablespoons of chocolate protein powder and a splash of milk.
• Peanut Butter and Jelly: once the oats are done cooking stir in a tablespoon peanut butter and your favorite jam.

Toppings for Steel Cut Oats

Oats aren’t oats without the toppings! While we kept things classic with nut butter, hemp seeds, and raspberries, you can absolutely go wild with the toppings!

• nuts
• fruit
• milk/coconut milk
• chia seeds
• chocolate chips

Storage

Let steel cut oats cool completely. Then, store in an airtight glass container in the refrigerator for up to 3-5 days.

To reheat: transfer into a microwave-safe bowl and then microwave on high for 60-90 seconds.

Freezer Instructions

Let steel-cut oats cool completely. Then, transfer oats into a freezer-safe gallon-size bag and remove as much air as possible. Seal and freeze for up to 3 months. Follow a more robust tutorial HERE.