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Slow Cooker Oatmeal couldn’t be easier to make. You can even make it the night before! It’s healthy, delicious and can be topped with anything you love!
I’ve been making Slow Cooker Oatmeal for as long as I can remember now. It’s one of the recipes everyone in the family can agree on in the morning. Plus, it’s inexpensive and can be doctored up any way you like it. We top ours with everything from hemp seeds, to berries, sliced bananas, chopped walnuts, maple syrup, honey and more.
As the seasons change and the weather gets colder, I have a growing desire to make warm, hearty foods for breakfast. To me, a hot bowl of oatmeal before heading off to school on a chilly morning gives kids a sense of comfort — not to mention enough energy to carry them through to lunch.
How to Make Slow Cooker Oatmeal
This recipe is about as easy as 1, 2, 3 and basically cooks itself. Here’s how to make it:
- Place 1 cup steel cut oats, 2 cups water, 2 1/2 cups milk and 1 teaspoon cinnamon in your slow cooker.
- Cook the oatmeal on low heat for 2-6 hours. The amount of time can vary depending on your slow cooker. Some that don’t have non stick surfaces can get hotter then others.
- Stir in your desired toppings and serve!
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Got a Rice Cooker?
Don’t have a slow cooker? You can make this recipe in your rice cooker on the porridge setting. Super duper easy!
More Oatmeal Recipes
- Coconut Cream Baked Oatmeal
- Refrigerator Oatmeal
- Pumpkin Spice Oatmeal in the Crock Pot
- DIY: Oatmeal Buffet
I’ve now made this recipe five days in a row now, so there must be something about it that’s working! Let me know what toppings you always add to your oatmeal and tag me on Instagram if you make this recipe!
Slow Cooker Oatmeal
Instructions
- Place the first 4 ingredients in a crock pot and stir to combine.
- Cook the oatmeal on low heat for 2-6 hours (the amount of time can vary depending on your crock pot. Some crock pots that don’t have non stick surfaces can get hotter then others). Oatmeal will stay warm overnight.
- Stir in desired accompaniments and serve.
Video
Notes
- I like to let the kids squeeze in their own honey to get them involved.
- Swirl in a bit of extra milk to cool it down for kids.
- Optional ingredients: berries, fresh or frozen fruit, chopped nuts, chocolate chips, maple syrup, pumpkin pie spices or other toppings you enjoy.
- Don’t have a crock pot/slow cooker? You can make it the same way using a rice cooker on the porridge setting.
I did this overnight from 10-7am then turned it on high for 30 min as recommended. I have a very large oval crockpot. It was a pretty perfect consistency and the oats were soft but still had just enough texture to keep it from being mushy. Great healthy start to our day! Thanks once again C for a GREAT recipe.
since it is cooking over night, you need the steel oats, not the quick cooking ones since it will cook faster. but I would give it a try to see how they turn out.
I would love to make this recipe and am wondering if I can use my Trader Joe’s quick cooking steel oats? I just don’t like the way they cook in the microwave and still have a whole cannister.
Once you throw in grated apple, raisins and cinnamons in the pot with the oats, they will dissolve by morning and will be soo yummy!
I’m trying to replicate my baby’s favorite “apple cinnamon raisin oatmeal” babyfood. Any ideas on how to make this (slightly chunky/baby-friendly) dish in the crock pot?
What size crock pot do you use? I have a 6 qt and it seems huge for a small amount of oatmeal.
I agree that you may want to cook it at a lower setting for most of the night, then turn it up either when you get up for the day or during the night if you get up for another reason (bathroom, kids, etc). I’ve only done this a few times, but my mom does it often. Most times she’ll use a large pyrex or corning ware bowl that will fit inside the crock pot bowl – no “buffer” needed between the two except a 1/4 cup of water in the crock pot bowl (surrounding the other bowl with the oats), and clean up is pretty easy with just a thin residue in the crock pot. She’ll simply rinse the pot a bit with hot water, then cook a crock pot meal in it for dinner… as long as your meal has some kind of water or broth, it’ll be fine and you’ll only have to clean it once!
The warm or simmer setting works well and cooks the oats just fine. I cook mine for 8 hours on simmer and the oats still have some texture. So if you like them softer, I would suggest cooking them a little longer than 9 hours.
It will take some Googling (I can’t remember where I saw it, sorry!). But I read somewhere that one Mom put all the ingredients in a bowl and set it inside the crockpot and filled the crockpot with water up to the brim of the bowl and cooked it over night. You’d probably have to have a decent size crockpot and a rather large bowl though :/
Otherwise, the last time I made steel cut oats in the crockpot I just put a little dish soap and hot water in it and let it sit for a long time before cleaning the crockpot insert. It wasn’t so concrete-like!
GL!
**QUESTION** I made this last night per directions and put it on low for 8hrs. It was REALLY good, but burned pretty badly on the bottom and sides :/ It was a PAIN to clean out 🙁 I am going to make this work bc it is soooo easy. Trying it again tonight, but putting it on warm instead and then turning it up to high when we get up…not super excited it won’t be ready right away tho. Any other ideas??? Anyone else have this problem?!?!
I am going to try this over the weekend, even though we r having 90 degree weather
I would add in some water to loosen it up then just pop it in the microwave or just heat in a pot over low-medium heat just to warm it up.
Can’t wait to try this! What’s the best way to reheat leftovers if I make a big batch at the beginning of the week?
Love this idea!! I like the other person’s suggestion about making a big batch and having it all week long for breakfast. You could do different things with it like fruit one day, honey/nuts another. I think with all the yummy spices out there you could make this taste pretty good. And what a wonderful smell!
I have steel cut oats every morning. I usually add 2 heaping tsp of flax meal and toss in some raisins to sweeten it up.
LOVE the idea of making in the crockpot and using it through the week. Definately a time saver!
And can I just say…I love, love, love this website!!!!
Crockpot oatmeal is the best!!