Overnight Steel Cut Oats

Name: Overnight Steel Cut Oats
Prep time: 5 min
Total time: 725 min
Ingredients: 2 tbsp peanut butter; 1 tbsp honey; 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon; 1/8 tsp salt; 1 cup steel cut oats; 2 cups milk of your choice ((I use unsweetened cashew milk))

by Joanne February 13, 2019 (updated March 11, 2021)

Overnight Steel Cut Oats are a delicious make-ahead breakfast for people who love oatmeal with hearty texture. This recipe is endlessly customizable and convenient for busy mornings!

Overnight Steel Cut Oats - In a bowl with Slices of Banana and Pecans

I posted my go-to recipe for Overnight Oats a month ago and promised to do a version using steel cut oats, so here it is!

If I had to pick, I actually prefer steel cut oats to the old-fashioned rolled oats that are normally used.

The main reason being that I like the texture a lot more.

Old-fashioned rolled oats can get soggy if they sit much longer than overnight, whereas I can make a big batch of overnight steel cut oats and keep leftovers for several days.

Making overnight oats of any sort is very little work to begin with, but it’s nice to have breakfast done for several days at a time.

Overnight Steel Cut Oats Recipe Served in a Brown Bowl with Banana Slices and Pecans

So if you’ve ever wondered if you can make overnight oats with steel cut oats, the answer is yes!

But the soaking time is a bit different, so let’s discuss the process.

How to Make Overnight Steel Cut Oats:

In a bowl, combine honey, peanut butter, cinnamon, and salt:

Honey, Peanut Butter, Cinnamon, and Salt in a Glass Bowl

Pretty much all of these ingredients are optional and just used as flavorings, so feel free to change them as you see fit.

For instance, you could swap maple syrup for the honey, or omit sweetener altogether.

You can also do different types of nut butters, though peanut butter is my absolute favorite to pair with sliced banana as a topping.

Whatever flavorings you pick, stir it all together well to combine:

Fully Mixed Honey, Peanut Butter, Cinnamon, and Salt in a Glass Bowl

Next add the steel cut oats and your milk of choice:

Steel Cut Oats Added To Bowl with Almond Milk Pouring In

Any milk is fine, whether it’s cow’s, almond, cashew, oat, rice milk, and more.

Cover the bowl and let the oats soak in the fridge for at least 12 hours.

Soaking Steel Cut Oats Overnight with Plastic Wrap Around Bowl

I actually find that my sweet spot is more like a day and a half, but you can continue to keep the oats for 3-4 days. It will simply get a little softer each day, though trust me, the steel cut oats will continue to retain some level of texture even after several days.

Much like the other recipe I posted, I like a generous amount of milk with the overnight oats, so it’s more like a cereal.

Soaking Steel Cut Oats Overnight Gives Thickened Texture like Shown with Spoon

The steel cut oats can be a lot to chew, and there’s plenty of moisture to keep things delicious.

Make sure to add some toppings when you serve it, as that’s half the fun!

One of my go-to combinations with the peanut butter is sliced banana, toasted coconut, and chopped pecans:

Overnight Steel Cut Oatmeal - in Bowl with Coconut, Banana, and Pecans

Crepes are another recipe I love for breakfast, and you can make the batter ahead of time.

This Sausage Breakfast Casserole is also make-ahead, assembled the night before and simply baked in the morning. Enjoy!

More Favorite Breakfast Recipes:

Overnight Steel Cut Oats Customizations:

Ideas for Spices to Add: cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, and cloves

Ideas for Mix-Ins:

Nuts – Cashews, almonds, pecans, brazil nuts, macadamia nuts, hazelnuts, and pistachios
Seeds – Hemp seeds, flax seeds, pepitas, sunflower seeds, chia seeds
Fruits – Chopped mango, berries of all kinds, sliced bananas, toasted coconut, soft cooked apples, dried fruits like raisins and chopped apricots, and even freeze dried fruits