Everyone and their grandma needs to know about this instant pot overnight oatmeal recipe that you set up the night before for a hearty warming breakfast.
The Quest for First Breakfast
Raising four boys is a lot like raising hobbits. You have to have multiple breakfasts.
My firstborn has always been an early riser.
I have, let’s call it, “symptoms of attention deficit” and cannot for the life make porridge on the stovetop without burning it and boiling it over. Doing this at 5 or 6 am increases the likelihood of this occurrence from 98% to 99.99%. Being raised by a Scot, this is a great weakness as all growing children must eat porridge to “put hair on their chest.”
Remember the overnight refrigerator oats? Well, those were appallingly undigestible. However, they reflect a deep desire of my heart: to not have to function at the crack of dawn.
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Oats: Nourishing and Affordable
Expensive and sugar-laden cold breakfast cereals are not something we buy regularly. Have you done the math on those? Even if they were healthy they don’t work well for larger families.
I just wanted a solution where my kids could have a nourishing-AND-dirt-cheap breakfast, but one where I barely had to lift a finger. This would become my go-to recipe and forever answer the age-old question of “what’s for breakfast?”
I thought there must be a way to make oatmeal in the instant pot, but I could only find slow cooker recipes online.
Then I made the discovery that the instant pot has a delay-start function.
Game changer! By setting up the breakfast the night before, I never had to groggily burn and spill breakfast in the morning. I don’t even know how long I have been doing this, but it is at least 4 years now, nearly every morning.
The added bonus of setting this up the night before is that the oats soak overnight in acidic water, breaking down the phytic acid, an anti-nutrient that can block the absorption of calcium, zinc, magnesium, iron and copper.
Discovering Instant Pot Overnight Oatmeal
I tested all the types of oats, including quick oats and stone cut. However, rolled old fashioned oats easily won for my perfect recipe. I like old fashioned rolled oats cooked at a 1:2 ratio plus a little extra water. If you like your oats chewier, keep it at the 1:2 ratio of oats to water.
We still make hearty cooked breakfasts with our farm-fresh eggs later in the morning as “second breakfast.” Some days I will bake fresh muffins for first breakfast, too, but at least one kid usually wants porridge, too!
Ingredients
2 c old fashioned rolled oats
4 c plus a splash of water
1 tsp apple cider vinegar or lemon juice, optional, helps break down the phytic acid
Method
This oatmeal recipe couldn’t be easier. It is just like making them on the stovetop but without the stirring or the potential mess!
- Add all ingredients to the instant pot and give a quick stir.
- Replace the lid and turn the seal to sealing.
- Set to cook on high pressure for 3 minutes.
- Before it turns on, press the delay start and set the amount of hours. This turns out way better if it has natural release time so I set it to turn on a full hour or more before breakfast. The keep warm function makes it just right whenever kids are hungry.
- In the morning, add your choice of toppings – we keep it simple with raw organic buffalo milk and maple syrup most days. We also love a spoonful of cinnamon stirred in.
Overnight Oatmeal
Prepare this instant pot oatmeal the night before and set a timer for a hearty warming breakfast.
Ingredients
- 2 c old fashioned rolled oats
- 4 c plus a splash of water
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar or lemon juice, optional
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to the instant pot and give a quick stir.
- Replace the lid and turn the seal to sealing.
- Set to cook on high pressure for 3 minutes.
- Before it turns on, press the delay start and set the amount of hours, allowing for a nautral release.
- In the morning, add your choice of toppings.
Notes
- Apple cider vinegar or lemon juice is optional. It does add a slight smell but no noticeable taste.
1/2 cup of bone broth can be subbed in for some of the water too to add nutrition.
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