Instant Pot Oatmeal (Rolled Oats)
With an Instant Pot and 20 minutes, you can make delicious, creamy oatmeal every single time.
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Instant Pot Oats
Cooking rolled oats in the Instant Pot is quick and easy, and makes perfectly creamy oatmeal every single time. Here’s how it works:
Ratio: 1 part rolled oats to 2 ½ parts liquid (water and/or milk and/or plant-based beverage)
Cook Time: 2 minutes
Release: 10-minute natural release, then release any remaining pressure
This recipe uses rolled oats, but steel-cut oats work well in the Instant Pot, too. You can find instructions for Instant Pot steel-cut oats here.
Benefits of Instant Pot Oats
Using an Instant Pot to make oatmeal doesn’t really reduce the cook time much compared to stovetop. It takes 5-10 minutes for the Instant Pot to pressurize, 2 minutes to cook, and 10 minutes to do the recommended natural release.
The Real Benefits:
Hands-Free – The Instant Pot allows you to set it and forget it. No stirring, no waiting, and no worrying about oats boiling over onto your stovetop. Perfect for busy mornings!
Meal Prep – It’s perfect for batch cooking. Make a large batch of oats and store them in the fridge to enjoy throughout the week.
Big Batch – The Instant Pot has a large capacity, so you can cook oats for a crowd and then keep them on “warm” until serving. Perfect for hosting and feeding a house full of guests.
What you Need:
Ingredients:
Oats: This recipe is designed for old-fashioned rolled oats. NOT quick-cooking or steel-cut oats. You can find instructions for Instant Pot steel-cut oats here.
Milk: For creamy oatmeal, use any variety of milk or plant-based beverages as a portion of your cooking liquid.
Water: For the best results, use water in addition to milk to cook the oats.
Flaxseed: Flaxseed is an optional ingredient that adds omega fatty acids and fiber to the oatmeal. You can use either whole flaxseed or ground flaxseed.
Kitchen Equipment:
Heat-Safe Bowl (pot-in-pot method): To cook the oats in a mixture of water and milk, you will need a heat-safe bowl.
Rack (pot-in-pot method): Use a metal trivet to lift the bowl above the water.
How to Cook Instant Pot Oatmeal
Making old-fashioned oats in the Instant Pot is incredibly simple. Here are two methods for cooking your instant pot rolled oats to perfection.
Method One: Add Everything Inner Pot
This is the easiest and fastest method if you are in a hurry, or if you need to make a large portion of oats all at once. Using this method, you can usually replace up to half of the water with milk without trouble. However, if your machine tends to give you a “burn” error when cooking, or you’re worried about the oats getting stuck to the bottom of your pot, you may want to use the pot-in-pot method instead.
Add the oats, liquid, and flaxseeds to the Inner Cooking Pot.
Put the lid on the instant pot, turn your valve to "sealed", and set the pressure cooker to cook on high pressure for 2 minutes.
Allow your oatmeal to sit in the Instant Pot for 10 minutes before doing a quick release of the remaining pressure--see my tips on doing a quick release in my Instant Pot for Beginners blog.
Serve the oatmeal warm with any desired toppings.
Method Two: Pot-in-Pot Cooking
Pot-in-pot cooking is the most fool-proof method for cooking old-fashioned rolled oats. It’s also the method you should use if you want to cook a smaller portion of oats, or if you want to use 100% of the liquid as milk.
Place the trivet in the inner pot of your pressure cooker and pour in 1 cup of cold water for a 6-quart Instant Pot and 1.5 cups of water for an 8-quart Instant Pot.
Remember to use cold tap water, not warm water as that will ultimately change the cooking time.
In the heat-safe bowl, mix the oats, liquid, and flaxseed, then place that bowl onto the trivet inside the Instant Pot.
Put the lid on your instant pot, turn your valve to "sealed", and set your pressure cooker to cook on high pressure for 2 minutes.
Allow your oatmeal to sit in the Instant Pot for 10 minutes before doing a quick release of the remaining pressure--see my tips on doing a quick release in my Instant Pot for Beginners blog.
Serve the oatmeal warm with any desired toppings.
Flavour Varieties
One of the benefits of cooking a big batch of plain Instant Pot Oatmeal is that each person can top their oatmeal with their choice of ingredients. Simple toppings include fresh or frozen fruit, nuts and/or seeds, nut butter, brown sugar, maple syrup, cacao nibs, cinnamon, etc. Alternatively, you can add the ingredients before cooking for a unique flavour infusion.
Here are a few of our favourite flavour combos:
Vanilla Maple: ½ teaspoon vanilla extract and ½ tablespoon maple syrup.
Maple & Brown Sugar: ½ teaspoon maple extract and ½ tablespoon brown sugar.
Almond Joy: use coconut milk as your liquid then top cooked oatmeal with mini chocolate chips, shredded coconut, and toasted almonds.
Pumpkin Pie: mix in 2-3 tablespoons pumpkin puree, ½ tablespoon maple syrup, ½ teaspoon each of cinnamon and nutmeg, and ¼ teaspoon of ground ginger.
Apple Cinnamon Raisin: top oatmeal with a dash of cinnamon and 1-2 tablespoons each of chopped apples and raisins.
Berries and Cream: stir in ¼ cup of fresh or frozen berries, ½ teaspoon vanilla and ¼ cup yogurt.
Preparing in Advance
Even if you are cooking for one, I recommend preparing a full batch of Instant Pot Oatmeal. Once cooked, allow the oatmeal to cool slightly and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Reheat individual servings as desired by adding a bit of water and warming up on the stove top or in the microwave.
Recipe Tips and Notes:
Total Time includes active cooking time, release time, and the time it takes for the Instant Pot to pressurize (~8 minutes).
When making larger portions, cook time remains the same. However, the time it takes the Instant Pot to pressurize will increase.
Did You Enjoy This Recipe?
Let us know how it worked for you and if you made any modifications. Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo @PhilosophyWellness on social media.
Instant Pot Oatmeal
Ingredients
- 1 cup rolled oats
- 2 1/2 cups liquid (water and/or milk and/or plant-based beverage)
Instructions
- Add the oats, liquid, and flaxseeds to the Inner Cooking Pot.
- Put the lid on the instant pot, turn your valve to "sealed", and set the pressure cooker to cook on high pressure for 2 minutes.
- Allow your oatmeal to sit in the Instant Pot for 10 minutes before doing a quick release of the remaining pressure.
- Serve the oatmeal warm with any desired toppings.
- Place the trivet in the inner pot of your pressure cooker and pour in 1 cup of cold water for a 6-quart Instant Pot and 1.5 cups of water for an 8-quart Instant Pot.
- Remember to use cold tap water, not warm water as that will ultimately change the cooking time.
- In the heat-safe bowl, mix the oats, liquid, and flaxseed, then place that bowl onto the trivet inside the Instant Pot.
- Put the lid on your instant pot, turn your valve to "sealed", and set your pressure cooker to cook on high pressure for 2 minutes.
- Allow your oatmeal to sit in the Instant Pot for 10 minutes before doing a quick release of the remaining pressure.
- Serve the oatmeal warm with any desired toppings.
Notes
*Total time includes active cook time, release time, and the time it takes for the Instant Pot to heat up (~8 minutes).
Did You Enjoy This Recipe?
Let us know how it worked for you and if you made any modifications. Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo @PhilosophyWellness on social media.
