Discover how to make oat milk in 5 minutes with 2 ingredients. Use it in your morning cereal, smoothies, coffee, pancake mix and more.
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What is oat milk?
Homemade oat milk is a truly wonderful thing. It makes a fabulous vegan alternative to dairy milk and can be used in a multitude of recipes.
As oats are easily available and economical to buy, you can make oat milk yourself at home for next to nothing. Just blend rolled oats and water together then strain it through a nut milk bag to separate out the pulp.
Yes, it’s really easy to make.
Try it just once and you’ll see. It’s now my go to dairy free milk alternative.
It’s not a raw food because rolled oats are heated in their processing.
There are many brands of ready made oat milk available in stores. Unfortunately, some have added ingredients listed like additives, artificial flavours, sugars or sweeteners. Be sure to check their labels, so you know what you're buying. Or, if you want to know how to make oat milk at home keep reading.
Sprouted oats are more expensive and not as yet widely available in the UK but hopefully that will change with their growing popularity (fingers crossed).
Oat milk benefits.
There are many benefits of including oat milk in your diet.
Oat milk is wonderfully rich and creamy in flavour. It can be used as a replacement to dairy milk with cereal, milkshakes, smoothies, desserts, tea and coffee and in savoury dishes.
Oats are a great natural whole food full of nutrients and nut free, lactose free, soy free, dairy free and vegan.
Learn how to make your own oat milk and put yourself in charge of the ingredients.
Oat milk nutrition.
The nutrition in homemade oat milk comes from the oats plus any additional ingredients you may add.
Oats are a natural whole food that are high in fibre and a good source of vegan protein.
They contain many nutrients, including potassium, iron, calcium, magnesium, copper B vitamins and zinc (source).
If you’re buying it from a store you sometimes find they have been fortified with added vitamins and minerals. Again-check the packet labels for clarification.
Are oats and oat milk gluten free?
While oats themselves don’t contain gluten, they're sometimes processed in factories that process gluten-containing ingredients. For this reason, you may want to buy oats and oat milk which have been certified as gluten-free if you have any kind of gluten sensitivity or intolerance (source) or check with your doctor first.
Non dairy milks and milkshake recipes.
Other homemade vegan milk recipes you may like:
The best ways to make it.
I make oat milk by blending the oats and water together in a high-speed blender for 30 seconds then straining the liquid through either a fine mesh strainer or a nut milk bag. Both ways of straining work really well.
Using cold water to blend with, and not pre-soaking the oats helps to keep the milk free of that slimy texture associated with some oat milks.
A fine mesh strainer.
Pouring the blended oats directly through a fine mesh metal strainer into a mixing bowl does a great job. Although a little of the blended oats does escape into the bowl. Once the milk is poured into a jar, the residue falls to the bottom. As it settles you’ll see the layer of heavier milk at the bottom. You can either give it a stir before you use the milk or not.
A nut milk bag.
Using a nut milk bag is easy. The milk poured through the bag into a mixing bowl catching all but the smallest amount of thicker oat mixture.
Be sure not to squeeze the oats at the bottom of the bag (like when you make nut milk), or you'll end up with slimy oat milk.
The milk is a finer texture than when using the fine mesh strainer method, and it has that mild oaty flavour that I love.
Honestly, I think that both methods produced a delicious quality of milk. I settled on using a nut milk bag for the much finer finish but I think it's just down to personal preference.
How to store oat milk.
Oat milk will keep fresh in the fridge for up to 5 days in a sealed container like a mason jar or glass bottle.
Freezing oat milk.
Yes, you can freeze oat milk. When I make a big batch I like to freeze some in a silicone ice cube tray. I let it defrost in a mug. 1-2 ice cubes is just enough for me to add into an afternoon coffee.
For larger amounts, freeze in suitable ziplock bags and allow to defrost overnight in the fridge.
When defrosted, oat milk can be a little grainy. Give it a stir to even out the texture if you want to. I tend to add mine to cereal or sometimes pop it in the blender with fruit to make a milkshake, so don't really notice.
What does oat milk taste like?
Yes it tastes of oats. Try it and see. It can take a little getting used to if you are coming off dairy milk as it sometimes can have slightly dry aftertaste. With store bought versions I find it varies with the brand.
The most difficult swap I found was in my tea and coffee. What worked for me was to swap my morning tea for green tea and using oat milk in my afternoon coffee.
This 2 ingredient recipe will give you light-tasting, plain oat milk.
I like to add a couple of ingredients into the mix. Of course this is optional. I add 1-2 pitted dates, a pinch of sea salt and ¼ teaspoon of vanilla extract before blending.
This adds a little natural sweetness which I love. It's a perfect combination poured over morning cereal with fresh fruit and a sprinkle of powdered cinnamon.
If you’re making the milk to use in savory meal prep you can omit the optional added ingredients.
Recipe variations.
Date and vanilla - add 1-2 pitted dates, a pinch of sea salt and ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract before blending.
Banana cinnamon oat milkshake - add 1 chopped banana and ¼ teaspoon powdered cinnamon before blending.
Oat and hemp seed milk - add a tablespoon shelled hemp seeds before blending.
Recipe
How to make oat milk.
Equipment
- A blender.
- Nut milk bag or fine mesh strainer.
- Mixing bowl for straining the milk into.
- Wide mouthed kitchen funnel.
- Glass jar or container with a lid for storing.
Ingredients
- ½ cup (40g) gluten free rolled oats.
- 2 cups (500ml) cold water.
Optional.
- pinch of salt.
Instructions
- Add the oats and water to a blender. If you want to add the optional ingredients do so now.
- Blend all the ingredients together for about 30 seconds or until the mixture is combined.
- Pour the oat milk through a nut milk bag or fine mesh strainer and into a large bowl so that the liquid is separated from the oat pulp.
- Using a kitchen funnel decant the oat milk from the mixing bowl into your mason jar or glass bottle for storing. Refrigerate until needed.
Brianna May says
This recipe is so simple! I love an oat milk latte so this is a staple in my house.
Leslie says
I love that you added a few variations for this oatmilk recipe. I love the idea of adding vanilla and dates!
Lucy says
I never realised just how easy it is to make your own oat milk. Thank you for such a helpful post. So much cheaper and healthier than store bought. I'll be making my own from now on.
Juliette says
Glad it was so helpful.
Rob says
This is such helpful information! We go through lots of oat milk, so making it will definitely save some money. Love how easy this is and will have to invest a nut milk bag, for sure!
Deb says
I love oatmilk, it's my favorite and I cannot believe how easy this was to make. Definitely going to save me some money as the brand I buy at the store is almost $5 for a single container.
Tina says
Such a simple and tasty oat milk recipe!
Juliette says
So happy you like this recipe.