Quick, easy and really delicious Easy Overnight Oats recipe with detailed step-wise pictures. Totally customizable Overnight Oats recipe with 4 different flavors, ideas for many toppings and add-ins.

South Indian breakfast recipes are always served hot and growing up in a typical Telugu household in Tamilnadu, I can’t relate much to sweet breakfasts. Breakfast for me is hot, mildly spicy and flavorful. As many of you already know, I love my idli and dosa way too much to give up. Fluffy idlis and crispy dosas, a couple of chutneys or sambar rule my world and I cant change my ways after all these years. Probably that is why it was easier for me to give up breakfast altogether than survive on oats or corn flakes during my initial years moving to Bangalore. After all these years, I really enjoyed oats gruel with a dollop of peanut butter during my US trips but once I am back in home land, I go back to my trusted idli/dosa. And that’s probably why it took me ages to make these Easy Overnight Oats recipe.

I heard of Overnight Oats, way back in 2015 or so but resisted the urge to try them out. Even with oats, I tend to go over the spicy, hot options like Oats Upma or Oats Rava Dosa or Oats Adai. Like many other recipes, it took me this covid lockdown to try out Easy Overnight Oats recipe. I had a pack of Oats that I had to finish quickly and the husband was tempted by the idea of cold breakfast unlike me. So I made him four different flavors and it was a huge hit. I loved it too, as it felt like eating dessert for breakfast and I could really use it on some terribly busy days.

There are many ways to make Easy Overnight Oats, I made mine as per my trials and experiments. We use raw oats (preferably steel-cut but ready to cook oats are okay too). We let them soak in liquids overnight. That’s why the name Overnight Oats. The consistency of oats is different from cooked, porridge like oats and that’s why this is a popular choice. This is a very versatile recipe that is most forgiving. It is possible to make this vegan by avoiding milk and yogurt. I chose to make mine with some milk and plain yogurt as the main ingredient. You can definitely customize the amount of milk/yogurt, type & quantity of sweetener and the amount & number of toppings as well as the add-ins.

The basic recipe for Easy Overnight Oats is very straight forward – oats are mixed with milk and yogurt along with chia seeds/flax meal and your choice of sweetener (honey, country sugar, palm jaggery, jaggery or raw sugar). The mixture should be runny before you can add other toppings or add-ins. You then store them in mason jars and set them in fridge, preferably overnight but you can easily make these 3-4 days in advance. If you love cold breakfasts, you can just take them out straight from the fridge in the morning. You can leave them out for an hour, if you want it at room temperature. It is also possible to make these vegan by replacing milk with plant-based milk like Almond Milk or Soy Milk.

I made four flavors of Easy Overnight Oats using the same basic/original recipe. So, here are the flavors I made –

Banana Walnut Overnight Oats
Chocolate Coconut Overnight Oats
Vanilla Chocolate Chip Overnight Oats
Mocha Chocolate Chip Overnight Oats

There are so many options for making Overnight Oats exciting. You can add any of the below as topping or add-in, mixing and matching one or few together.

Cut fruits
Berries
Citrus
Nuts and Dry fruits
Chocolate chips
Cocoa powder
Coconut chips/Desiccated Coconut
Peanut Butter
Nutella
Espresso

Keep in mind that Overnight Oats are as healthy as you make. If you load it up with lots of candy or processed food or sugar, it will not work out in the long run. Keep the sweeteners to the minimum, relying on the natural sweeteners from fruits and berries. Don’t use a lot of processed food or candy, go for healthy additions to make it healthy in the long run.

How to make Easy Overnight Oats | 4 Flavors of Overnight Oats –

📖 Recipe

Detailed step-wise picture recipe of making Easy Overnight Oats | 4 Flavors of Overnight Oats –

In a mixing bowl add oats, chia seeds, country sugar and a pinch of salt.

Next add plain yogurt and milk along with vanilla essence.

Mix well until there are no dry spots or lumps. The mixture should be runny and creamy. Adjust the amount of milk/yogurt accordingly.

Now, to make the different flavors – divide the mixture into 4 equal parts. In one, add chopped banana and walnuts.

In second, add cocoa powder and desiccated coconut. Mix well.

In third, add chocolate chips. Mix well.

In fourth, add cocoa powder, instant coffee powder and chocolate chips. Mix well.

Pour them into mason jars, close them tightly and set them in fridge for 4-6 hours or overnight until the oats are soft and creamy. Serve cold with additional toppings. Consume within 3-4 days.

Note –

Adjust the amount of liquid and sweeteners as per preference.
If you are using steel cut oats, increase the amount of liquid by ½ as they soak up more.
Instead of chia seeds, you can also use flax meal.

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Easy Overnight Oats | 4 Flavors of Overnight Oats

How to make Easy Overnight Oats | 4 Flavors of Overnight Oats –

📖 Recipe