Looking for the perfect way to start your day? This vegan oatmeal recipe is the ultimate creamy delicious choice and it comes together in mere minutes!
This post was originally published on November 18, 2013.
This is no boring old oatmeal. From the first bite to the last, you've going to love the rich creamy flavor like no other! Easily customizable with whatever toppings you like, and the best family friendly meal.
The flavor is rich and comforting and perfect for a cozy day. We love to go between this and my peanut butter chia pudding for the perfect breakfast treat!
Oatmeal Basics
It's easy to throw together some oats and milk and call it a day. But it doesn't take much more effort to go from blah to incredible. And since I don't do blah, incredible it is!
Can you eat oatmeal as a vegan?
Absolutely. Not only can you eat it, but you can pile on allllll the amazing toppings and make it one of the best breakfasts ever. Oats themselves are vegan, so it's all in the ingredients you use to make it.
The main ingredient to worry about is the liquid used. Some say that you get a creamier result when you use water to make oatmeal. However, I beg to differ. I think that using the right milk, and cooking the oatmeal correctly will give you the creaminess you want.
The best milks to use
To get a creamy result, you need to use a milk with some fat in it. In this recipe, I use canned lite coconut milk. I like this choice because it's thicker, creamy and has a nice amount of healthy fat. But it's still thin enough to give moisture to the oats.
There are plenty of dairy free milks you can choose from though, and all will work. But you want to test to see what gives you the creamy result you prefer.
Topping options
You can top your oatmeal with just about anything! Even savory creations like my Creamy Spinach Oatmeal. The best part of this recipe is getting creative and making it different every time! Here are a few of my favorite toppings:
- Fresh fruit- Berries, Bananas, pears, apples, are all amazing choices.
- Nuts and seeds- Almonds, Walnuts, Pumpkin Seeds, pecans and so many more.
- Spices and seasoning- Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Pumpkin Pie Spice, etc.
- Shredded coconut
- Dried fruit
- Chocolate chips
- Nut and seed butters
- Maple syrup or honey
- Jelly or jam
If you're feeling adventurous you can go savory and add things like Vegan Parmesan Cheese, sauteed veggies, crumbled vegan sausage, the list goes on!
You can even see my fun recipes for overnight oats like my peach overnight oats and my carrot cake overnight oats, simply use the toppings to make them regular oats!
Prepping ahead
I personally prefer oatmeal fresh, but that doesn't mean you can't prep everything ahead of time. I like to make little jars with all of the toppings I want so it's a quick dump and eat situation.
You can also pre portion out your ingredients so they are easily ready to go in the morning!
If you really want to make the oatmeal ahead of time, you can. I would suggest cooking it a little on the thinner side so that when you reheat it in the morning, it won't be overly thick. You can also try baking oatmeal!
How To Make Vegan Oatmeal
- You want to start by adding everything into a pot. This lends to a creamy end result, versus heating the liquid and then adding the oats. This is because it allows the oats to slowly absorb the liquid and soften releasing the creamy end texture.
- Heat over low for about 2-3 minutes. You don't want to cook this on high because it can burn easily. It also doesn't let the oats slowly soften for that perfect creamy texture. Be careful not to over cook. They thicken more as they cool, so pull the oats off before they fully thicken.
- Top with your favorite toppings and devour.
Cooking- Frequently Asked Questions
You can definitely cook these in the microwave, but you won't get as creamy as a texture. Put everything into a microwave safe bowl, then heat on the lowest setting for one minute. Stir then slowly heat in increments of 30 seconds, stirring in between until you get the texture you want.
While I think steel cut oats are better than rolled oats in a slow cooker, you can definitely get a delicious result with rolled oats. Put everything into a small sized slow cooker (or you can double to triple the recipe), cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 4-5. Check for desired doneness along the way.
Like the crockpot, I think steel cut oats are a better choice for the instant pot. But rolled oats can still give a good result. You simple put everything in the bowl. Cook on manual for 3-4 minutes. Allow the stream to release for about 10-15 minutes.
As oatmeal sits, the oats absorb all the liquid and it thickens. So when you reheat it, you will need to add just a little bit of liquid to thin it out again. You can reheat on the stove over a low setting, or in the microwave.
The Best Creamy Vegan Oatmeal Recipe
Ingredients
- ½ cup rolled oats , gluten-free if needed
- ⅔ cup canned lite coconut milk , or any dairy free milk (see note)
- 1 tablespoon almond butter , optional (see note)
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- pinch sea salt
Optional toppings:
Instructions
- Add the ingredients into a pot over medium low heat and stir until just thickening. About 2-3 minutes.
- Remove from heat and add to a bowl. Use toppings of choice and enjoy!
Notes
- You can use steel cut oats if you prefer, but you will need to cook them longer.
- Canned coconut milk will get you the creamiest flavor, but any milk will work.
- The almond butter adds to the rich creamy flavor but you can leave it out.
- Nutrition facts are for basic oatmeal without the toppings.
Recipe by Veggies Don’t Bite, visit our site for more great plant-based recipes.
Nutrition
Nutrition and metric information should be considered an estimate.
Pascale
Is this meant to say quick oats? Because there is no way rolled oats cook in 2-3 minutes, I’ve been cooking this for 10 minutes and they are still not ready.
Sophia DeSantis
Hi Pascale! No, these are just rolled oats. They only take a few minutes to cook. I have made this dozens of times and others have as well and they always take that amount of time. Perhaps you are using extra thick oats? Those definitely take longer, they are labeled as thick on the package.
Stacie
This was insanely good. Thank you for sharing the recipe!
Sophia DeSantis
So happy you like it!
Adriana c
This is so good with fresh strawberries!! Yum!
Sophia DeSantis
I love that idea!! So glad you like the oatmeal!
John
Your nutrition information seems to be way off. 1/2 cup oats is 150 calories. You have added almond butter roughly 90 calories and a tbsp of maple syrup roughly 50 calories and you have the whole meal at 178. Little misleading for anyone watching their calorie intake.
Sophia DeSantis
Hi John, I use a recipe plugin that auto calculates the nutrition info and when I updated this post recently it looked like it glitched. Technology happens sometimes. I have updated the calculation and it seems correct now. I do have a disclaimer on every recipe for this reason precisely! Thanks for catching it.
Maria F
Can I substitute oat milk for coconut milk? Do we need to add water to
Cook or just the milk with other ingredients indicated? Thank you
veggiesdontbite
Hi Maria! I put in the notes that any milk will work. The creamier the milk, the more creamy the oats will be. So feel free to use whatever works for you! No water is needed. Just cook as the recipe states and you're good to go! Enjoy!
Cassie Kendall
Oh my GOSH. I nearly melted with the first bite. Soooo delicious and so EASY!!
veggiesdontbite
Yay! So happy you liked it!
Angie
I never liked oatmeal until this recipe ! 🙂
veggiesdontbite
I am so happy to hear!!!
Lauren
Wow, this was surprisingly incredibly delicious. I used less maple syrup; it required more than 3 min on stove
veggiesdontbite
I'm happy you liked it Lauren! Some stoves are different than others, so can take longer than 3 minutes. Mine actually cooks it in less than that. But glad it turned out good!
Renee
Whoa this was really delicious!! We ate it with cinnamon apples. YUM
veggiesdontbite
That sounds so good! I love it with apples and cinnamon!
Gi
I didn't like oatmeal when I was a kid but lately I've been craving it so I decided to give it another try... It's delicious! Loved your recipe, it was very easy to make even for me who doesn't really know how to cook haha. The only thing is that I added some sugar because I like things on the sweet side 🙂 but it's great!
veggiesdontbite
I am so thrilled you liked this Gi!!
Wendy Bee
Wow!!! This is the yummiest - thank you! It is delicious just what I needed on a cold, East coast winter morning. I'm always looking for new plant-based meals and this hit the spot.
veggiesdontbite
I'm so happy you like it Wendy! Thank you so much for the great review!
Idabel H
Does this recipe make 1 or 2 servings?
veggiesdontbite
Hi Idabel! It makes two, if you look in the recipe card towards the top you can see servings. Hope you enjoy!
Victor Farfan
I absolutely enjoyed this recipe and would recommend it to friends!
veggiesdontbite
Thank you so much Victor!!!
Mara
Oat is one of the healthiest foods possible. I'm also trying to switch to a healthier lifestyle and started to mine for healthy recipes like yours. Also, I'm training with SportMe app, and I managed to get rid of some pounds. Your blog posts are super inspiring for me in this phase, thanks!
veggiesdontbite
You're welcome Mara! Enjoy, we love oats too!
Albertina Geller
I love experimenting with my oatmeal. It is considered one o the most boring breakfast meals but it can be made really fun if you know just the right toppings. I personally prefer different types of berries depending on what I fell like having this day. I had never used dairy-free milk though. Thank you for the suggestion. It mad it a whole lot creamier!
veggiesdontbite
Hi Albertina! I am so happy to hear you liked it!! I agree that it really can be amazing if you load it up right!
Caroline
Can this be made in bulk? Do you think there's a limit to how much I can make in a batch?
Sophia DeSantis
Because this is a simple recipe you can definitely make as much as you want. More complicated or baking recipes could lose texture and end result if you multiple by too much but this one should be good!