When the weather turns cold, a hot breakfast such as overnight oats tends to be the most appealing first thing in the morning.
The question is, what type of oats are best to use?
While rolled oats are most popular, there are other options too including steel-cut (Irish) oats, stone-ground (Scottish) oatmeal, or completely uncracked oat groats.
Because groats are in whole form, some people assume that this is the healthiest way to consume oats. But is this really true?
What are Oat Groats?
Groats are the whole seeds of a cereal or cereal-like grain. The germ, fiber-rich bran and endosperm are all intact within each kernel.
Rye and wheat groats are more commonly referred to as berries.
After removing the inedible hull, groats are firm and chewy when cooked which makes them popular as porridge and in soups.
Are Groats Healthy?
Oat groats are very healthy, however, the three best options for making oatmeal are steel cut, stone-ground or rolled oats only.
It is best to skip the oat groats.
The reason is that traditional preparation of oat groats is tricky. The end result will either take too long by modern standards or taste too sour.
I explain this in detail below.
Soaking Oat Groats
Oats are very high in anti-nutrients, particularly phytic acid. Wise preparation to eliminate these substances that block mineral absorption and irritate the gut ideally involves soaking followed by thorough cooking.
Toasting oats for granola is not a sufficient cook, by the way.
Some people stir in a bit of buckwheat flour to the soaking water to add the enzyme phytase which reduces phytic acid even more effectively.
Successful soaking requires that grain kernels be fully hydrated for a period of time at room temperature. It is important to never soak in the refrigerator as this hinders the breakdown of anti-nutrients.
Rolled, stone-ground or steel-cut oats only require an overnight soak to accomplish this goal. Oat groats, on the other hand, need several days to accomplish the same thing.
Anyone who has soaked grains before knows that after about 24 hours, things get dicey.
At best, 2-3 days of soaking grain results in an extremely sour taste once cooked that most people find unappealing.
At worst, soaked groats get moldy beyond 24 hours. Then, all you can do is throw them out or toss in the compost pile.
Thus, in my opinion, soaking groats is not advisable for porridge or soups. It does, however, work great for making homemade soaked oat milk.
Sprouting Groats
Rolled oats, steel-cut, or otherwise cracked oats will not sprout. This is because the delicate endosperm is damaged in the process.
Only whole oat groats will sprout.
That said, even whole oat groats with the hulls removed do not sprout very well if at all. This is because even the simple process of hulling the oat seeds can damage the endosperm.
For best results, it is best to sprout oat groats that are still in the hull.
The problems don’t end there!
Sprouting hulled oats is time-consuming, again taking at least a day or two to accomplish. What’s more, it is difficult to remove the hull after sprouting. This adds even more manual time to the process.
For these reasons, I do not recommend sprouting oat groats yourself even though technically it can be done.
Oat Groats vs Steel Cut
If you like the texture of oat groats opposed to the softer feel of rolled oats when cooked, then I would suggest using steel cut or Irish oatmeal instead. Stoneground Scottish oatmeal is another good choice.
If you prefer not to soak, sprouted steel-cut oats are available. These can be cooked and eaten immediately.
Even when fully soaked or sprouted and then cooked, steel-cut oats have a firm and chewy texture that oat groat lovers should find satisfying.
Note:Â I do not recommend quick cook steel-cut oats, as the cooking time is not sufficient to render the oats fully digestible even after soaking.
What Should I Do with my Oat Groats?
Do you have a good supply of oat groats on hand? Instead of using them for breakfast cereal, I suggest grinding them into oat flour and use for baking.
Warning: a sizeable percentage of gluten-sensitive and Celiac people react to the protein avenin in oats. This protein is difficult to digest and gluten-like, which is why some countries do not allow oats labeled as gluten-free even if processed in a certified GF facility.
I have always put my oat groats in a slow cooker on the WARM setting for about 10 hours. That makes them chewy and delicious. I have been eating these every morning for probably 5 years with 1.5g of cinnamon. I wonder what that method does for the phytic acid? Probably not much. I wonder what this habit has put in my body all these years? Does not sound good.
One of the people commenting below mentioned that sprouted oat groats are available commercially. I did not know this and haven’t seen them anywhere myself. But if you do some searching online perhaps you can find them … then just switch to sprouted oat groats and cook it the same way you’ve been doing it and that will be a huge improvement!
Hi Sarah, People should be aware that most cereal grains are doused with roundup prior to harvest, and oats seem to top the list when it comes to highest concentration. Even some labeled “organic” seem to slip through the cracks. There doesn’t seem to be much regulating going on there.
Hi Sarah, what do you soak the steel cut oats in? Just water or do you add something else? An overnight soak time is good? Do we rinse after soaking? Thank you so much for all the wonderful info. Have a blessed day.
Soak in water with a small amount of lemon juice. I soak right in the pot I will be cooking it in the next morning. Be sure to put on the lid. I soak overnight only otherwise the oats get too sour. I don’t bother rinsing, but some people do before cooking with fresh water.
I love the oat groats and have found a brand that sprouts very well – with hulls removed… Thye are so yummy when sprouted, chewy and almost sweet, I only have cook them for a minute… Just wanted to clarify – Are you saying that these fully sprouted oat groats are not good? Or that they they ARE good but not worth l the time invested in sprouting? Thnx! 🙂
Sprouted oat groats are fine if they are cooked thoroughly too. I was just saying that sprouting them is time consuming and sometimes difficult. If you find it easy to do and have a good brand that doesn’t fail to sprout when you try, then that is awesome!
The instant Pot has a perfect Porridge setting. Cooks fast and just right
Thanks for sharing! A Vita-Clay which is what I have works wonderfully well too.
Sarah, I have been using sprouted oat groats from To Your Health for years. To hear you say no to oat groats is just sad to hear. I love these things!
You can eat the sprouted oat groats. I just said that it isn’t a good idea to try and sprout them yourself as it is too time consuming and difficult. I suggested not eating soaked oat groats as they would be too sour. Sorry for that misunderstanding!
I agree
Any kind of sprouting takes time. It’s just a matter of thinking ahead and/or having a few batches on the go.
Only soak for 24 hours then drain and rinse twice a day. Eaten raw with fresh fruit and sprouted seeds makes this a great filling breakfast.
Interesting. Thank you, Sarah. I have a question though–I keep organic oat groats on hand and make my own rolled oats in an oat flaker, then I soak overnight with a bit of lemon juice and sometimes add a T. of buckwheat flour before cooking in the morning. I can also use my oat flaker to make steal cut oatmeal. I’m thinking this is probably OK, but your article left me wondering.
If you soak the steel cut oatmeal, then it is probably fine. Not sure how finely your oat flaker cuts them though … are they about the same as commercial steel cut oats? I’ll be posting a recipe for soaking steel cut oatmeal soon 🙂
I am curious about your comment about the quick-cooking steel cut oats. I have been buying the Bob’s red Mill organic quick cooking steel cut oats. I read they are only quick cooking because they are cut smaller than the standard steel cut oats. Rolled oats (which you do recommend, right?) suggest a 10 minute cooking time and the quick-cooking steel cut suggest a 7 minute or longer cooking time. Is that enough time difference to make a difference? Don’t they just actually cook faster because they have more surface area and not because they are pre-cooked or anything in any way? And how would that affect soaking negatively? Wouldn’t more surface area provde a better soak anyway. Dangit I hope these aren’t that bad because we like them a lot!
If you are soaking the quick cooking steel cut oats overnight and then cooking that is fine. I would cook them longer than the package suggests though. Turn the heat low, cover and cook 10-12 minutes would be my estimate. Add a bit more liquid if you need more moisture to achieve this.
The modern way to cook grains (such as yeasted bread) is higher heat and faster cooking. The traditional way to cook grains (such as sourdough) is low and slow. This makes for better digestibility and more retention of nutrients.
Pigs love oat groats! I wet them to make them a bit softer before putting in the trough
I learned recently that almost all oats (organic or not) and have been heat treated before being boxed and transported to supermarkets. Often, this heat treatment is steaming on a very high temperatures for a short while. This is apparently because truly raw oats get rancid very quickly. But how can we eliminate phytic acid in a grain that isn’t raw anymore? Is there any point in soaking any type of heat treated oats?
You can still reduce phytic acid levels with traditional preparation even if the oats have been heat treated. Almonds are similar .. most are pasteurized even if labeled “raw”. Cashews are also heat treated before packaging. You would still soak these nuts and dry at low temperature before eating to eliminate anti-nutrients. Soaking oats is the same … another option is to simply buy sprouted oats … they have been sprouted before the heat treatment and no soaking is required.