We are unabashed, self-admitted, and uncontrollable steel-cut oat addicts. The chewy texture, the nutty flavor, the creamy consistency...stir in some milk and brown sugar at the end, and we didn't think it could get much better. Well, we were wrong!
In her cookbook Good to the Grain, Kim Boyce includes a recipe for steel-cut oats with an interesting twist: toast the grains in butter before adding the water.
We can't believe this hasn't occurred to us before! After all, we toast rice in butter or oil before making pilaf and we toast nuts before adding them to any dessert recipe. We know that a few minutes of toasting adds depth and extra nuttiness to whatever it is we're making, so of course this is a perfect technique for steel-cut oatmeal.
Boyce suggests toasting the grains in a tablespoon or so of butter until they are visibly darker. Keep a few of the raw grains so you can tell the difference. She also says that your kitchen will smell like popcorn when the grains are properly toasted.
We can't wait to try this with our next back of oats - and you can bet that will be sooner rather than later!
Related: Five Ways to Eat Oats
(Image: Flickr member swanksalot licensed under Creative Commons)
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Comments (17)
fantastic! I must do this for Mother's Day!
I must have had a can of steel cut oats in my pantry for a few years with the intention of taking advantage of their excellent texture and flavor (I'm not a big oatmeal fan), that is, before I realized that they had gone bad. You've inspired me to go back, get some more, and give them a try.
I read this technique in Cook's Illustrated quite a few years ago--it is super-delicious. Makes it almost entirely different from standard oatmeal.
I have been using the Cooks Illustrated recipe for years too. My husband and I are such fans we handed out one recipe's worth of oats and the recipe as wedding favors.
This is also the method used to make one of my favorite Indian sweets: siro/sooji halva. You toast the cream of wheat in butter until it turns the shade of tan you like (and smells heavenly!) then you add your milk, sugar, and anything else you like (almonds, cashews, cardamom, whatever), and stir until the sooji moves as one pudding-like mass of starchy sweetness.
This is how I've been making them for the last few months; I really thought I'd gotten this idea from you guys! But apparently not? Anyway, I like to toast them a bit, then add cinnamon and toast a bit longer. Then I cook them in one part apple juice, three parts water. Delicious!
I remember being surprised noone mentioned toasting their steel cut oats much in this old Kitchn post. Toasting them in butter is how I learned to first prepare them (maybe early Alton Brown?) and then later learned I could pre-toast in the oven too.
Be careful when you add the liquid after toasting the oats though and be sure to stand back a bit, it spits and sputters like crazzzzy!!
Don't forget that cooked oats freeze well. We make a batch once a week and then we have a quick breakfast for the toddler...
Just tried a batch. Love the aroma and taste. The small amount of additional up front work toasting is worth it. Using my usual method - after bringing to a boil, put in a 250F oven - seems like they cooked quicker this time after being toasted.
Wow this sounds great!! I kinda got burned out eating my oats but this will definitely help. I like to put golden raisins in mine when cooking. Yum!
i think steel cut oats have the worst flavor! i tried to eat them, but couldn't do it. I prefer amaranth to oats. i use coconut oil instead of butter but i bet it would still taste good.
My fave oatmeal cookie recipe does this first. I was appaled at the proportion of butter the first time I read it, but it's awesome.
Check out Alton Brown recipe for steel cut oats, it's fantastic. He toasts in butter and then adds buttermilk to them at the end.
As for grains, I toast farro before cooking and it's a wonderful addition to the chewy texture that I love. Too bad I have to order farro over the internet or I'd be eating it much more often.
Made this for dinner last night using regular whole oats. Just like an oatmeal cookie. Thanks for sharing!
Wow. Just did this. So yummy! Thanks so much for the tip!!!
Alton Brown recommends this on one of his episodes a number of years ago.