Make homemade Oat Milk in minutes with just 2 ingredients. This easy oat milk recipe is super quick and very budget friendly!
Two words : Oat Milk. One of my favourite plant-based milks. And this homemade oat milk recipe is a game-changer.
Just like my homemade cashew milk, it is super quick and easy to make. No soaking or fancy equipment required. And it's so budget-friendly!
Once you've made some, be sure to give my Iced Brown Sugar Oat Milk Shaken Espresso a try ;O)
This is a recipe that was originally published in 2018. Since then I've gradually changed the way I make my oat milk and this is the new and improved version. It's quicker, easier and it's not slimy! (If you've made your own oat milk before you'll know this can be an issue).
What Is Oat Milk?
Oat Milk is a popular budget-friendly, dairy-free milk that is made by blending oats and water. The resulting milk is smooth and creamy with a neutral taste and a fuller texture than a lot of other plant-based milks.
Oat Milk Benefits
This popular plant-based milk has many benefits, some of which include:
- It's much cheaper to make than other plant-based milks.
- It's virtually fat free, cholesterol free and low in calories.
- It's perfect for people who want to avoid dairy, coconut milk, nut milks or soy milk.
- Oats are a really sustainable crop and you can buy them cheaply just about anywhere.
- Oats are nutritious. See this article for details about their nutritional value and health benefits.
Ingredients
Oat milk is a very budget friendly and sustainable non-dairy milk. Much more so than nut milks like almond milk, and you only need 2 ingredients to make it:
For this oat milk recipe I recommend using old fashioned or rolled oats. Steel cut oats, quick or instant oats don't work as well.
You can also include some optional add-ins:
- 1 or 2 tablespoons of maple syrup or agave for sweetness
- A drop of vanilla extract
- A pinch of salt
To make the milk you will need a blender and a sieve/fine mesh strainer. A nut milk bag, cheese cloth or very fine cloth or lint-free towel will also work.
Success tip - Adjust the thickness/thinness of the milk by increasing or reducing the water when you blend it or by adding more water after you've strained it. The beauty of homemade milk is you can make it exactly how you like it.
How To Make Oat Milk
Making oat milk is such an easy process and as long as you have some rolled oats in the pantry, you are minutes away from a fresh batch. Be sure to follow my instructions though. They include several steps that ensure your oat milk remains slime-free.
Here's how it's done:
- Add the oats to a blender with chilled water and any optional add-ins, then blend.
- Strain the mixture through a fine mesh strainer or nut milk bag twice then decant into a bottle/container of choice and refrigerate.
Success tip - Don't over-blend. High powered blenders like a Blendtec or Vitamix are powerful and produce a lot of heat. Heat will make the milk slimy (think of how the texture of oats and the liquid they are in changes when you make hot oatmeal/porridge).
How To Avoid Slime
My top tips for avoiding slimy oat milk are:
- Don't soak the oats before blending.
- Use old fashioned or rolled oats, not quick or instant oats.
- Use cold water when blending. Heat makes it slimy.
- Do not over-blend. High-speed blenders produce heat as their motor runs and warm the liquid as it blends. Blend in short bursts and not for more than 30 to 40 seconds total. A few ice cubes added with the water can help to keep things cool if you have a blender that runs warm.
- Strain at least twice.
- Let the milk run freely through the strainer. Don't squeeze or smush it.
Variations
Make chocolate oat milk by adding a couple tablespoons of cocoa powder and your sweetener of choice. You can also try adding fresh berries, cinnamon, matcha or brewed coffee for fun flavour.
How To Use
Wondering what you can use oat milk for? It's perfect for drinking ice cold and for using in/on:
- baked goods
- smoothies
- iced coffee
- chocolate milk, just add 2 to 3 tablespoons of vegan chocolate syrup
- breakfast cereal like vegan granola
- overnight oats or Bircher Muesli
Important - I don't recommend you use oat milk for making hot sauces or hot milky drinks like lattes or hot chocolate because as it heats up it thickens a lot and can become a little slimy. You can however add a dash of it to cups of tea and coffee.
Recipe FAQs
This is completely normal. Because it is homemade it doesn't contain emulsifiers like storebought oat milk. Simply give it a good shake before serving.
You can use certified gluten-free oats if you need your oat milk to be gluten-free. If you are sensitive to even gluten-free oats then I don't recommend you make this beverage.
You can use leftover oat pulp to make my oat pulp cookies, or you can add it to smoothies or oatmeal. You can also dehydrate it (using a dehydrator or spread out thinly on a baking tray and baked in a low oven until completely dry(, then use in granola recipes or energy bars/balls. You can also compost it.
I don't recommend using dates to sweeten this milk. We need to minimize the blending to stop the milk becoming slimy and dates will not blend up completely in that short time. It's much easier and more effective to add a liquid sweetener like maple syrup.
If you try this recipe, let me know how you like it by leaving a comment and rating below! And be sure to join my mailing list for more deliciousness!
Recipe
Oat Milk Recipe
Author:Ingredients
- 1 cup (90 grams) rolled or old fashioned oats , certified gluten-free if necessary.
- 4 cups (960 ml) cold water , from the fridge. Or as cold as you can get it from the tap with a handful of ice thrown into the blender (reduce the water a little to compensate for the ice).
Optional additions
- 1 to 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt , optional. I don't recommend using table salt.
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract , (optional)
RECOMMENDED EQUIPMENT
INSTRUCTIONS
- Add the oats to blender.
- Cover with around 3 cups / 720 mls of the cold water then blend for a maximum of 30 seconds. It's important that the contents of the blender don't warm up, so try not to blend any longer than that.
- Check the thickness. It will likely be quite thick like cream consistency. Add enough extra water to get it to the thickness that you like and give it a very quick pulse in between additions. If you are using it as a coffee creamer then it's nice left pretty thick. Otherwise it's better a little thinner.
- Strain the milk through a sieve/fine mesh strainer into a bowl. Do not press or squeeze it while straining. Just let gravity do the work.
- Pour the milk back into the blender, give the strainer a quick clean out, then strain again.
- Once strained twice pour into bottles or jars. At this point if you notice it is still a little too thick, you can fill the bottles to about ¾ full, then add a little water to the bottle and shake to thin it further.
Jordan says
Sort of tastes like horchata— anyway, pretty good!
Becky Richard says
This was very easy to make. I can only find one store in my city that sells oat milk and it’s over $5 a quart! Thanks so much! I used organic quick oats and my vitamix..... there was nothing in the strainer! It blended it so much the oats disappeared!
Kathleen O'Meal says
I also used a vitamix and didnt need to strain this....love this recipe so easy....I add all kinds of things to this...like other flavorings...like orange oil and roseoil, etc....so wonderful...thankyou
Sarah says
So easy and so cheap. Love it!
Kelly P says
Many homemade creamers I have tried separate. I saw you mentioned it does not curdle but does it separate?
A Virtual Vegan says
Not in coffee. No curdling or separation. It does separate when left in the fridge in the bottle as it doesn't have any emulsifiers like store bought. It takes a little while to do that though and just needs a quick shake before use.
Kelly says
Just made this! Turned out great!
Molly says
Can you use a food processor instead of a blender? It’s all I have :(
A Virtual Vegan says
I've never tried but I can't see why not. I would imagine it will be fine, but you will end up straining a lot more oaty bits out of it out because they won't be blended up quite as well. You also might not need quite as much water as you will be straining out more oaty residue.
Dana Pehrson says
Thank you so much for the recipe, especially about the part of rinsing the oats. I did add 2 tablespoons of maple syrup and after two screenings it is delicious!
A Virtual Vegan says
You're welcome Dana. I'm so glad you are enjoying it!
Sean says
Would it be okay if I don't strain it after?
A Virtual Vegan says
A lot of oaty remnants get strained out, even when you use a high powered blender. Personally I wouldn't want to drink it like that, but if you don't mind then go for it. Maybe try it and see what you think then strain after if you want to. If it's waste you are concerned about, you can add the pulp to smoothies, dry it on low in the oven and add to homemade granola, or you can make these cookies with it: https://avirtualvegan.com/chocolate-chip-oatmeal-cookies/
Zz says
Wonderful!! I reccommend rinsing your strainer as you strain the oatmilk to get the best possible consistency.
Cheyanne Kester says
Hi, I just made the milk, but it doesn't taste all that good. I'm going for a more sweet, kind of like sweetened almond milk, taste. How would you recommend I do this?
Annie says
Just made some and it came out great! Thank you for the recipe.
Susan says
Have you ever tried making oat milk yogurt? Please post your recipe if you have.
J says
How much would this end up costing approx.?
A Virtual Vegan says
I have no idea. I don't calculate cost when I create my recipes. There is no point because the cost of ingredients vary so much depending where you live.
Gae says
Hi I've just tried this...I'm trying to find something I can use when I'm away(an island) as buying 'milk alternatives' or local milk(not very good!) is expensive! I really didn't mind the look or texture (?) but I found it smelled like I had oatmeal in my tea! Does one get used to the smell?? Otherwise...great alternative to highly processed & overpriced 'milks'!
A Virtual Vegan says
It's made from only oats and water so there's no getting away from the fact that it's going to smell like oats. I don't drink tea with milk in it, but in coffee I don't find it noticeable. Maybe you would prefer nut-based milks?
Mark says
Where do I find how to make it?
Nice, relaxed presentation generally.
A Virtual Vegan says
Full details are given in the recipe at the end of the post.
Stacie says
I just made this!! :) So cheap, and a great dairy free alternative! It tastes pretty good too. I am freezing some so I wonder if it keeps well in the freezer. If not, I buy my oats in bulk (.99/lb) so I can quickly make more. I also really love making my own rice milk so this is another great option. Thanks a ton for the recipe!
A Virtual Vegan says
That's awesome Stacie! I haven't actually tried freezing it. I would imagine it would be ok though with a real good shake. Thanks so much for stopping by to leave feedback. I really appreciate it!
Margie says
What did I do wrong? I have a vitamix and followed the instructions, but I didn't have any pulp left really after straining through my nut milk bag. Did I pulverize it too much? I haven't tasted it yet, it's in the fridge getting cold now. It looks great though.
A Virtual Vegan says
Maybe your blender is much better than my blender and made the oaty bits so small you had no pulp? At least there's no waste! I have a Blendtec. I have never tried this in Vitamix. I hope you enjoy it once it's chilled!
Betty says
Looking forward to making this recipe but I noticed that your ingredients call for 4 cups of water, but your directions say add the rinsed oats to 3 cups of water. Can you please comment on which is correct? Thank you!
A Virtual Vegan says
4 cups of water is the maximum you will need to make the milk. You start with 3 cups, blend, then I explain to add more to get it to the thickness you want. It's different for everyone. Some people like it thick, some like it thin, so you might use the extra cup, you might not.
Colin Pendlebury says
You have made my day....about a year ago I decided to stop using dairy and started using (relatively expensive) shop bought oat milk for my tea and porridge. So far so good but the idea of being able to make it at home is something I would never have thought of.... until now. Keep up the good work, it is very much appreciated.
A Virtual Vegan says
Thank you Colin. Comments like this make my day too!
Angel Karing says
I made this!!!! Thanks so much for this recipe, I tried it in my coffee a it would be a great creamer if I ran out and had to make some. I used it in my raisin Bran muffins instead of reg milk, A+++
A Virtual Vegan says
That's awesome Angel! I'm so glad you like the recipe and thank you so much for stopping by to leave feedback. I appreciate it!