Like many other messages of its kind, Americans and other consumers of the standard Western diet have internalized the idea that oatmeal is “good for you.” Not all oatmeals are alike, however, and it is no surprise at all that the ultra processed items industry has identified a number of objectionable ways to influence the manufacture of oat-containing edibles. Today’s post provides more information on various kinds of oatmeal and related items available to consumers, beginning with instant oatmeal, the most highly processed product, and ending with steel-cut oats, the least processed form of oatmeal. 

1. Instant oatmeal, such as that sold by the Quaker Oats company, is cooked and dehydrated prior to being packaged. During this process, it is partially stripped of its fiber content, which is why it is easily reconstituted and made ready to eat with the simple addition of hot water. Besides the regular flavor, you may also purchase Raisins and Spice, Maple and Brown Sugar, Cinnamon and Spice, Apples and Cinnamon Peaches and Cream, Cinnamon Roll, Raisin Date & Walnut, Honey Nut, Apple Crisp, Banana Bread, Strawberries and Cream, Blueberries and Cream, Bananas and Cream, and French Toast. There is a “lower sugar” as well as a “high fiber” version. All of these versions have absurdly high amounts of sugar. The nutritional value of these products is essentially nil and puts them in a category more like doughnuts or Pop-tarts than what the manufacturer would have you believe.

Quaker Oats also sells a version of oatmeal called termed “weight control” oatmeal that comes in Banana Bread, Maple and Brown Sugar, and Cinnamon flavors. The ingredient list contains multiple items not normally found in your kitchen, such as acesulfame potassium, whey protein isolate, sucralose, and polydextrose. Sucralose is the generic name for Splenda, the artificial sweetener. I do not recommend artificial sweeteners, in part because I believe they confuse our metabolism’s exquisitely sensitive signaling systems. The research has shown increased rates of type 2 diabetes in individuals using artificial sweeteners as well as sugar. 

A few words about polydextrose, a synthetic fiber manufactured by Danisco. The FDA calls polydextrose not dietary fiber but, rather, “functional fiber,” and allows manufacturers to add it to fiber counts on nutrition labels. Canada’s equivalent agency, with tighter classification regulations, does not permit the labeling of polydextrose as edible. In addition, though it increases gastrointestinal motility, there is, to date, no evidence that polydextrose has equivalent cardiovascular benefits.

2. Quick oatmeal is an intermediate product, designed to allow the consumer to feel as if they are cooking something. Less fiber is stripped from quick oats than from instant oats, but they are not the same as rolled oats and steel-cut oats, which is why they can be cooked in just a few minutes. 

3. Rolled oats are made from whole oats that have been flaked, steamed, rolled, re-steamed, and toasted. The processing leaves them soft enough to eat dry, without additional cooking. This is why they can be added as is to yogurt and trail mix, and why muesli or granola can be made with them as they are, straight from the box. That’s okay. They have already been cooked.  

4. The least processed form of oatmeal is steel-cut oats. One cup of steel-cut oatmeal contains more fiber than a bran muffin. Even though steel-cut oats are hulled, the bran and germ remain intact, so they are still a concentrated source of fiber and nutrients. Steel-cut oats are absorbed much more slowly than all other oatmeals, and the more slowly a food is absorbed, the less insulin is required to take it to the cells. The less insulin you use, the better.

This relative lack of processing makes steel-cut oats much chewier and nuttier than instant, quick, and rolled oats. That also means they take longer to cook. Luckily, there is a workaround. It takes a bit of planning to eat steel-cut oats, but it does not take more time.

Here is a 2-minute recipe: The night before you want steel-cut oats for breakfast, measure ½ cup serving of oats per person into a large glass bowl. Then add 1 cup of water for each ½ cup oats. [So for 3 people, that means 1½ cups of oats, and 3 cups of water.] 

Then add ¼ teaspoon of vinegar (any kind) to the oat mixture. Don’t worry — you won’t be able to taste it. Leave the bowl on the counter overnight, and in the morning the oats will be ready to eat in the 2 minutes it takes to heat them up on the stove or in the microwave. 

Once they are warm, feel free to add a splash of milk, butter, peanut butter, fresh fruit, dried fruit, honey, maple syrup, dates, a sprinkle of sesame seeds, or another choice of additions. Steel-cut oats are really delicious, and extremely filling, too.