1 cup cooked oat groats or steel cut oats

1/8 tsp salt

1 Tblsp brown sugar

2 Tblsps dried cranberries

2 Tblsps coarsely chopped nuts, ie: walnuts, pecans, almonds

Directions:

If  the oats are not already hot heat them for ~1 min in the microwave. Once the oats are hot, stir in the salt and sugar. Then thoroughly mix in the cranberries and nuts. Enjoy!

1 cup cooked oat groats or steel cut oats

1/8 tsp salt

1 Tblsp brown sugar

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 cup raisins

Directions:

If  the oats are not already hot heat them for ~1 min in the microwave. Once the oats are hot, stir in the salt and sugar. Then thoroughly mix in the cinnamon. Lastly, stir in the raisins. Enjoy!

Our instructions will make more sense after you quickly read through our thermos cooking basics.

Basic Recipe

Ratio: 1 part oat groats to 3 parts water
Salt: To taste – try 1/2 teaspoon per cup of oats to start (put the salt in after the oatmeal is cooked)
Cooking Time: overnight

Directions

1. Boil enough water to fill up your thermos. I like to use an electric kettle, but use the stove or whatever else you have.
2. While it’s heating, get your ingredients ready.
3. Once your water boils, fill up your thermos, close the lid, and set aside.
4. Measure out your water, keeping a 1:3 ratio. But make sure to leave room in the thermos for the oats to expand. For my 5 cup thermos I was using 1.5 cups oats and 3 cups water and it was too much. Leave at least a cup of expansion room.
5. Boil your measured water.
6. When your water is about ready to boil, pour the water out of the thermos.
7. Put the oats in the thermos and pour the boiling water over them, close it up, give in a few shakes, and lay it down on the counter.

Because the oats are in whole form they need to cook overnight. But what could be more convenient than getting breakfast ready the night before!

Tips

• Don’t add the salt until the oatmeal is cooked. This produces a creamier oatmeal because an element within the oat – pentosan – can combine with the water and make a creamier texture. Using salt during cooking will keep the water from interacting with the pentosan. Just sprinkle the salt on the oats in your bowl or into the thermos.
• Make a lot! There’s no reason to make a cup or two of oatmeal. Make as much as your thermos can hold and leave the rest in the thermos for someone else to discover or put it in a container in the fridge and eat it tomorrow. It heats up great in the microwave.

Learn about the nutritional value of oats.

Extras

Watch this excellent show from Alton Brown’s “Good Eats” about why you hold the salt until the oats are cooked. Alton Brown is my personal hero.

Our instructions will make more sense after you quickly read through our thermos cooking basics.

Basic Recipe

Ratio: 1 part steel cut oats to 3.5 parts water
Salt: To taste – try 1/2 teaspoon per cup of oats to start (put the salt in after the oatmeal is cooked)
Cooking Time: 40 minutes (approx.)

Directions

1. Boil enough water to fill up your thermos. I like to use an electric kettle, but use the stove or whatever else you have.
2. While it’s heating, get your ingredients ready.
3. Once your water boils, fill up your thermos, close the lid, and set aside.
4. Measure out your water, keeping a 1:3.5 ratio. You can use between 3 and 4 cups water for each cup of oats, but I think 3 1/2 cups is perfect.
5. Boil your measured water.
6. When your water is about ready to boil, pour the water out of the thermos.
7. Put the oats in the thermos and pour the boiling water over them, close it up, give in a few shakes, and lay it down on the counter.

Timing (40 minutes) is approximate. It partly depends on what kind of oatmeal consistency you’re after. Just give the thermos a shake every once in a while. It will slosh around at first, then it will slowly thicken.

You can always open the top and check inside once or twice until you get a feel for it. Remember that you can’t overcook oatmeal in a thermos, so don’t worry about watching the thermos or emptying it when it’s done. Just leave it on the counter and eat it when you’re ready. You can even put it out the night before – convenient, isn’t it?

Tips

• Don’t add the salt until the oatmeal is cooked. This produces a creamier oatmeal because an element within the oat – pentosan – can combine with the water and make a creamier texture. Using salt during cooking will keep the water from interacting with the pentosan. Just sprinkle the salt on the oats in your bowl or into the thermos.
• Toast the oats before cooking. While you’re waiting for the water to boil you can toast the oats in a pan with a bit of butter or oil (I use a bit of olive oil). Toasting produces a nice flavor (subtly sweeter and caramelized). Try it out.
• Make a lot! There’s no reason to make a cup or two of oatmeal. Make as much as your thermos can hold and leave the rest in the thermos for someone else to discover or put it in a container in the fridge and eat it tomorrow. It heats up great in the microwave.
• Make it the night before. What would be better than waking up and having a nice thermos full of hot oatmeal waiting for you. Just prepare it the night before and leave it on the counter. It’ll be hot and delicious whenever you’re ready for it.

Learn about the nutritional value of oats.

Extras

Watch this excellent show from Alton Brown’s “Good Eats” about why you hold the salt until the oats are cooked. Alton Brown is my personal hero.

A lot of people eat instant oatmeal – it’s quick, cheap, pre-flavored (usually), and fills the shelves in the breakfast aisle of your local mega-mart. Unfortunately, there’s not a lot of nutrition in those thin flakes. Here’s a great story from the famous ultra-light backpacker, Ray Jardine, in his classic backpacking book Beyond Backpacking:

I remember my first week-long climbing trip into an area of sandstone towers in the deserts of Utah. This was in the days of heavy steel pitons, and my pack was loaded with about 70 pounds of these and other types of hardware.  My partner and I could not lighten our gear, so we decided to lighten our food. For one continuous week ate packaged instant oatmeal. During the first few days all went well, but soon the rigors of climbing sapped what little energy the oatmeal could impart. Nearing the trip’s end, we were reduced to lying listlessly in our tents. We failed to climb our chosen tower for want of strength; in fact we probably could have done better by fasting. And that was my last experience with lightweight instant oatmeal.

I couldn’t agree more. Why not eat a complete whole grain vs. some denuded pre-cooked and artificially flavored substitute?