10/08/2023
Oats are a fantastic plant-based, whole grain meal option.
Instant oats are the easiest and quickest type, but they are often flavored- and therefore have a lot of added sugar (which should be generally minimized). It is possible to find ‘original/unflavored’ instant oats though…and these don’t have any added sugar.
Time: Instant and quick oats both take about 1-2min in the microwave. Rolled Oats and Oat Bran both take about 2-3min to make in the microwave. I usually make mine with milk of choice (plant or dairy), a splash of vanilla extract, and cinnamon. I don’t miss any sweetness with this combo.
Steel cut take about 20-30min to cook stovetop (they really don’t do well in the microwave).
This alone is a deal breaker for most, because of a lack of time.
Consistency/texture: Steel cut are more chewy in texture. Rolled oats are next depending on how you cook them. Last is oat bran, which is really more like a cream of wheat hot cereal (personally, I love the creamy consistency, especially as mornings get cooler outside). I haven’t bought the instant or quick oats in a long time, but my guess is that the biggest difference among them is texture.
Nutrition profile: Steel cut and rolled/quick are almost exactly the same (same fiber and protein, which are two of the most important things to consider). Unflavored instant is usually a smaller serving size, but similar otherwise (if the serving size were the same as the others, they’d be about even). Oat bran actually has a bit more fiber and protein than the others.
So in the end, as long as you aren’t buying the flavored instant oatmeal, the rest just come down to personal preference, as the nutrition profiles are very similar.