What makes this overnight oats recipe so easy is there’s no need to measure out the same ingredients multiple times into different containers or jars. Keep reading to find out the simplest way to meal prep overnight oats in 5 minutes or less!
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- How to Make Overnight Oats
- Toppings & Flavour Ideas
- Nutrition Facts
- Meal Prep Tips
- Ingredient Substitutions & Tips For Optimal Results
This overnight oats recipe is ideal for those who:
- Want enough to last them throughout the work/school week.
- Don’t want to commit to a particular flavour or topping(s).
- Don’t have the fridge space to store 5-6 jars.
- Have only 5 minutes to meal prep breakfast for the week.
- Want a delicious and healthy snack option at their fingertips.
How to Make Overnight Oats
Overnight oats are one of the quickest meal prep recipes you can make. You simply mix together your ingredients and store your mixture in the fridge for 8 hours or overnight. It’s that easy!
The traditional ingredient ratio for overnight oats is:
One part oats to one part liquid PLUS any additional add-ins, like seeds, chopped nuts and sweeteners.
However, this recipe breaks the mould slightly with the addition of these anti-inflammatory and brain-healthy ingredients; chia seeds, hemp hearts and full-fat coconut milk! These ingredients give overnight oats a much thicker consistency, which is why this recipe calls for more liquid.
However, you can opt to use any milk! Learn how to adapt this recipe with your favourite milk HERE.
The hardest part of making this recipe is deciding what toppings to add later! Thankfully, there’s a list of ideas below to help!
Overnight Oats Toppings & Flavour Ideas
Whether you’re enjoying your oats for breakfast or as a snack, the following ideas will keep your everyday oats exciting!
Topping Ideas
- Peanut butter and my easy chia jam
- Warm stewed fruit or berries and granola
- Chopped almonds, almond butter, dark chocolate chips or cacao nibs
- Diced apples, extra cinnamon, raisins and chopped pecans
- Chopped peaches and candied walnuts
- Pineapple and toasted coconut chips
- Shredded carrot, raisins, chopped pecans and desiccated coconut
- Sliced banana, walnuts and an extra drizzle of maple syrup
- Cocoa powder, extra maple syrup, shredded zucchini and dark chocolate chips
My husband enjoys these overnight oats every single morning with meal-prepped granola (recipe coming soon), a dollop of this smooth chia pudding, and frozen raspberries. It takes him less than 2 minutes to throw together, and it keeps him full until lunchtime.
Flavour Ideas
You can also change up the flavour profile of your oats by mixing in different spices and other flavourings, like:
- Cocoa or cacao powder
- Instant espresso powder or Dandy Blend
- Pumpkin pie spice
- Gingerbread spice
- Almond extract
- Coconut extract
- Orange zest
Nutrition Facts
What makes this overnight oats recipe so nutritious is the special combo of seeds and full-fat coconut milk!
Chia seeds and hemp hearts are loaded with anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acids and heart-healthy fibre. Hemp hearts are also an excellent source of complete plant protein, coming in at 10g per 2 tablespoons! And BONUS, they also go completely undetected in these overnight oats, making it the ultimate kid-friendly recipe!
I’ve found the best price by far for both hemp hearts and chia seeds is at Costco. To keep their healthy fats fresh and therapeutic grade, store your seeds in the fridge or freezer.
While this recipe can be made with any kind of milk, coconut milk gives it a special quality. Coconut milk contains special fats called MCTs (medium-chain-triglycerides), which are easily used by the brain and muscles. MCTs aren’t digested the same as other fats, so you get a big boost of energy quicker than with other types of healthy fats.
Costco sells my favourite tasting brand in a 6 pack for half the price as the grocery store. Once you start making these overnight oats or this smooth chia pudding, you’ll want to keep a good stock of coconut milk in your pantry!
Meal Prep Tips
Because these overnight oats take so little time to make and clean up from, why not try making them when you’re already in the kitchen, waiting for another meal to cook? I share this meal-prep hack in my Healthy Eating Guide for Beginners.
Making every minute count in the kitchen is the ultimate hack for slowly integrating meal prep into your already busy routine. In the time it takes to get a pot of water building on the stove, you can meal prep this overnight oats recipe and have breakfast crossed off your list!
STORING YOUR OVERNIGHT OATS
What makes this meal prep recipe so versatile is once it’s been prepped, you can opt to keep it in a single container or divide it into smaller ones. Dividing it into single-serving containers can be done right after making it or after it’s had time to sit.
Without any toppings, your overnight oats will last up to 6 days in the fridge.
MAKE AN EVEN BIGGER BATCH
This recipe can be easily doubled or tripled. This works well if you’re needing a fast and easy breakfast option for other family members to enjoy throughout the week.
PREP YOUR TOPPINGS
If you have a few minutes to spare, try planning and prepping your toppings ahead of time. Depending on what you like to add or top your overnight oats with, this could include:
- Taking fruit from the freezer to thaw.
- Shredding up some veggies or cutting up fruit.
- Making some quick and easy chia jam.
Ingredient Substitutions & Tips For Optimal Results
MILK SUBSTITUTIONS
Canned coconut milk will give your completed oats a much thicker consistency than other kinds of milk because of its healthy fat content. This is why this recipe calls for an additional ¾ cup of a different type of milk. Without it, you will have a very stiff batch of overnight oats.
IMPORTANT NOTE: You can substitute canned coconut milk for 1 + 3/4 cups of any other type of milk (see suggestions below). Just be sure to omit the additional 3/4 cup of different milk indicated in the ingredients section. Otherwise, you will have a much looser consistency.
Different types of milk:
- Almond milk
- Kefir (fermented milk)
- Cashew milk
- Hazelnut milk
- Sunflower milk
- Hemp heart milk
- Brazil nut milk
- Macadamia milk
- Oat milk
- Goat milk
- Cow’s milk
CONSISTENCY CONSIDERATIONS
The consistency of your completed oats will depend on the type of milk you use. If you prefer a more hydrated consistency, stir in more milk (roughly 1/4 cup at a time) to loosen them up, after it’s already had time to absorb overnight.
There’s no need to wait for your oats to sit overnight again after adding more milk.
KEEP YOUR TOPPINGS SEPARATE
Your final oats will last longer in the fridge if you hold off on dressing them with your favourite toppings. However, you do you! If it’s more convenient for you to add your toppings before letting them sit overnight, then go for it!
If you try these super simple overnight oats, I’d love to hear what you think…and what your favourite toppings are! Comment below or tag me @nourashnutrition in your Instagram stories!
Quick & Easy Overnight Oats
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup rolled oats
- 1 13.5 floz can of unsweetened coconut milk see notes if opting to use a different milk
- 3/4 cup milk of choice omit if substituting coconut milk for a different option – see notes
- 1/3 cup chia seeds
- 1/3 cup hemp hearts
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp salt
Instructions
- In a bowl or storage container, mix together all your dry ingredients.
- Give your can of coconut milk a good shake and open it. Give it a stir to smooth out any hard clumps if needed. (see notes if opting to use a different type of milk)
- Add your coconut milk and the remaining ingredients to the dry mixture. Stir to combine.
- Pour your mixture into a single storage container or six smaller containers and cover.
- Place in the fridge for 8 hours or overnight.
- To serve, remove from the fridge and give it a stir before adding your toppings. If the mixture is too thick, feel free to add a bit more milk to loosen it up. See notes below.
- Enjoy with fruit, granola or any of your favourite toppings.
Ash’s Tips
- Canned coconut milk will give your completed oats a much thicker consistency than other kinds of milk. You can substitute canned coconut milk for 1 3/4 cups of any other type of milk. Just be sure to omit the additional 3/4 cup of different milk indicated in the ingredients section.
- The consistency of your completed oats will depend on the type of milk you use. If you prefer a more hydrated consistency, stir in more milk (roughly 1/4 cup at a time) to loosen them up, after it’s already had time to absorb overnight. There’s no need to wait for your oats to sit overnight again after adding more milk.
Nutrition
Questions?
If you have any questions about this overnight oats recipe or the information you’ve learned today, please don’t hesitate to leave a comment or send me an Instagram direct message! ✨
I can’t wait to hear all about your healthy eating journey and what you’ve been cooking! Please comment below or share your successes with me on Instagram @nourashnutrition so that I can celebrate you and your healthy eating milestones!
Sending you strength and confidence today to fuel your healthiest tomorrow!
You’re on fire with these recipes! I’ve taken to combing this recipe with your Chia pudding and adding in some fresh berries and it has transformed my breakfast routine. I went from hardly eating it, to making sure i carve out time each day to enjoy this food! And prep time? hardly anything — over and done within less than 10 minutes!
already thinking about what i want to try next — keep them coming!
Thank you for this wonderful comment! I love the idea of combining it with my blended chia pudding! Let me know if you have any special recipe requests.☺️
This recipe is one of your best ones! I found a recipe like this on Google once, but it wasn’t this good! I bet some granola would go well with this! Wait! Can you make a recipe for healthy granola?👩🏽🍳
Thank you Sia! And you’re right about the granola! I’ll be sharing my family’s favourite recipe for healthy granola soon! 😋