Learn how to make oat milk at home! With this easy recipe, it always comes out smooth & creamy - perfect for adding to coffee, baking recipes & more!
Have you tried oat milk yet? Lately, it seems to be popping up everywhere. You can add it to your coffee at Starbucks, buy a carton of it at the store, or even pick up a pint of oat milk ice cream! I had to see what all the fuss was about, so I tried making my own homemade oat milk. I have to say, I’m hooked! It’s super easy to make, it’s smooth and creamy, and it has a yummy oat-y flavor that tastes great in coffee or tea.
Unlike other non-dairy milk recipes, this one doesn’t require any special equipment (looking at you, nut milk bags). And because you don’t need to soak the oats beforehand, it takes minutes to make. All you need is 5 minutes, a handful of whole rolled oats, filtered water, a fine mesh strainer, and a powerful blender! What are you waiting for?
How to Make Oat Milk
Making delicious oat milk is easy! But if you have made other plant-based milks in the past, a word to the wise: it is NOT like making almond milk, where you wring as much liquid as you can out of a nut milk bag. In this recipe, your goal is to squeeze and press the mixture as little as possible. Otherwise, it will end up slimy and grainy. Here’s my method:
- Blend. First, I add the oats and filtered water to a powerful blender (I use a Vitamix) and blend for 30 seconds, until the water looks creamy and white. For the best texture, be careful not to over-blend!
- Strain. Next, place a fine mesh strainer over a large bowl and pour the oat milk through it. Some liquid may pool at the bottom of the strainer. That’s ok! Discard this liquid and any oat pulp below it. DO NOT try to press the pulp to get more liquid through the strainer, as it will make the milk slimy and gritty.
- Strain again (optional). For extra-smooth oat milk, strain the liquid twice, discarding the leftover pulp both times. This step is optional, but it will yield the smoothest final texture.
- Chill, and enjoy! I like my oat milk best when it’s cold from the fridge. Unlike other dairy-free milks, don’t shake it when you go to use it. Instead, allow any leftover oat pulp to settle at the bottom of the container, and pour the creamy milk off the top.
How to Use Oat Milk
Once you’ve made oat milk, use it as you would dairy milk, cashew milk, or any other type of milk you like. I like to chill it and drink it with ice, add it to coffee, or use it to make a matcha latte. It would also be great in breakfast/brunch oat-y recipes like oatmeal, baked oatmeal, overnight oats, or no bake cookies. Alternatively, use it in any brunch baking recipe that calls for milk, like my vegan chocolate cake, blueberry muffins, banana bread, or cinnamon rolls.
Because it has a strong oat-y flavor, I don’t recommend using it in savory recipes. You’ll find my favorite way to enjoy it in the recipe below. I like to add a pinch of salt and a splash of vanilla and maple syrup to sweeten it up!
Next, try these plant based basics: tofu, tempeh, quinoa, chickpeas, or lentils.
How to Make Oat Milk
Ingredients
- ½ cup whole rolled oats
- 3 cups water
- 2 teaspoons maple syrup
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅛ teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
- Combine the oats, water, maple syrup, vanilla, and salt in a blender and blend for 30 seconds.
- Place a fine mesh strainer over a large bowl and strain the milk without pushing any excess pulp through the strainer. This will create a creamier texture that’s not gritty or gummy.
- Add more maple syrup, to taste, if desired. Chill overnight. If you want to drink your oat milk right away, I recommend adding ice - it's flavor is best when well chilled.
Notes
Recipe adapted from Detoxinista’s method
O.M.G. This oak milk is excellent! Of all the alternative milks, oak milk is my favorite. I like that you can make as much or as little as you want. I sometimes don’t use all the store bought oat milk and don’t like throwing it out! It is very expensive to buy, so this saves a lot of money.
This is a game changer!! I made my first batch this morning and it turned out perfect! I ran the blend thru the strainer twice, leaving only the teensyist bit of oat powder, which will settle at the bottom. And since I usually only use it for oatmeal and cereal it won’t even be noticed. The only thing I changed was substituting 1 cup of ice for one of the cups of water, so the oat milk was already chilled and ready to use.
Easier than going to the store, tastier and SO much cheaper. Win, win, win situation!!! Thank you so much for posting this recipe!!!?
What sort of container/bottle is best for storing homemade oat milk?
What if I put my oats through my flour mill first, and then blended it all together in the flour mill? Do you think it would work and get more nutrients in the milk? Or would it matter? I have a ninja blender, and am not sure how it will do.
Hi Lisa, I don’t think it’ll matter, it’ll all get blended in the blender.
I suppose it would be the same as making it from oat flour at that point…I didn’t think this question through…
I’ve a question and I’m hoping someone can kindly response, hopefully the author 🙂
What is the protein amount?
Shouldn’t the oats be cooked first to avoid. Adore tummy, as with raw things such as corn, flour, etc…I’ve giving it to my close to 2 year old
Hi Sophia, it’s hard to calculate since the portion of oats that gets strained out may vary depending on your blender and strainer. Someone else suggested that it may be similar to store bought brands (Califia lists 2g, and Oatly lists 3g).
Unlike raw flour, uncooked oats are safe for adults (unless it bothers your tummy, everyone is different). Dry baby oatmeal goes through a steaming process, so I might recommend using that instead if you’re concerned about your little one. Soaking your oats might make also them more digestible. Hope that helps!
Thank you so much. That was so kind of you. Have a very nice day! ??❤️
Steel cut or regular oats?
regular oats
Just bought Vitamix. What speed setting should I use? 10? Also, should I use the variable or high setting?
Hi Lydia – high, around 8-10 will be great.
Thank you so much for the recipe! It is so good and so easy to make. I used Vitamix for 20 seconds and it was enough.
Thank you! Yes, I’d decided this was the way to make it before finding your recipe. Glad to find someone who’s like minded. I’m always trying to avoid unnecessary salt and sugar. So making my own works. Your recipe leaves me with no excuse.
Use the “leftovers” I your shake or in baking. They’re full of nutrients. I add 2 dates instead of maple syrup and vanilla. Delicious!
Hi! I don’t have a Blender. Could I use a food processor?
Hi Anita, I haven’t tried but I think a blender is probably best, it might be too much liquid for a food processor.
I don’t think that would work but can always give it a try
Any idea what the nutritional content for this milk is?
Hi Jessica, I’m sorry, I don’t calculate nutritional info.
I love Oatmilk to me it’s probably the closest to regular milk and so smooth thanks so much for the recipe definitely gonna save money on Milk now
Hi, any idea how many calories in a cup?
I just made it and it’s fabulous. Thank you but how long can it be kept refrigerated for?
I’d suggest checking on a store-bought pack of oat milk for calories. Should be close enough.
How long does this keep in the fridge?
about 1 week
Hi! I’ve tried this twice and both times it turned out really slimy and gummy. I’m following the directions and using a vita mix, which blends until there’s almost no pulp and then straining through a fine mesh sieve. Should I be blending less or is this just the texture it yields? Thanks!!
Hi Jessica,
You might be blending too long! Try no more than 30 seconds.
I blend for no more than 10 sec with Vit mix to avoid gummy
How do you make it extra creamy? I’d like to make it fatty for Barista purposes at home.
I added about a T of coconut manna – it does give it a slight coconut flavor but makes it creamier. I also added a date in addition to the recommended amount of maple syrup.
I LOVE this recipe, so simple and delicious! Super happy that I will never have to buy packaged oat milk again. Thanks Jeanine!
My oat milk was quite watery. Did I do something wrong? Followed the directions.
We recently switched to oat milk and we go through it so quickly it’s become expensive. We wanted to try to make our own from home. This looked like a great recipe and we tried to make it with our ninja blender, however it turned out very watery and not “milky”. We followed the instructions carefully. Is there something else we can to do make it more like milk rather than watery oats?
Hi Stephanie, you could try blending it more, or maybe experiment with adding more oats to make it thicker.
It won’t be 100% like store bought oat milk because there aren’t all of the stabilizers that processed oat milk uses to make it shelf-stable.
Thank you so much! We will try to experiment. Thank you for sharing the recipe!
I had the same problem. I believe it’s the blades in the Ninja models. I’m going to use the shake cups because of the blades.