Money saving oat milk ?

[nickdutch]

Many of us have porridge oats in the cupboard, especially in the winter, and we often see porridge oats as just something to make a porridge with rather than anything else. And lets be honest, oat porridge can be nice and hearty, but it can also be bland. Now, I learned in the summer that with the help of a strainer ( I use a nut milk, or “mylk”, straining bag that I had purchased online, but you can also just use a fine sieve or a cheese cloth or muslin laid out in a sieve) and a blender,I could make a “milk” from raw almonds. I wondered if I could make an oat milk at home too. With the shelf price of commercially available oat milks out there, making it at home seemed like a good way of saving money and giving myself something creative to do at the same time.

So I got out my nut milk making bag and my blender, poured enough oats in to make a small layer on the bottom (you can experiment to taste for the thickness of oat milk that you like, but in my mixing jug it was about two finger widths height from the bottom total thickness) and then filled the jug up to the maximum line with tap water. I put the lid on and then pulverised it in my blender.

I gave it two long bursts, got out a cheap metal mixing bowl and then poured the mixture through the nut milk straining bag and squeezed the goodness from the bag with a twisting motion. I decanted off some of the milk into a glass to taste. It was divine! Creamy, rich, beautiful! I worked out that I had made about two pints. I poured one pint off into a kilner jar and put in into the fridge for the morning (knowing that I'd have to shake it before use).

Now, I was using my gluten free porridge oats, but I am sure you could just as easily use a supermarket porridge oats which could work out a lot cheaper that buying normal cows milk or any of the "funny milks" that are on the market today.

After I made my normal porridge oats in the microwave in the normal way, I added some sweetener and a dash of the home made oat milk an it worked a treat. It would probably work well on any breakfast cereal.

I have also added a dash to my coffee and although it did separate a little, not as much as some other substitute milks I have tried.

Give it a go. Although I haven't tried it yet, it might be good to add a shot of espresso and make a healthy oat milk latte from it, possibly a dash of vanilla and some coco, cinnamon or nutmeg to make a seasonal coffee milk drink.

[Steveo82]

I like to learn something new each day, Thanks for today's knowledge Nick. I will try it now

[hobo]

Cheers Nick!

[Mad Scientist]

Thanks Nick! Btw are you coeliac? I am wheat and barley intolerant, and would be happy to share recipes. I can get " normal" porridge cheaply so will try your recipe. My friend's dad is dairy intolerant so I'll pass it on.

[nickdutch]

After having tried this a few times I have discovered that from time to time i get a bit of a upset stomach, as if there is something immoveable in the digestive system. maybe there are other oats that i should try this other than porridge oats? Maybe oatmeal which is a different product of oats? or maybe whole oats? I am not sure, but as I love the taste of oat milk so much I will have to experiment.

I do know that when I make porridge, before I put the stuff in the microwave, I do enjoy drinking the water and oats mixed in and that's where I got the idea of doing an official oat milk. maybe I should just try getting oats wet and then draining off the water if I want porridge oat milk? not sure, but its gonna be fun finding out how to make the best and most easy to digest oat milk.

No i am not celiac, I just am healthier if i dont have much gluten.

[greyman]

Thanks for a new one to my memory bank,make an ideal substitute for "normal" milk in a shtf situation .

[nickdutch]

What seems to work best is to not grind the porridge oats, but to just put it straight into the nut milk making bag and then immersing that whole lot in water and prodding it around a bit. Then squeeze out the excess water and use any solids left in the bag for your porridge or to add to your porridge mix.

Depending on how "creamy" you like your sediment suspension based milk, you can get more or less pints out of it. But it sure does go down nice with a bit of sweetener added to it.