What the oat?

With all the different kinds of oats out there, it can get a little confusing as to which are best to buy – rolled, steel-cut, instant, quick? 

So at IQS, we rolled up our sleeves to dive straight into this oat mystery. And what we found was pretty interesting.

An oat by any other name…

All oats begin their life as an oat groat (wow, that term is adorable!). A groat is simply the whole, unbroken grain of oat. Before these little groats go on to be made into a particular variety, they are usually roasted at a very low temperature. This doesn’t just give the oats their nice toasty flavour, but the heat actually immobilises the enzyme that causes oats to go rancid. Shelf life increased to the max!

• Steel-cut oats are created when the whole groat is split into several, smaller pieces (rather than rolled or steamed). They’re also known as “coarse-cut”, “Scottish” or “Irish” oats.
• Rolled oats have been steamed to become more pliable, flattened between rollers (hence the name), then dried. Rolled oats are sometimes referred to as “old-fashioned oats” as well.
• Quick oats go through the same steaming and pressing processes as rolled oats, except they’ve been pressed slightly thinner and for longer.
• Instant oats are pressed even thinner and steamed even longer than quick oats. Because of this they often break down into a dehydrated, coarse powder.

Nutritionally, they’re one in the same

Surprised? We were too. Steel-cut and rolled oats are exactly the same when it comes to protein, carbs, fibre, fat, calcium and iron! Due to the prolonged processes the quick and instant oats undergo, they aren’t as nutritious as steel-cut or rolled, but the differences are minimal at best.

So, despite common belief, the different varieties of oats are nutritionally the same when it boils down to it.  

So then, is there a difference at all?

Apparently, the only differences involve taste, texture and cooking time preferences.

• Steel-cut oats tend to have a much more coarse and chewy texture. Due to the fact that these oats are often toasted, that means they tend to have a nutty taste too.
• Rolled oats are easy to cook and bake with, and when prepared with milk or water they tend to have a soft, creamy texture. And because they’re oats that have been rolled into a thinner flake, that also means faster cooking (and who doesn’t love faster cooking?).
• Quick oats cook a little more quickly, but retain less of their texture, making them even more gooey than rolled oats.
• Instant oats cook the quickest of all (surprise) and tend to make a very soft, uniform mush texture.

Our verdict?

Our nutritionist and recipe developer, Liv, says…

“In IQS Recipes, we love rolled oats because they’re quick, fuss-free and simple to use. Sometimes, they can also be used in recipes in place of flour so I find them extremely useful.“

Either way you cut them (lol, get it?), high-quality oats (i.e., not the sugar-laden kind) are going to be a good choice when it comes to healthier food. In any case, just let us feel our oats!

We originally published this post in October 2015. We updated it in June 2017.

Surprised by the differences (or lack thereof)? What’s your favourite way to eat your oats?

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