I Give Up. I Hate Overnight Oats
All year I’ve seen these artfully prepared mason jar breakfasts people call overnight oats.
It looks like something that came out of a baby’s back-end, but they’re all the rage.
I wasn’t totally sold on the concept, so I held out until our latest breakfast staple got a little boring and we needed to do something different. I figured, I’d make the first batch loaded with chocolate so it was at least edible…
I Give Up. I Hate Overnight Oats
Now, if you’ve never had overnight oats you’re probably wondering what the heck I’m talking about. The concept is that you load down an airtight container with old fashioned oats, not the instant kind, equal parts milk or milk substitute, plus whatever flavoring additives you’d like. Chocolate, sugar, nuts, seeds, fruit, you get the idea? This is why mason jars work out so well, and might be the first indicator I’m just not cut out for this fad. We used Tupperware.
The taste is totally dependent on what you decide to put in it, but the consistency is about the same. It’s gruel. Cold gruel. Mushy and soggy. A lot like cardboard cereal that’s been left to sit in milk too long.
Some people love this easy to go breakfast, and I say more power to you.
It’s not working out for us.
For the last three weeks we’ve been choking it down, trying different stuff in the oats, heating it up, pairing it with a different beverage.
Nope.
Still not my thing.
We’ve done everything from blueberry lemon zest to chunky monkey and our fall-back brown sugar and cinnamon. The fact is, the flavor can’t change the consistency and that’s where my problem with overnight oats seems to rest. That, and, well, it’s served cold. A few weeks ago that was okay, but as the mornings get colder that’s a big, ol pile of steaming nope.
The downside here is that I’m left with pounds of old fashioned, non instant oats.
Looks like we’ll be baking our own oatmeal bars and having a lot of oatmeal cookies this fall.
Yanno, when I mustered the courage to put this sentiment out there on Instagram with the rest of my overnight loving Gramers… I was astonished at how many people responded in like. They just can’t get into the soggy oats either. It just goes to show that every fad isn’t for everyone.
What’s a food trend that you just haven’t been able to get into?
I can’t agree more about the overnight oats. Cold oatmeal is just sad to me, no matter what filter you put on it.
A food fad I could definitely live without is smoothie bowls. I want to drink the damn things, not dress them up for IG only to spoon them down like a toddler.
Overnight oats suck. I’m a former chef and open to new ideas. This was a thing in the 80s but never caught on. Lazy people brought it back. It still doesnt work. Oats and most grains are meant to be cooked. Even heated for a minute helps. Your body isn’t meant to process raw grains like a cow. Most vegetables are more nutritious when they’re cooked as well. Toss it in a microwave for a minute, you’ll like it better.
You ask what food trend I can live without. In two words RAW KALE. Flavorless, squeaks on my teeth, chew, chew, chew. Ugh.