Overnight oats are rolled oats softened in liquid in the fridge. There is no morning cooking: stir, add a topping and eat. The method is forgiving, but the type of oats, thickness of the yogurt and your preferred texture all affect how much liquid you need.
The base: one serving
- 40 g rolled oats
- 120 ml milk or an unsweetened plant-based drink
- 100 g plain yogurt or plain soy yogurt
- Optional: a pinch of cinnamon
Use a clean container with a lid, large enough to leave room for stirring and fruit. Rolled oats give a softer but still textured result. Steel-cut oats are not a direct substitute in this no-cook recipe.
- Stir the oats, milk and yogurt together, including any dry flavouring.
- Cover and put straight into a fridge at 4°C or below.
- Leave for about 8 hours or overnight.
- Stir before serving. Add 15–30 ml more milk if it is thicker than you like.
- Add washed fruit and crunchy toppings just before eating.
The recipe quantities are a practical starting ratio, not a tested commercial formula. Different products absorb liquid differently; change the next batch by a spoonful at a time.
Five variations
Each variation uses one serving of the base above. Add the quantities below rather than making another full base.
1. Apple and cinnamon
Stir in half a small grated apple and a pinch of cinnamon before chilling. In the morning, top with the other half, diced, and 10 g chopped walnuts. Grating the first half spreads the flavour through the oats.
2. Cocoa and banana
Mix 5 g unsweetened cocoa into the base. Add one small sliced banana in the morning. If the cocoa makes the mixture too thick, stir in an extra tablespoon of milk. No sweetener is essential; choose according to taste.
3. Berries and lemon
Fold in 80 g washed fresh berries before serving, with a little finely grated zest from a washed lemon. Finish with 10 g pumpkin seeds. If using frozen berries, follow the packet’s preparation and heating instructions rather than assuming they are ready to eat.
4. Pear and almond
Add a pinch of cinnamon to the base. In the morning, top with one small diced pear and 15 g sliced almonds. Keep the almonds separate until serving to preserve their crunch.
5. Peanut butter and strawberry
Stir 15 g smooth peanut butter into the milk before mixing the base. Finish with 100 g sliced strawberries. Choose a seed butter instead if suitable for your dietary needs; check allergen labels in either case.
How long should you keep them?
For this uncooked dairy-and-fruit preparation, make a jar for the next morning, rather than assuming it will last the whole week. Keep it covered and refrigerated continuously at 4°C or below, and follow the earliest use-by or opened-product instruction among the ingredients. The overnight recommendation is a conservative choice for this recipe, not a laboratory-validated shelf life.
The food-safety sources below support cold storage and prompt refrigeration; they do not validate a specific five-day life for homemade overnight oats. Take a chilled jar to work in an insulated bag with an ice pack and return it to a fridge. Do not rely on smell alone to judge safety.
Easy changes
For a dairy-free version, use soy yogurt and a fortified plant drink that suits you. For gluten avoidance, choose oats specifically labelled gluten-free and check every addition. Nutrition will vary with the products and toppings, so no single calorie figure describes all five versions.
For something warm or savoury, browse our protein breakfast ideas. To organise more than breakfast, see weekly meal prep.