How to Make Oat Milk
Updated Mar 18, 2026
Easy homemade oat milk with rolled oats, water, and salt. Just blend and strain. Chocolate, Strawberry, and Vanilla oat milk recipe variations included!
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Homemade oat milk is so easy to make!
I started making oat milk at home because I wanted a plain version without all the extras that come in a lot of store-bought cartons. This one is mostly just oats, water, and salt, and that’s part of why I keep making it. If you want to add maple syrup or vanilla, you can, but I usually leave it alone and use it as is.
This homemade oat milk is also easy enough that it doesn’t feel like a project. Everything goes into the blender, then you strain it and stick it in the fridge. The biggest thing is keeping the blending short so it stays smooth and doesn’t get slimy.
Happy Cooking!
– Yumna
How to Make Homemade Oat Milk
For homemade oat milk, I use old-fashioned rolled oats. They blend well, strain pretty easily, and give you the best shot at a smooth oat milk that doesn’t get weird.
I would skip steel-cut oats here because they’re too hard for this kind of quick blender recipe. They don’t break down the same way, so the texture can come out gritty. I’d also skip instant oats if you can. They break down too fast and make it a lot easier for the oat milk to turn slimy. If you want the easiest, most reliable option, rolled oats are the ones to use.
Homemade Oat Milk Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 1 cup rolled oats
- 5 cups water
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a high speed blender.
- Blend for 30 seconds, strain through a mesh sieve or cheese cloth and doing a double strain if necessary to remove any additional residue.
- Pour the oat milk into a bottle, seal and place in the fridge for up to 7 days. Best served chilled.
Equipment
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
Variations
You can leave this oat milk plain, or blend in a few extras depending on how you want to use it. For this batch size, I’d keep the add-ins pretty small so the oat milk still blends and strains well.
- Vanilla oat milk: Add 1 to 2 teaspoons vanilla extract while blending. If you want it a little sweeter too, add 1 tablespoon maple syrup or 2 soft pitted dates.
- Chocolate oat milk: Add 1 to 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder plus 1 to 2 tablespoons maple syrup or 2 to 3 soft pitted dates. I would not add more cocoa than that unless you want it very rich, because too much can make it feel heavy.
- Strawberry oat milk: Add ½ cup chopped strawberries and 1 to 2 teaspoons maple syrup if needed. I’d keep the strawberries pretty light here so the oat milk still strains well and doesn’t get too pulpy.
If you’re adding anything extra, it helps to double-strain the oat milk, especially with chocolate or strawberries.
Recipe Tips
- Use cold filtered water to avoid passing chlorine or other off-tastes from tap water into your oat milk. Cold water makes the best oat milk because it prevents the oats from cooking and releasing too much starch, which leads to a slimy texture.
- Resist over blending. If you process the oats too much you’ll activate the starch and will end up with thick, slimy oat milk.
- Adjust the water during the blending process for a thinner or thicker consistency. You can go down to 3 cups of water or as much as 7 cups of water.
- Do not press sediment through the sieve. This will give you gritty oat milk. It’s best to lightly strain with a mesh sieve or even cheesecloth.
- Add dates, maple syrup or any sweetener during the blending process. . For this recipe, I’d start with 1 to 2 tablespoons maple syrup or 2 to 3 soft pitted dates. That’s usually enough to lightly sweeten the oat milk without making it too heavy. You can always blend in more if needed, but I would start small, especially with dates, since they can thicken the oat milk a bit.
Recipes to Make with Homemade Oat Milk
- Use it in one of my favorite breakfast recipes like these Steel Cut Oats or Blueberry Baked Oatmeal
- Or add it to a warming drink like this Dairy-Free Hot Chocolate or my Pumpkin Spice Latte
- Or take things savory with this Vegan Cornbread, Creamy Mushroom Pasta, Vegan Butternut Squash Soup or Wild Rice Soup with Mushrooms
Comments
Omg ๐๐๐๐ค๐ค๐คโจ๏ธโจ๏ธโจ๏ธ I made the oat milk and even I use the additional residue for overnight oat and taste like heaven ๐ ๐
Such a great idea!
I found that this milk was kind of watery. I’m gonna try doing 4 cups of water instead of 5.
Thank you for your feedback! I recommend adjusting the water during the blending process for a thinner or thicker consistency. You can go down to 3 cups of water or as much as 7 cups of water.
Love Oat Milk! As kids, Mom used to make us this as part of our breakfast.Add a few drops of Vanilla and itโs awesome!!! Funny how so many foods are popping up that we used to eat when we had no means to buy the real stuff.