Steel cut oats vs. Rolled oats

Just purchased and cooked my first steel cut oats breakfast meal. What's the benefit of these over rolled oats? They take much longer to prepare and are not that much tastier. Are they worth the added cost?

the added smugness is usually worth the extra cost for most people who eat them.

As far as nutrients are concerned, they're essentially the same. Steel cut oats are less processed and some brands are less processed and slightly more nutritious than others. Quaker vs Bob's Red Mill for instance - comparing both at 1/4 cup serving sizes, Bob's has a bit more fiber and protein per serving, it also has about 20 more calories. You can find a lot of nutritional info online if you'd like to research yourself.

Personally, I find the steel cut oats more tasty (slightly nutty flavor) and satisfying. As far as cooking time goes, I solved that by cooking up a big batch every weekend in the crock pot. Throw the ingredients in, give it a litle stir, let it sit for 5 or 6 hours on low and you're good to go.

Just purchased and cooked my first steel cut oats breakfast meal. What's the benefit of these over rolled oats? They take much longer to prepare and are not that much tastier. Are they worth the added cost?

the added smugness is usually worth the extra cost for most people who eat them.

not worth the extra cost, unless you do it cheaper that buying at a store or small can/bags online. I buy from honeyville grains in a 50 lb bag. it will keep in the bag just fine or you can store in a 5 gallon bucket with lid. the cost for a 50 lb with shipping is $57, which comes out to $0.07/ounce. bobs red mill on amazon is $0.12/ounce. most of the ones on amazon come out to 0.15 to 0.25/ounce. you can find honeyvilles on amazon as well, i prefer going to the site. if you do it right, really not that expensive. plus on the honeyville site you can get mixed grain cereals and cracked grains for a little different tastes if you like. i have tried the 9 grain cracked and 6 grain rolled. both are excellent and great quality. i prefer the cracked and steel cut textures over the rolled. that's the only real difference. they don't break down into mush as much as the rolled/quick oats.

Nutritionally pretty much the same.

As a personal preference the taste, and more so the texture, of steel cut oats are way worth the extra prep time - especially considering how I don't often eat them in general.

Although I try to stick with less-processed foods when possible, I prefer the taste and texture of rolled oats. If time is an issue, Trader Joe's sells quick-cooking steel cut oats, which take only slightly longer (I think 8 minutes).

Just purchased and cooked my first steel cut oats breakfast meal. What's the benefit of these over rolled oats? They take much longer to prepare and are not that much tastier. Are they worth the added cost?

They make your wallet lighter, and they make the company a higher profit. It's funny how that works, the less processed product (steel cut) is more expensive than the more processed product (rolled oats) because companies can sell the steel cut for a premium price, because people have been convinced that they are somehow "better."

I don't like the texture of rolled oats and prefer steel cut...that said, I rarely have them and compromise with Coach's Oats which have a similar texture to steel cut, but don't require endless hours of cooking...I can still nuke 'em in the morning in the microwave for 4 minutes and they're good to go. I have actual steel cuts on occasion, but it's pretty rare.

I don't like the texture of rolled oats and prefer steel cut...that said, I rarely have them and compromise with Coach's Oats which have a similar texture to steel cut, but don't require endless hours of cooking...I can still nuke 'em in the morning in the microwave for 4 minutes and they're good to go. I have actual steel cuts on occasion, but it's pretty rare.

Life changer! Never knew these existed.

They have more fiber and nutrients because the bran hasn't been removed. It's not a huge difference. Most people who buy them prefer the flavor and texture. There are quick cooking varieties or you can precook a batch, like others have mentioned.

Not all rolled oats lack bran. The two brands of "old-fashioned" rolled oats (the kind that takes 5 minutes to cook) that I currently have on my shelf are both whole grain/whole oats, which means they have the bran. Possibly the "quick" type does not have the bran, but I don't have any of that in the house right now. Just check the ingredient list on the lable for "whole."

I generally keep the steel-cut type on hand, too, for a treat when I have the time to cook them, because I prefer the texture. Since they became more popular in the last few years, I can find them at about the same price as rolled oats. It used to be that the only brand(s) carried in my grocery stores were imported from the U.K. or Ireland, and were much pricier.

Even if I always had time to cook the steel-cut version, I'd still keep rolled oats on hand, for baking and for eating raw with yogurt, fruit, and nuts.

I don't like the texture of rolled oats and prefer steel cut...that said, I rarely have them and compromise with Coach's Oats which have a similar texture to steel cut, but don't require endless hours of cooking...I can still nuke 'em in the morning in the microwave for 4 minutes and they're good to go. I have actual steel cuts on occasion, but it's pretty rare.

This! ^ I love Coach's instant steel cut oats .....for me it's a texture thing. Besides Coach's are toasted (and cut) whereas rolled oats are steamed (and rolled)....I like the toasty taste.

That sounds good, but I don't think I've ever seen them. Where are you buying them?

Costco here. They're not expensive. Not as cheap as rolled oats but they are a lot different, to me. A lot like brown rice vs. white. Both good, but different.

I think they're more expensive to process because an actual whole oat would be inedible so they have to cut each grain into quarters. Whereas with rolled oats they're probably steamed to remove the bran shell then just pushed through a roller en masse.