# What's wrong with instant oatmeal?



## kaydee (Aug 13, 2004)

I have heard that instant oatmeal is "bad" and that regular or even quick-cook oatmeal is far preferable. But I am not sure why this is so. Instant is just sooooo convenient!







But I'm willing to make the switch if there really are big differences between instant and other kinds.

TIA!


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## captain optimism (Jan 2, 2003)

I looked this up on nutritiondata.com, and they group "regular, quick and instant" into one category:

http://www.nutritiondata.com/facts-001-02s018d.html

I believe the difference is only in how finely cut the oats are. I enjoy rolled oats more than instant, but if you like instant, why not? If you get the flavored stuff of course it has sugar and other flavorings in it, which you may or may not want to eat. But we also add condiments to our rolled oats oatmeal, so I wouldn't make a big old guilty deal about it.


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## carolsly (Oct 5, 2004)

My friend has a recipie for regular oatmeal that she turns into instant..somehow. I can find out. I have never used it because I just buy the stuff WIC gives us vouchers for.


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## star792 (May 31, 2004)

to make rolled oats instant all you do is put some in the food processor and grind. then cook like you would instant. it works, i do it all the time.


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## alison77 (May 26, 2004)

hi - the problem with instant oats is that they are so processed, there is very little nutritional matter left. the processing gets rid of the germ. steel cut oats are the absolute best, rolled next, then instant. kind of going along with the atkins craze, instant oatmeal is processed very quickly as sugar in your body, so with a jump in blood sugar and then a fall while steel cut takes a lot longer to digest and therefore makes you feel full longer, and keeps your blood sugar levels more constant for longer. of course these blood sugar changes are impacted by what you are eating along with the oatmeal - if you combine instant oatmeal with a protein you're a lot better off.


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## root*children (Mar 22, 2004)

I've heard alot of people just let regular oats sit in milk/water overnight, and in the morning heat it up and it has the same consistency as those lil' baggies of instant oatmeal. I think the "badness" of the baggies is all the junk they add to it. I'm all for throwin' on some brown sugar, vanilla, maple syrup, etc. But read the ingrediants on the box of Quaker instant baggies. It's SOOOO long! ick!


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## Mommy&Will (May 22, 2003)

Can I get steel cut oats in the bins at Whole Foods?

And also, do you think I could put these in the blender to cut them up as well?

Oh, and does anyone eat McCann's Irish Oatmeal? I've had some recipes call for this. Its really expensive and wondered what the difference was....

I did read somewhere you can put your oatmeal in the crockpot to let it cook overnight and it will be ready for you when you wake up. : )

Thank you for this thread.


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## girlndocs (Mar 12, 2004)

I have a can of McCann's I'm working on ...

I do. not. like. oatmeal. I never touch it. But once in a while, on a cold morning, I like my steel-cut oats. The texture is different, the flavor is better (nutty) and it's just ... different. I like it with cream or whole milk & some brown sugar, and a tall glass of OJ









McCann's has instructions for making the oats quicker to fix in the morning, too -- basically the night before you put your oats & water in the pot, bring it to a boil, switch off the heat & drop a lid on. Then in the morning 10-15 minutes of cooking & you're done.


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## melissa17s (Aug 3, 2004)

I was getting the McCann's in a box instead of the tinned version until a recently, and they cooked much faster than 10-15 minutes. I do not what kind of cut they were, though. I would boil water in the kettle, pour it in then nuke it for one minute and they were done. I think it took 3-5 minutes on the stove.
I really prefer being able to add my own sweetners. I love maple syrup. I distrust Quaker, and I think I saw their name on a GMO list. When we have gone to Iowa City, we have drove past their factory in CR, and it smells bad for miles (not appetizing).


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## kaydee (Aug 13, 2004)

Thanks for the tips. It seems that the instant oatmeal I am using (Nature's Path) has the same amount of fiber (4g) as steel cut oats, and more protein (6-7g) and iron (10-15% RDA). And all the ingredients are stuff we have in our house already--nothing too spooky.

That said, it would probably be cheaper to buy steel cut oats in bulk, grind them (for quicker cooking time) and add my own extras. So thanks for the tips!


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## macytoedt (Nov 17, 2004)

i think that regular (from mainstream stores) instant grits and oatmeal contain hydrogenated oil as well, so unless you like crisco in your breakfast, go with the bulk choice.....it's so cheap it's crazy....i use bulk rolled oats in tons of stuff and it's great in natural bodycare recipies...


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## Charmie981 (May 30, 2002)

FYI you can cook rolled oats in the microwave the exact same way you cook instant and they're just as good, but still less processed. I just hate instant oatmeal..the mush factor grosses me out, plus the fact that I have to eat like 5 of those little packets to get a full serving of oatmeal.


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## Pam_and_Abigail (Dec 2, 2002)

Now, when we're talking "instant' oats, do you mean the one-minute cooking oats, the 3-5 minute cooking oats, or the stuff in individual envelopes that you simply add hot water to?
I'd say the less you have to do to it, the more processed it has been, therefore the less healthy.


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## Linda KS (Oct 30, 2004)

I'm the one who started the "get us off instant oatmeal" thing. What we are eating are Quaker Instant Oatmeal Flavor Variety. The top ingre. in the Maple and Brown Sugar are: whole grain rolled oats, sugar, natural and artificial flavors, and salt. I'm reading the box as I type and every flavor lists sugar as the second ingred and salt as either 3rd or 4th. There is a pretty long list of things in each pack, which is just a bad sign.


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## Charmie981 (May 30, 2002)

In my book, there are 4 kinds of oatmeal:
"instant": comes in a box full of individual packets, sometimes has flavor added. You add water and cook in the microwave for 1 min.

"quick": comes in a canister like other oatmeal. The oats are not whole. You cook them on the stove and it takes a minute or two (supposedly).

"old-fashioned" or "rolled": comes in a canister and cooks on the stove. Takes me 5 mins to do it on the stove, and that includes doctoring with brown sugar, cinnamon, milk and butter.

"steel-cut" or "irish": much more expensive, comes in a smaller package...usually a bag, or in bulk at the hfs. takes "even longer" than 5 minutes to cook.

Here's my thing: I noticed when pregnant that the protein content of the old fashioned oats is much higher than the others (with the exception of steel-cut, which I've never bought). It really doesn't take much effort to cook them...the hardest part is washing the pan, and like I said, if you only want one serving, you can cook it in the microwave. This is the stuff I grew up on, and I just don't see how all of the others are any easier. The only time I've gotten instant oatmeal, I've boiled it over in the microwave and ruined it, leaving a HUGE mess to clean up. I've been on a campaign among my friends to revive the rolled oat! It's better for you and just as easy!


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## root*children (Mar 22, 2004)

Charmie, I can't see any of your pics! It says you have to sign in to access them.

okay... now back to the conversation


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## Charmie981 (May 30, 2002)

I know. I'm sorry. My siggy's ancient and Yahoo has totally changed its format since I did it. I need a new one, but that would require uploading the pictures elsewhere, which I've been too lazy to do







:.


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