Apple Pie Steel Cut Oatmeal (Instant Pot or Slow Cooker)

Apple pie steel cut oatmeal is a filling healthy breakfast with zero refined sugar and full of nourishing apples & cinnamon! Warm, cozy, delicious — the perfect start to your day.

Yummy Apple Pie Steel Cut Oats

Fall = tons of fresh apples. Another reason it is my favorite time of year.

My husband walked in with a huge 12 pound bag from a local apple orchard, and today’s recipe is my favorite way to tear into them.

My mother-in-law made this recipe for us a few years ago when my son was a baby. He absolutely LOVED it, and he’s not a big breakfast eater. But he could put away a large bowl of this stuff, no problem.

In fact, everyone in our family loves this. It’s delicious and healthy – like apple pie in a bowl! Very filling and full of energy.

Just throw all the ingredients into the crock pot or Instant Pot before bed, and wake up to a warm, cozy breakfast.

Another HUGE plus to this recipe is that it’s refined sugar free. And you truly don’t need to add any additional honey, syrup, or sugar to make it sweet enough. The apple juice and apples sweeten the oats perfectly!

Just add some butter and a splash of cream. That’s all you need.

What are steel cut oats?

Steel cut oats have a chewy “bite” you can’t replicate with other types of oats. If you’ve tried them, you know what I mean. They just have a nicer texture and nuttiness, less creamy and mushy than traditional oatmeal.

They are less processed than rolled or instant oats, and are simply oat groats that have been cut into 2-3 small pieces with large steel blades. But nutrition-wise, all oat variations are pretty much the same.

I love this Gilmore Girls dialogue from Luke’s Diner about steel cut oats:

ZACH: So you’re telling me you won’t eat this (regular) oatmeal?

CUSTOMER: These are rolled oats are repeatedly cut, twice steamed, and processed extensively.

ZACH: And the oatmeal you thought you were ordering was…

CUSTOMER: Steel cut, which are whole-grain oats, retaining the more natural, nutty flavor of the original oat kernels.

ZACH: Okay, okay. I think I got it. You’re like an analog guy with a CD. You miss the vinyl’s cool scratches and pops. I think I can work with that.

Should I soak steel cut oats?

YES, soaking steel cut oats is important! Doing so makes them easier to digest, quicker to cook, and reduces phytic acid which binds to the beneficial minerals in the oats.

Some people wonder, “Are steel cut oats harder to digest?” The answer is no, as long as the oats have been properly soaked for at least 8 hours prior to cooking.

Normally, oatmeal is soaked in water overnight with a bit of acid (lemon juice, kefir, or apple cider vinegar). This recipe uses a mix of apple juice and water with a splash of apple cider vinegar.

You might be wondering if it’s okay to leave this juice/oatmeal mixture out overnight to soak, and the answer is YES, it’s totally fine! But if you are more comfortable with it, you can always soak the mixture in the fridge before transferring to the Instant Pot in the morning.

Try this recipe next: Sourdough Oatmeal Pancakes

Benefits of Instant Pot Steel Cut Oatmeal

The cool thing about using the Instant Pot to make steel cut oats is that it eliminates all the annoying quirks about using steel cut oats!

On the stovetop, steel cut oats take FOREVER to cook. And they also have to be stirred frequently to prevent them sticking to the bottom of the pot.

With the IP, just 10 minutes and you’re done! Hands off, no stirring, no sticking or burning, you can set it and forget it.

You Can Also Use a Slow Cooker (Crock Pot)

This recipe is also super easy to adapt to a slow cooker if that’s what you prefer! Actually, that’s the original way we made this recipe and it works great.

Just cook the oats overnight – you may want to soak them the day before to aid digestion.

How to Make Apple Pie Steel Cut Oats (Instant Pot or Crock Pot)

First, grease your Instant Pot or crock pot with some sort of oil – this will make cleanup much easier later. I love using this Pompeian coconut oil spray.

Chop 3 apples and add to the pot insert.

Add 1 cup steel cut oats, two cups apple juice, 2 cups water, and 2 teaspoons cinnamon to the pot. I love that this recipe is perfectly sweet from the fruit and juice and requires no sugar!

Stir everything together and cover (apples will float to the top).

Instant Pot Cooking Directions: Allow oatmeal mixture to soak overnight. In the morning, lock the lid and set to Manual, High Pressure, for 10 minutes. Allow to naturally release around 10 minutes, then quick release and stir. Or, use the “delay start” feature to automatically begin cooking at a set time. This article explains in detail how to use the delay start feature.

Slow cooker Directions: Cook for 7-8 hours on LOW.

To serve: When you’re ready to eat, give everything a good stir and add a little butter and cream or milk to individual bowls. It adds such a nice creaminess to the oatmeal.

If you like it sweeter, you can obviously add a bit of sweetener of your choice. But it honestly doesn’t need it, in my opinion!

Important Note: Other types of oatmeal (Old Fashioned or Instant) will not work for this recipe. They’ll be too mushy. This recipe is specifically formulated for steel cut oats only.

Storage/Reheating Instructions

These steel cut oats are just as good leftover and are easy to reheat the next day. They stay fresh 3 days in the fridge – just reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop with a bit of extra liquid.

What’s your preference: steel cut or regular oatmeal?

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