I love oatmeal, but let’s face it: it can get really boring after awhile. And while I’m not adverse to overnight oats (which I actually eat warm, because I think that cold oatmeal is gross), it’s nice to mix things up.

You need a new breakfast option, don’t you? We all do, so time for my new oatmeal recipe!

Chai is a really popular flavour, and with good reason. It’s warm, it’s delicious, and it’s complex. So complex, in fact, that I’m not going to ask you to actually make the spice in the recipe – I skip that in favour of using chai tea bags. Much easier, and I’m all about easy.

You’ll notice that this recipe has a big milk to oats ratio. That’s because I want you to cook these oats until they’re creamy. Steel cut oats have a great, chewy texture, but simmering them for longer (aka in more milk) gives them a delicious creaminess. Remember though that the mixture will thicken upon standing, so you can turn the stove off when they’re still runny.

The milk in this recipe adds protein and fat, but if you’re not down with dairy, replace it with almond milk and throw some protein powder into the mix. Same with the butter – you can use coconut oil to finish the recipe instead.

Chai naturally partners with coconut, and oatmeal loves raisins – this is how I avoid sweetening the recipe! Of course, feel free to toss some brown sugar, maple syrup, or honey in there.

Full disclosure: this oatmeal recipe was going to have a brûlée crust on top. As much as I tried though, I couldn’t make it work without a blowtorch. And because I want to make my recipes as accessible to you guys as possible, I wouldn’t include a step that you need a blowtorch for. That’s because I’m assuming that very few of you actually own one.

If you hate coconut and/or raisins, just leave them out. I know raisins are highly polarizing!

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Chai Spiced Oatmeal with Raisins and Coconut

This oatmeal recipe is anything but boring! Make a batch now, eat it for breakfast for days. 

It's warm and soothing flavours will start your day right.

Servings: 4
Ingredients
  • 5 cups whole milk
  • 2 cups raw steel cut oats
  • 3 chai tea bags
  • 1/4-1/3 cup raisins depending on how much you like them
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
  • 1-2 tablespoons butter or coconut oil
  • 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  • Dash of salt
Instructions
  1. In a large pot, heat the milk with the tea bags on medium until simmering. Let simmer, stirring gently and occasionally (you don’t want to break the tea bags), until the milk is light brown and fragrant. Discard the tea bags.
  2. Bring the milk to a boil and add the oats, raisins, coconut, cinnamon, and salt. Stir to combine, then reduce heat, cover, and simmer for about 20 minutes or until desired texture is reached. Stir occasionally through the cooking process.

  3. Remove from heat and stir in butter or coconut oil.

  4. Serve with whatever toppings you want: more cinnamon, walnuts, brown sugar, etc.