Published: · Updated: by Mely Martínez
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This creamy oatmeal recipe is a basic recipe using oatmeal, milk, cinnamon, and water. The trick to making it creamy lies in the timing with which you add the ingredients.
Oatmeal Recipe - Old Fashioned Creamy Avena
Growing up, my mom would make oatmeal for breakfast very often, and had a very particular way of serving thisnutritious dish. She always served it withtoasted French bread with butter. To this day, we serve it like that at home, and my siblings also eat it the same way with their families!
At home, my son and I love oatmeal. We can have it frequently and not get tired of it. My husband, on the other hand, doesn’t like oatmeal, but not because he hasn’t been exposed to it. He grew up eating oatmeal every single day, and they would serve it piping hot in his house, even if it was the middle of summer. Because of this, he grew tired of it, and says he’s eaten enough oatmeal for one lifetime!
Creamy Mexican Oatmeal with Cinnamon
This oatmeal recipe is prepared on the stovetop. However, I know that there are many versions that can be made using the Instant Pot, slow cooker, and even the microwave, but this is the old-fashioned way, and I promise you will love it!
Nowadays, I know that many families don’t have the time to prepare a breakfast completely from scratch, but thankfully you can make this creamy oatmeal the night before and just reheat it in the morning. I like to make a big batch and store it in the fridge (it also keeps well I the freezer). You can even store it in single-serving containers for when you’re in a hurry.
How to make Oatmeal Recipe
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 Cinnamon stick
- 2 cups of water
- 1 Cup Old Fashioned Oats
- 1 cup of milk*
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Sugar (optional)
NOTES:
- * If you want your oatmeal to be more watery, add ¼ cup more milk.
- *To sweeten your oatmeal, you can use regular sugar or dark brown sugar. I personally like to add dark brown sugar at the serving time.
- * Please, if you are lactose intolerant, use lactose-free milk. Or, you can substitute regular milk for a vegan version like oat, almond, or soy milk.
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Place the two cups of water and the cinnamon stick in a medium-size saucepan and turn the heat to high.
- Afterward, the water starts boiling, add the Old Fashioned Oats and reduce the heat to medium. Cook for five minutes.
- After the five minutes, pour in the milk and stir well. Keep cooking for five more minutes, stirring from time to time to keep the oatmeal from sticking to the saucepan.
- Eventually, the oatmeal will become thick and creamy, then remove from the heat. Serve it in bowls, sprinkle with some ground cinnamon, and sweeten with your sweetener of choice (I recommend dark brown sugar).
Good additions to your oatmealinclude chopped apples, pecans, and bananas.
As I mentioned above, this is the way my mom cooked oatmeal at home for my siblings and I. Your mom or yourself might have a special way of cooking oatmeal, or there might be a special ingredient that you add. Please share it with us in the comments section below. Enjoy!
📖 Recipe
Oatmeal Recipe
Mely Martínez
This creamy oatmeal recipe is a basic recipe using oatmeal, milk, cinnamon, and water. The trick to making it creamy lies in the timing with which you add the ingredients.
4.93 from 38 votes
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Total Time 15 minutes mins
Course Drinks
Cuisine Mexican
Servings 2 servings
Calories 233 kcal
Ingredients
- 2 cups of water
- 1 Cinnamon stick
- 1 cup Old Fashioned Oats
- 1 cup of milk*
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Sugar optional
Instructions
Place the two cups of water and the cinnamon stick in a medium-size saucepan and turn the heat to high.
Afterward, the water starts boiling, add the Old Fashioned Oats and reduce the heat to medium. Cook for five minutes.
After the five minutes, pour in the milk and stir well. Keep cooking for five more minutes, stirring from time to time to keep the oatmeal from sticking to the saucepan.
Eventually, the oatmeal will become thick and creamy, then remove from the heat. Serve it in bowls, sprinkle with some ground cinnamon, and sweeten with your sweetener of choice (I recommend dark brown sugar).
GOOD ADDITIONS TO YOUR OATMEAL INCLUDE CHOPPED APPLES, PECANS, AND BANANAS.
Video
Notes
- * If you want your oatmeal to be more watery, add ¼ cup more milk.
- *To sweeten your oatmeal, you can use regular sugar or dark brown sugar. I personally like to add dark brown sugar at the serving time.
- * Please, if you are lactose intolerant, use a lactose-free milk. Or, you can substitute regular milk for a vegan version like oat, almond, or soy milk.
Nutrition
Calories: 233kcalCarbohydrates: 35gProtein: 9gFat: 7gSaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 12mgSodium: 68mgPotassium: 308mgFiber: 5gSugar: 7gVitamin A: 200IUCalcium: 184mgIron: 1.9mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
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Reader Interactions
Comments
Courtney
This is exactly the oatmeal recipe I was looking for! On vacation I had oatmeal like this but I couldn't seem to recreate it. The timing of ingredients is the key. The results are a delicious creamy breakfast. Thank you so much!Reply
Torami
I really enjoyed this creamy Old Fashioned Oats oatmeal!! Cinnamon was a nice touch. I had with walnuts, golden flaxseeds and blackberries. Excellent!!Reply
Erika
This isnt it. Not the true spanish oatmeal recipe was not good. Followed to a T.Reply
Mely Martínez
Hello Erika,
This is not a recipe for Spanish oatmeal. This is a recipe for Mexican Style Oatmeal.Reply
JoAnn Edwards
Thank you sooooo much!!
I have been looking for the way to make it this was and I finally found it!!*Reply
Eva Gaviria
Gracias por la receta. Me quedo buenísima.
Thank you for the recipe. It is so creamy and delicious. Like my mom used to make it.Reply
Cindi
Best oatmeal I've ever made. I don't even like oatmeal, and I enjoyed this, It is super creamy and the oats have a light cinnamony flavor. I thought I mismeasured as after the second 5 minutes it was really soupy, but I let it keep going on medium-low and it did thicken nicely and turned out great. I added a pinch of salt when I added the oats into the water. This made 2 servings. This should be the recipe printed on the side of the oat cannister on how to make oats instead of the American bland gross way that I grew up with. No wonder I didn't like oatmeal. This is so much better! I didn't even need to add butter. A pinch of ground cinnamon and a spoonful of brown sugar and it was delicious.Reply
Mely Martínez
Hello Cindi,
It's so glad to know you like the way we cook Oatmeal. Thanks for visiting Mexico in My Kitchen.Reply
Antoinette
Thanks for the tips. I’ve used the right ingredients but, yep, timing was off. Sounds just like what my mom made for us (6 kids) regularly before school, in the 60’s and 70’s. Mine never quite comes out creamy enough. My mom is 88 now and I’m going to make it for her, hoping she’ll enjoy it as much as we used to enjoy hers. She always added butter…..so good!
Reply
Mely Martínez
Hello Antonitette,
I hope you like it.
Reply
Ava Flores
I’m from South Africa and this is how we grew up eating oats for breakfast. Just one difference we put a knob of butter in our hot oats. My husband is Mexican and he just doesn’t like it this way, he grew up having it in an atole, which is something that I haven’t gotten used to yet.
I love your recipes and the stories about your food, thank you for sharingMely Martínez
Hello Ava,
To make atole, place the oatmeal in the blender with the water, then proceed to cook in this recipe.
Melissa white
do you have the recipe for making it in a crock pot we had it in mexico and it waS in a huge pot at the hotel and we loved it would like to try in the crock potReply
Mely Martínez
Hello Melissa,
Place all the ingredients into a crockpot and cook for 2 hours in the low setting.Reply
Esther
Great recipe. I have used greek yogurt instead of milk. It makes it super creamy. I also add raisins, cinnamon, and a spoon of vanilla extract.
Reply
Ashley
Thanks so muchhhh for this recipeeee!!! I have been trying to make this for years but something is always off lol now I can enjoy my oatmeal daily and NOT by chance
Reply
Mely Martínez
Reply
AG
Love the cinnamon bit and I also like using dark brown sugar! With soy milk is also good.Reply
Mely Martínez
Hello AG,
Thank you for trying the recipe, and for the tip about using Soy Milk.
Reply
Clara Diez
Thank you for this recipe. My abuelita used to make it just like this, but I didn’t know how to make it.Reply
Darlene
Just had your oatmeal and it was great as creamy as my mother use to make it....The only difference was I added apple sauce as my sweeterReply
Mely Martínez
Hello Darlene,
Thank you for trying the Oatmeal recipe. Love the idea of adding apple sauce as a sweetener.
I need to try it soon.
Montez
This is the best oatmeal recipe ever!!! Love the flavour of the cinnamon stick and milk.Reply
Mely Martínez
Hello Montez,
Thank you for trying the oatmeal recipe.Reply
olive
We do all this steps and at serving put a teaspoon of butter and brown sugar
Reply
Alisha
I love this recipe & so do my kids! I make it often, thank you!!!Reply
ana chavez
My mom used to serve it with homemade flour tortillas and butter 😀 delicioso.Reply
Leslie G.
I’ve been looking for a recipe like this for years! My great regret is that I never paid attention to how my mom made her creamy oatmeal. This recipe is, by far, the closest I’ve found. Thank you.Reply
Mely Martínez
Hello Leslie,
I hope you enjoy your creamy oatmeal.Reply
Melissa
I love this recipe! Brings back childhood memories. Waking up to atole and buñuelos was the best! Thank you for sharing! Headed to the kitchen to make some more!
Noemi
My mom uses carnation evaporated milk. Will that work too?
Reply
Mely Martínez
Hello Noemi,
Yes, you can use it. I bet it is tasty!B. Lozano
Mely , I want to thank you for bringing back a memory. My mom called it moche’ when we were growing up! Might be wrong spelling but can’t find it anywhere? Have you ever heard of it being called this in Spanish?
Mely Martínez
Helo B. Lozano,
maybe is a local name, I never heard about Moche. Some regions have a particular name for ingredients or meals.Noemi
OMG, I just realized our names are both Noemi and Yes, My Mom uses both evaporated milk and milk. After I boil the water with cinnamon, I add a can of Evaporated milk and then the milk. I make a big batch to use for left overs. Thank you so much for reminding me of the pan frances! That's how we would eat it and it was so delicious!
Mely Martínez
Hello Noemi,
Enjoy your oatmeal with a toasted pan francés with butter.
Analee
I've been wanting to try this for a few days now! Is the liquid supposed to boil out & be absorbed by the oatmeal? Gracias por compartir!
Reply
Mely Martínez
Hello Analee,
Yes, let it absorb the liquid a little bit.
Theo
HI,
Thank you for this recipe.
Can I make this using my instaPot or crock pot? what would be the steps, setting and timing?Thank you so much
Reply
mmartinez
Hello Theo,
I have never made this in the instant pot. Sorry, I can give you any advice about it. But now you gave me an idea to try it.Reply
Suzan.
Could this be made with quick cooking rolled oats?
Reply
mmartinez
Hello Suzan.
Yes, you can use Quick oats, it will take less time to cook.Reply
Victor
This is exactly how my Grandma would make her oatmeal. With half a buttered francecisto. This would give us the energy needed to get us to lunch. Thank you Mely posting it.Reply
mmartinez
Hola Victor,
So nice to see that other families have the same traditions. Creamy Warm oatmeal with a pan tostado with butter tastes amazing!Reply
Marielle
The oatmeal was perfect for this cloudy day. I loved that sugar was optional and the creamy consistency is perfect. I added an extra 1/4 cup of milk like your recipe suggests.Mely Martínez
Hello Marielle,
That extra milk sure makes the oatmeal extra creamy.
Happy cooking!
Joelett
Exactly how my mom used to make it.. perfect!!
Reply
Edilia
Que rico! Al fin puedo hacer mi avena correctamente ☺️Reply
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