Savory steel cut oats made with lentils, spices, mixed veggies & steel cut oats. Serve this with some yogurt, pickle or papad. Instructions for regular pot, Instant pot & traditional cooker included.

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 5 minutes
  • Cook time: 25 minutes
  • Total time: 30 minutes
  • Yield: 1 · 1 to 2
  • Category: Breakfast
  • Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients

  • ¼ cup steel cut oats
  • ¼ cup moong dal ((skinned split mung lentils or use red lentils))
  • 1 tablespoon ghee (or oil)
  • ½ teaspoon cumin
  • 1 small bay leaf ((or curry leaves, optional, Indian tej patta))
  • ¾ teaspoon ginger (chopped finely (or grated))
  • ⅛ teaspoon turmeric
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon red chilli powder ((or black pepper or green chili))
  • 2 tablespoon onions ((chopped))
  • 1 medium tomato ((chopped finely))
  • ¼ cup mix vegetables ((carrots, beans))
  • 2 cups water
  • 1 pinch hing ((or asafoetida) (optional))
  • ¼ teaspoon garam masala (or curry powder (optional))

Method

  1. Rinse steel cut oats and lentils thrice and soak them until you chop and prep up the ingredients.

Stovetop savory steel cut oats

  1. Heat ghee in a pressure cooker or pot. Add cumin and bay leaf. When the cumin splutters, add hing. Add onions and saute until pink, stir in ginger and saute for 1 minute.
  2. Add tomatoes, veggies, turmeric and salt. Saute until the tomatoes turn mushy. Stir in the red chili powder, garam masala, oats and lentils.
  3. Saute for 2 mins and pour water. Give a good mix and pressure cook on a medium heat for 2 to 3 whistles. To cook in a pot without cooker, bring to a rolling boil. Reduce the heat and cook until the lentils and oats are tender. Add some hot water if it is to thick.
  4. Open the lid when the pressure drops and give a good mix. Taste test and adjust salt. Serve steel cut oats hot or warm topped with a tsp of ghee or lemon juice

Instant pot savory steel cut oats

  1. Press saute button on the IP. When it displays hot add ghee or oil. Add cumin and bay leaf. Saute for 30 seconds and quickly add onions.
  2. Saute for 2 mins and then add hing, ginger, tomatoes and salt. Saute until the tomatoes break down and turn soft.
  3. Saute veggies, turmeric and chili powder for a minute. Then add dal, steel cut oats and pour water. Mix well.
  4. Secure the insta pot lid and set the steam release handle to sealing.
  5. Press the porridge button. It is set to 20 mins. You can also pressure cook on high for 10 mins.
  6. Wait for the natural pressure release. When the pin drops, open and stir the steel cut oats. Taste test and adjust salt to taste. Add little ghee and lemon juice.

Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note

Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.