Make-ahead breakfasts don’t have to be complicated or time consuming. Homemade Instant Oatmeal Packet takes about five minutes to make a couple of weeks worth. These are way cheaper to make than store-bought and you can customize your own flavors to suit each family member’s tastes on a budget!
You’ll need three basic ingredients that you likely already have in the pantry, to make the base of each oatmeal pack: Oats, Brown Sugar, and Salt. Jazz them up by adding in a few fun mix ins (I have some suggestions for you below). But, it’s definitely not necessary. When making this batch, I left several plain and it tastes just fine on its own!
🍽️ Why This Recipe Works
Cheap – Like I mentioned, these are going to come in at 15 cents per serving! That is literally just pennies to serve your family breakfast.
Fast to Prep – These will take you about 5-7 minutes to prep an entire container of oatmeal.
Versatile – Think about adding other mix ins that you and your family may enjoy so it isn’t the same each day. Since this is a true frugal meal, I suggest you go through your pantry and grab that ⅓ leftover bag of Craisins and mix them into a few bags. Do you have 2-3 tablespoons leftover of slivered almonds or random nuts like that from a recipe? Toss them into a couple bags. This is the time to clean out and feel so good about it.
Make in Jars – Another great option for these is to make them in jars like we do the overnight oats so you can simply add in the water in the morning and zap in the microwave for a minute. If you use this option, you will be making about 5-10 at a time as space is an issue, but I love how you can make the mornings go much faster.
🍓 Ingredients
All you need are three main ingredients plus any add-ins you want to include. It’s your breakfast, so go as wild as you wish!
Quick Oats: They are super inexpensive and are the most important ingredient. You can make several packets for pennies! (cost: $0.9)
Brown Sugar: Sweeten the deal with some tasty brown sugar. It’s the perfect sweetener option for these oatmeal packets. Plus, it’s very inexpensive per serving as well. (cost: $0.05)
Salt: A little bit of salt actually makes the oats even sweeter. (I know that sounds crazy, but it’s true) It’s a great way to enhance sweetness in many recipes. (cost: negligible)
🤑 Cost Breakdown
The cost for the base is about $0.15, and I’m rounding up. Of course, the cost will increase depending on the mix-ins you add. That is also why I suggest adding from what you already have, use those random partial leftovers here. But because the base recipe is so inexpensive, you can get creative with the add-ins and they’ll still be pretty frugal!
Cost of Container of Quick Oats (Walmart Brand) $2.70 for 30 servings = $.09/cents per serving
Cost of Bag of Brown Sugar (Walmart Brand) $1.54 for 30 servings = $.05/cents per serving
📝 Instructions
Step One: Layer ½ cup of oats, two teaspoons brown sugar and sprinkle of salt (optional) into a snack size Ziploc baggie.
Step Two: Add in any additional mix-ins to create the flavor of your choice. This will increase your price per bag but gives you more options for variety so you won’t get bored and eat out.
That’s it, really. Very, very simple. And if you work assembly line style you can be done in about 5-7 minutes. Not bad for a month of breakfasts!
Heating Instructions – Microwave
Step One: When heating up, add in ¾ cup of water and the oat packet to a bowl and stir.
Step Two: Microwave for one minute. Stir, and depending on your microwave, you may need an additional 30 seconds.
We like to prepare ours with almond milk occasionally. But preparing with water makes it easier to take to work, since you don’t have to travel with a liquid as well. Another option is to add a tablespoon of powdered milk to your mix.
Heating Up Instructions – Stove Top
Step One: Pour one bag of oats into a bowl or mug.
Step Two: Heat up boiling water and pour ¾ of a cup of water over the oats and stir to combine. Allow to sit for about two minutes to get soft and creamy. Depending on how thick or thin you like it, add a little bit more water as it starts to settle.
Make Overnight Oats Version
For 2 servings:
Step One: Combine one cup of the oats mixture with ¾ cup of milk (whichever you choose) and a container of greek yogurt. Stir to combine.
Step Two: Place it into two glass containers and allow to sit in the refrigerator overnight and in the morning it will be thick and creamy. Ready to eat.
🍇 Variations
Be sure to play around with mix-ins to keep boredom and “I’m so sick of eating this for the 15th morning in a row!” at bay. Here are a few of our favorite mix-ins that we’ve personally tried. Please feel free to leave your flavor combo suggestions in the comments below!
- Cinnamon and raisins (my favorite)
- Chocolate chip and coconut flakes (strange combo, but good!)
- Chopped walnuts, cinnamon and maple syrup* (my husband’s favorite)
- Chocolate chip
- Powdered Peanut Butter like we used in the Peanut Butter Overnight Oats
* I haven’t figured out a way to store the maple syrup with the oatmeal itself. So we add in the cinnamon and walnuts with the oatmeal, then pack the maple syrup in the world’s tiniest container so my husband can heat it up at work. So while tasty, this flavor isn’t made too often because it tastes off without the maple.
We’ve kept these in the cupboards for at least three months and the flavor is still great, so they store very well! If you’re storing semi long term and adding mix-ins, I’d go according to your most perishable ingredient as a guideline for how long it can be stored.
I hope you enjoy, and please let me know if you decide to make these homemade oatmeal packets yourself and start saving money on your groceries each week.
Recipe FAQ
If they are sealed well, they should last about 3 months or so.
No, if you don’t want to add the sprinkle of salt, please leave it out. It will add a little bit of sweetness (shocking!) but it isn’t a requirement.
No, by all means make a big batch in a glass container and scoop out ½ cup at a time when you want to use it. This way you skip the plastic bags and plastic containers all together.
Simply by choosing gluten free oats. You should be able to proceed with everything else.
Related Recipes
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Homemade Instant Oatmeal Packets for 15 Cents/Serving
Equipment
- Snack Sized Ziploc Bags
Ingredients
- Oatmeal
- Brown sugar
Instructions
Making Instant Oatmeal Packets
- Layer ½ cup of oats, 2 tsp brown sugar and sprinkle of salt (optional) into a snack size zip baggie. Alternatively, you can put all of the oats in a glass container and scoop out 1/2 cup a day.
- Add in any additional mix-ins to create the flavor of your choice. This will increase your price per bag but gives you more options for variety so you won't get bored and eat out.
Heating Instructions Microwave
- When heating up, prepare according to the directions of the oats you've purchased usually ¾ cup of water and stir. Microwave for 1 minute. Stir and depending on your microwave, you may need an additional 30 seconds.
Heating Instructions Stove Top/Hot Water Method
- Pour one bag of oats into a bowl or mug.
- Heat up boiling water on the stove top, in a kettle or by using the hot water from a coffee pot. Pour ¾ of a cup of water over one packet of oats and stir to combine. Allow to sit for about 2 minutes to get soft and creamy. Depending on how thick or thin you like it, add a little bit more water as it starts to settle.
Notes
- Cinnamon and raisins (my favorite)
- Chocolate chip and coconut flakes (strange combo, but good!)
- Chopped walnuts, cinnamon and maple syrup* (my husband’s favorite)
- Chocolate chip
- Dried fruit
- Any leftover dried fruit, nuts, flaxseed or chia seeds from your pantry.
Nutrition
I have also made “instant” homemade oatmeal packets, but I add a tablespoon of dry milk with mine. That way I only have to add hot water at the office. Dried apples, peaches, apricots or nuts are also a good addition.
Adding dry milk is such a great idea!
Great idea!! Will be doing this from now on. Thank you for sharing! I make mine with whatever apples I have on hand, diced, and add chopped walnuts…delish!
I’m a little late to this post, but I just wanted to say thank you. I decided to switch from cereal to oatmeal to save money on breakfast. This made 17 packets of instant oatmeal for $3! My cereal for 17 days would cost around $23 or more, so you’ve just saved me $20!
Woot!
Sounds like a plan! You could also add a little powdered milk into the mix if you want milk.
Yes, great idea!
This is a great idea! I need to make the most of every second in the morning, and anything that lets me measure ahead is a winner. Thanks!
Hope you enjoy it, Jess!
You can Google powdered Maple syrup and you can find many to choose from…..That is what I am going to do to make mine ….Thank you for sharing
Thanks so much for the tip!
Hello there!
I have been doing just this for years!!! It was easier than doctoring my no-name oatmeal and heckuva lot cheaper too. Glad you’re bringing back great ideas. My teenage son loves oatmeal any time of day.
Keep up the fantastic site!
Laurie in Maple Ridge, BC CANADA
Yes it certainly is easier. Customized flavors and it’s less expensive – win/win! 😀
I’ve been doing this for a while. I bag up my oats and then line up the baggies, still open. Mine also get a spponful of brown sugar.
I have a tub of raisons, another tub of golden raisons, and a tub of craisons. I’ll go down the line…first baggie gets raisons and goldens, next baggie gets goldens & craisons, then craisons and raisons. Repeat until I’m done. That way,I get a nice mix of my favorite three fill ins.
If you like maple, you could buy a bottle of maple extract and keep it at work. Just a teeny drop would provide lots of maple flavor without the sticky/wetness. There are cheapy brands as well as organic brands out there to choose from. I would think, for people who like milk, you could put powdered milk in with the oats (just make sure to use the right amount of milk for the amount of water you’ll use). No idea how it would taste -just a thought for folks who like milk with their oats.
I also make my own oatmeal packets. To avoid having to use liquid other than water for my oarmeal, I do the following. For milk lovers, I use 2 teaspoons of dried milk for 1/3 cp of oatmeal, so you might want to use a little more the 1/2 cup of oatmeal. For maple lovers, I substitue maple sugar for the brown or white surgar in the recipe.
Love the tip about dried milk! I don’t keep dried milk on hand myself so wasn’t sure what ratio to recommend. I’ve also heard of some adding powdered coffee creamer to their oatmeal packets as well to boost the creaminess.
I hadn’t even considered using maple extract. Very good idea – thanks for the tip!
Perhaps you could use maple sugar instead of syrup for make-ahead? Also…dried blueberries and cinnamon, dried cranberries and pecans, ginger and dried peaches, or pumpkin pie spice, and pecans.
Good idea on the maple sugar! I will definitely be trying blueberries and cinnamon. That sounds so tasty!
I love this idea, and plan to make my own this weekend!! I’m going to experiment with some dried fruits and nuts-I’ll let you know what combos work…wish me luck!!
Please do! Always love getting new flavor ideas. Good luck, Teresa! 😀
I think I am going to try this out. I just finished my last pack of store bought oatmeal. Thank you for the post!
Hope you try it out, Stephanie. 😀