Steel Cut Oatmeal Cookies
These tasty chocolate chip oatmeal cookies are made with steel cut oats for a uniquely chewy texture. Give these delicious cookies a try!
I love oatmeal chocolate chip cookies but sometimes I only have steel cut oats in my pantry. I started wondering if I could make oatmeal cookies with steel cut oats and it turns out, you can! They’re quite delicious but there are a few tricks to these cookies. I also love that it’s easy to add a little nutritional boost to a tasty dessert. I wouldn’t necessarily say these cookies are healthy, but they’re great for a treat!
What Are Steel Cut Oats?
The oats you get at the store start as oat kernels that have their tough outer shell removed. From there, oats are split into categories based on how much they’ve been processed. Steel cut oats are the least processed version of oats. They have a firm, hearty texture and they take the longest to cook. These oats are also called pinhead oats, coarse oatmeal, or Irish oatmeal.
Rolled oats, also known as old-fashioned oats, have been steamed or flattened ahead of time. This allows them to cook faster compared to steel cut oats. Quick oats or instant oats are rolled oats that have been processed even further so they’ll cook more quickly. Steel cut oats, on the other hand, are neither steamed nor flattened ahead of time. The advantage of using steel cut oats is that they retain the most nutritional value!
Where to Find Steel Cut Oats
Steel cut oats are usually sold near the rolled oats at the grocery store. Keep in mind that these oats can go by different names like Irish oatmeal, Irish oats, or pinhead oats. If you can’t find steel cut oats at your grocery store, you can get them on Amazon.
How to Use Steel Cut Oats in Cookies
To add steel-cut oats to our cookies, it’s important to cook them to help soften the oats. I cooked them in the microwave so they’re ready in less than 10 minutes. If you don’t cook the oats before adding them to the cookies, they’re really crunchy, and not in a good way. You can also cook steel cut oats in an Instant Pot!
How to Make Steel Cut Oat Cookies
Stir in the cooked oats.
Tips for Perfect Cookies
- I recommend baking these cookies on the top/middle rack, as the bottoms tend to brown quickly, and this ensures that the cookies bake evenly.
- The dough will be very sticky, so using a cookie scoop like this one will make it easier to place the dough on the tray. This also helps ensure evenly sized cookies.
- I recommend flattening the cookies before baking so they are slightly more crispy and less cakey. They won’t spread much on their own.
Variations
- If you want to use regular oatmeal, try my healthier oatmeal cookie recipe or these brown butter oatmeal chocolate chunk cookies. They’re both delicious!
- You can swap out the chocolate chips for raisins or chopped walnuts. Or you can add a few chocolate chips, nuts, and dried fruit. Feel free to get creative!
- Not sure what to do with the leftover steel cut oats? Try making my baked steel cut oatmeal!
Steel Cut Oatmeal Cookies
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 24 cookies 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
These tasty chocolate chip oatmeal cookies are made with steel cut oats for a uniquely chewy texture. Give these delicious cookies a try!
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter, melted
- 1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup cooked steel cut oats
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
Instructions
- Move your oven rack to the middle position, then preheat your oven to 350°F. Use a non-stick baking sheet or line your baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, combine together the melted butter, brown sugar, and vanilla until combined. Stir in the cooked and cooled oats.
- In a small bowl combine the flour, salt, baking soda, cornstarch, and cinnamon.
- Gradually add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients, mixing until just combined.
- Stir in the chocolate chips.
- The dough will be sticky, so I recommend using a cookie scoop to drop rounded tablespoons of cookie dough onto the prepared cookie sheet.
- Place the baking sheets in the oven and bake for 12-14 minutes, or until the edges of the cookies are golden brown.
- Remove the cookies from the oven and let them cool on the baking sheets for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
Note: You’ll need about 1/3 cup dry steel cut oats to make 1 cup cooked oats.
This recipe was updated on March 3rd, 2025.
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Definitely seems something is of ref the measurements. Doubled the recipe and it’s too much flour, but even this way they’d make okay granola bars. Flavor is very subtle, not too sweet, and some would definitely call it bland ( as reviewers have said) so it wasn’t exactly what I was expecting. They really don’t want to brown at all, ended up adding an extra 10 or even 15 mins for the ones that were thicker- they were pretty fall aparty without that. Dough when doubled is crumbly and can be rounded and flattened in pan by hand. Next time I’ll cut some of the flour out.