Looking for a delicious, ultra-creamy make-ahead breakfast? Then you'll love these overnight oats with coconut milk!
Overnight oats are the perfect breakfast recipe for busy mornings! You can prepare them the night before, let them sit overnight and have the most delicious grab-and-go breakfast ready the next morning.
For more overnight oats breakfast recipes check out Almond Milk Overnight Oats, Overnight Oats with Frozen Fruit or Overnight Oats with Water or Overnight Oats without Yogurt (in case you run out of milk or yogurt).
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- It's an easy, healthy make-ahead breakfast that's great for meal prep!
- It's highly customizable!
- It's high in fiber and super delicious!
Ingredients & Substitution Notes
- Oats: Rolled oats are the best oats for making overnight oats. They are chewy and create a great texture. Don't use instant oats, quick oats or steel cut oats.
- Coconut Milk: Coconut milk is much thicker than regular milk or non-dairy milk alternatives such as soy milk or almond milk. That's why I recommend using light instead of full-fat coconut milk. Otherwise, you'll need a lot of milk. If you don't have light coconut milk on hand, you could use half milk (of choice) and half coconut milk instead.
- Chia Seeds: They help to thicken the oatmeal base. You could use double the amount of desiccated coconut instead.
- Desiccated Coconut: Add some additional delicious coconut flavors and also help thicken the oatmeal.
- Sweetener: Our sweetener of choice is usually maple syrup but you could choose any sweetener you like such as honey (not vegan), agave syrup or regular brown sugar.
- Pinch of salt: Further enhances the flavors. Make sure to only add a tiny bit though.
See recipe card for quantities.
How to Make Overnight Oats with Coconut Milk
The base recipe for overnight oats usually consists of rolled oats and some sort of milk. In the case of this recipe we're using coconut milk for some extra creamy oats.
Step 1: Whisk together ingredients
Add all of the ingredients (oats, coconut milk, chia seeds, desiccated coconut, sweetener and salt) to a large bowl and give it a good stir.
If you want this to be a grab-and-go breakfast, use a mason jar with a lid or an airtight container.
Step 2: Refrigerate
Cover and transfer the bowl or jar to the fridge. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours, preferably overnight.
Step 3: Toppings
Add your favorite toppings such as fresh fruit, nuts, seeds or more maple syrup. Below you'll find some more topping suggestions!
Serving Suggestions
This overnight oats recipe includes only a couple of simple ingredients. That's why toppings are essential for creating a flavorful breakfast! Find some serving suggestions below.
- Vanilla Extract: Add a ½ teaspoon of vanilla extract for some subtle vanilla flavors.
- Cocoa Powder: For more chocolate flavors, add 1 teaspoon of cocoa powder.
- Chocolate Chips: Creates some delicious coconut chocolate overnight oats- for the real chocolate lovers among you.
- Protein Powder: Add your favorite protein powder for an extra protein boost. Make sure that it has a neutral flavor though.
- Cinnamon: For some warm, cozy flavors, add ½ teaspoon of cinnamon.
- Nuts & Nut Butter: They taste amazing in overnight oats recipes, try peanut butter or Homemade Almond Butter.
- Fresh Fruits: You can't go wrong with fresh blueberries, raspberries or strawberries. I chose fresh mango but feel free to use your favorite types of fruits!
- Dried Fruits: Such as chopped dried dates, figs or raisins make a lovely topping.
- Plain Yogurt: Add a big spoon of Greek yogurt for some extra creaminess.
- Vegan Caramel: Try our 2-Ingredient Vegan Caramel Sauce as a topping if you're into caramel!
- Coconut Flakes: Top off with some more coconut flakes.
Recipe Variations
- Bigger Batch: Double or triple the recipe and have some breakfast ready for the upcoming week.
- Vegan: This recipe is naturally vegan if you choose to use maple syrup or any other vegan sweetener.
- Gluten-Free: Choose certified gluten-free oats for gluten-free overnight oats.
- Refined Sugar-Free: You can make this recipe refined sugar-free by using mashed banana, apple sauce or stevia instead of maple syrup.
- Consistency: Add an extra splash of milk if you like a runnier consistency.
Top Tips
- Type of Oats: Use large flake, old-fashioned oats for the perfect creamy texture!
- Big Batch: Double or triple the recipe to have your breakfast ready for the next couple of days. Or
- Breakfast on the go: Prepare this oat recipe in an airtight container as a grab-and-go breakfast.
- Toppings: Add the toppings in the morning or shortly before serving to ensure that they are not soggy.
Storage
Store overnight oats in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
FAQs
We do not recommend using steel cut oats for this recipe.
This depends on your personal perference but any type of milk such as regular cow's milk or non-dairy milk alternatives such as soy milk, almond milk or coconut milk all taste amazing with overnight oats. You can even make overnight oats with water.
The chia seeds help thicken the oat mix and create a creamy and thick texture.
Typically yes, but feel free to warm them up in the microwave (using a microwave-safe jar) or on the stove top while constantly stirring. You might need to add a splash of extra milk or water.
Large flaked oats (regular rolled oats) work best in overnight oats recipes. Using instant or quick oats will result in a much runnier consistency.
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📖 Recipe
Overnight Oats with Coconut Milk
Ingredients
- ½ cup large flaked rolled oats
- 1 tablespoon chia seeds
- 1 cup light coconut milk *see notes
- 2 tablespoon maple syrup *or other sweetener of choice
- 1 teaspoon desiccated coconut *optional
- tiny pinch of salt
Instructions
- Add all of the ingredients to a big bowl or a mason jar if you want to prepare it as a grab-and-go breakfast.
- Give the mix a good stir.
- Close with a lid and put it in the fridge for at least 3 hours, preferably overnight.
- Taste and adjust sweetness. Add more milk for a runnier consistency.
- Add toppings of choice and enjoy.
Tips & Notes
- Coconut Milk: The amount needed depends on how thick your coconut milk is. If you're using a full-fat coconut milk, then you'll probably need a bit more. The "light" one I used had around 55% coconut extract.
- Type of Oats: Use large flake, old-fashioned oats for the perfect creamy texture!
- Toppings: Add the toppings in the morning or shortly before serving to ensure that they are not soggy.
- Topping Ideas: Fresh fruits, dried fruits, nuts, Homemade Almond Butter, 2-Ingredient Vegan Caramel Sauce , coconut flakes
- Gluten-Free: Choose certified gluten-free oats for gluten-free overnight oats.
- Refined Sugar-Free: You can make this recipe refined sugar-free by using mashed banana, apple sauce or stevia instead of maple syrup.
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