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The best way to prepare oatmeal depends largely on the type of oatmeal you choose as a starting product. Oats that you flake yourself at home with a roller, for example, are not heat-treated and therefore differ from purchased oat flakes. They are raw and therefore still contain all the active enzymes of the grain (e.g. phytase) and also all the so-called antinutrients. Antinutrients include, for example, phytic acid, lectins, amylase trypsin inhibitors (ATIs) and saponins, which can either impair digestion or the absorption of nutrients from oats or promote inflammation in the intestines. 🌾⚠️
If you want to reduce the content of these substances in self-rolled flakes, you should put them in water at room temperature and possibly a little acid (a dash of orange or lemon juice 🍊🍋 or kefir, yogurt) soak for several hours. By soaking at a slightly lower pH value, the enzyme phytase, which is still active in the raw oat flakes, can break down or break down the phytic acid over several hours. ⏳
You can proceed differently with purchased oat flakes from the organic store or supermarket, as they are no longer completely raw. They are briefly steamed by the manufacturer to increase shelf life. The heat breaks down some of the phytic acid and inactivates enzymes that prevent the oat flakes from becoming rancid (lipases). Unfortunately, the above-mentioned enzyme phytase, which could further break down the phytic acid during soaking, is also destroyed. Soaking such heat-treated oat flakes in water cannot therefore further reduce the phytic acid content.
In order to further reduce the phytic acid content in purchased oat flakes, we recommend soaking them in yogurt/soy yogurt/kefir with water. The lactic acid bacteria in yogurt (or the enzymes of these bacteria) ensure that phytic acid and numerous other antinutrients are broken down. As an alternative to yogurt, you could also stir the contents of a probiotic capsule into the soaking liquid. Soaking in this way makes raw and purchased oat flakes more digestible if you want to eat them as overnight oats, for example. 🥣
However, from my experience in nutritional advice, I recommend cooking oat flakes additionally for reasons of digestibility (except for oat flakes that have previously been soaked in yoghurt - that would not taste good). Soaking and then cooking reduces the amount of antinutrients the most and also makes the oatmeal easier to digest. Unfortunately, the only disadvantage of cooking is an increase in the glycemic index (increase in blood sugar).📈 and a decline in so-called resistant starch, which is still present in raw oatmeal. Fortunately, the proportion of resistant starch, which is a kind of superfood for healthy intestinal bacteria (= prebiotic), can be increased again by completely cooling down and reheating the cooked oat flakes. So you can cook oatmeal in advance for 2-3 days and then warm it up at the desired time or enjoy it at room temperature. 😉
I also recommend using large-leaved oat flakes. When you cook these, enough intact cell structure remains despite cooking so that you are forced to chew and there is less risk of you going too fast or overeating. Adding a few nuts, cocoa nibs or fruit can also help because it forces us to chew and allows us to eat more slowly - both important for pain-free digestion and a slower rise in blood sugar. If you want to reduce the rise in blood sugar even further, we recommend eating a smaller portion of oatmeal and combining it with vegetables and some protein in the form of, for example, eggs, tofu or tempeh. 🥬🥚
