Homemade GF Oat Milk

Oats are naturally gluten-free. That’s the good news.

The bad news is that oats are commonly stored,
transported and processed in close proximity to wheat, barley and rye...
...all of which are full of gluten.

So what happens is that for most of the oats you find in the store,
they aren’t 100% gluten-free because of the risk of cross contamination.

And most oat products -- including oat milk -- is not certified to be gluten-free. So in order to make sure your oat milk is GF, just make your own.

First, you will need these items:

A blender or food processor
2 mixing bowls
2 thin towels or an old T-shirt cut into 2 large flat pieces
A container for storage that has a close-fitting lid

The picture below shows the cloth I use. It used to be one of my husband’s army undershirts. I cut off the arms and collar and then cut the body in 2 pieces. Each piece is so thin that I can see through it.

That’s what you want, some kind of cloth that is thin but not too linty. This will be used to strain the oat milk. Twice. That’s why you need 2 pieces.

Plus, you don’t want to use a sieve or colander for straining because the holes in them are too big and too many chunks of oats will get into the milk.

Okay so here are the ingredients:

½ cup gluten-free oats (rolled oats are best, as they will give a nice, creamy consistency that is also great for drinking out of a glass. Steel-cut oats will give you a milk that is thinner, like skim milk. Quick oats will make the milk thicker and a little slimy. But that’s okay for baking and cooking. I use GF quick oats because that’s the only kind I can find where I shop.)
2 cups cold water (it’s best to use refrigerated water).
A tiny pinch of salt

So here’s what you do:

Place all the ingredients into your blender or food processor. Blend on high speed for 30-45 seconds.

Make sure you don’t do it any longer than that, or the milk will end up super-slimy and more like a slurry than a milk. I like to time my blend for 30 seconds that way I’m sure to not go over the time.

Place 1 thin towel or T-shirt piece over a mixing bowl. Pour the oat mixture through the cloth and into the bowl. (See picture below.)

Gather the cloth up from the corners and hold over the bowl to drain the liquid. Squeeze gently to make sure all the liquid goes through into the bowl.

There will be some residue left on the cloth. You can either throw it out or keep it to make oatmeal muffins.

Repeat the straining process a 2nd time using a fresh towel or cloth.

Once strained twice, transfer the milk to a sealed container. The oat milk can be kept in the refrigerator for about 5-7 days. Shake it before using. And give it a sniff to make sure it’s still good. If it smells sour, it’s gone bad and you’ll need to make a new batch.

This recipe will make 2 cups of oat milk. But it is easily halved, so you can make just a cup at a time for a particular recipe. Or you can double the recipe to give you 4 cups.