A warming 2-ingredient slow cooker porridge recipe, just perfect for cold winter mornings!
Cook the porridge on low overnight, and wake up to deliciously thick and creamy porridge for breakfast! Serve with your favourite fruits, nuts, seeds, or even chocolate! Try my easy banana porridge too!
My kids love slow cooker porridge for breakfast, and I love it too thanks to all the time it saves me in the mornings and the fact that it's healthy of course!
I pile the bowls, spoons and extra's next to the slow cooker (which I switch on before bed), and the kids happily help themselves when they get up in the morning.
There are occasionally a few splodges and splatters on the kitchen worktop to deal with, but that's what Mum's (and Dad's) are there for apparently!
The absolute BEST thing about overnight slow-cooked porridge though, is the slightly chewy caramelised bits of oatmeal around the edge of the slow cooker basin... that only the chef is allowed to eat!
👩🍳 Love porridge as much as I do? You'll want to check out my indulgent Biscoff porridge & Nutella porridge too!
Jump to:
✔️ Why you'll love this recipe!
- Thick and creamy porridge recipe.
- Healthy oat-based breakfast for kids.
- Cook overnight in the slow cooker or crockpot.
- Lots of different flavour combinations to try.
- Leftovers can be reheated the next day.
🛒 Ingredients
For basic slow cooker porridge you will need just two ingredients!
- Oats - rolled oats are best for this recipe. Don't use quick cook or jumbo oats.
- Milk - feel free to substitute with almond or soya milk for a vegan version.
🔪 How to cook porridge in slow cooker
The recipe card with ingredient quantities and detailed instructions can be found at the bottom of the post
- Place the oats in the bottom of a slow cooker basin.
- Pour in the milk and give it a good mix.
- Cook on low for 6-8 hours. Finish with your favourite toppings!
💭 Top tips
- Don't use quick cook oats as they go mushy when slow-cooked. Conversely, jumbo oats don't absorb the milk very well. Old-fashioned rolled oats are best for this recipe.
- I use cup measurements for this porridge, but if you don't have cup measures just use a teacup. As long as the ratio of oats to milk is correct (1:4), then you'll end up with perfect porridge. 1 cup of oats weighs 80g and 4 cups of milk equals to 946ml.
- If you prefer your porridge slightly less thick and creamy, swap half the milk for water.
- Wipe the inside of the slow cooker with a little butter or oil to stop your porridge from sticking whilst it cooks. However, I love the crusty caramelised bits that stick to the sides!
🍴 Serving suggestions
You can serve the porridge with any number of toppings. Here are a few of my favourites!
- Blueberries, raspberries and strawberries
- Sliced banana
- Stewed plums, roasted rhubarb, blueberry compote
- Nuts and seeds
- Chocolate Chips
- Nutella, peanut butter, jam, or Biscoff Spread.
- Dried apricots, sultanas or raisins
- Brown sugar, maple syrup, honey, or golden syrup
- Cinnamon
I often make slow cooker porridge for our Christmas Eve breakfast and decorate the tops with fruity Christmas pictures!
📖 Variations
- Add a teaspoon of cinnamon and a peeled and chopped eating apple to the porridge before cooking. The apple will become lovely and tender.
- Make the slow cooker porridge vegan-friendly by using oat or nut milk.
- Make it slimming world friendly and use skimmed milk.
🥡 Storage
Store. Slow-cooked porridge is best eaten fresh, but leftovers can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Reheat. Reheat the porridge in the microwave with a splash of milk to loosen it.
Freeze. The porridge can be frozen for up to 3 months. Defrost fully in the fridge before reheating as above.
❓ FAQs
Oatmeal and porridge are essentially the same thing – it's what you get when you add milk or water to oats and cook them.
Slow cookers are designed to be left to cook for long periods of time, so it's entirely safe to leave your slow cooker on overnight, or if you're out of the house, as long as you follow all the directions and the manufacturer's instructions. Most modern slow cookers have timers so that once the cooking time is up they will switch to a keep-warm function.
😋Related recipes
More delicious breakfast recipes to try!
Don't forget to subscribe to the newsletter to stay up to date with what's cooking in the Effortless Foodie kitchen! You can also follow me on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram too!
Recipe
Easy Slow Cooker Porridge
Equipment
- Slow Cooker
Instructions
- Place the oats in the bottom of a slow cooker basin.1 cup Rolled Oats
- Pour in the milk and give it a good mix.4 cups Milk
- Cook on low for 6-8 hours. Finish with your favourite toppings!
Notes
- Don't use quick cook oats as they go mushy when slow cooked. Conversely, jumbo oats don't absorb the milk very well. Old-fashioned rolled oats are best for this recipe.
- I use cup measurements for this porridge, but if you don't have cup measures just use a teacup. As long as the ratio of oats to milk is correct (1:4), then you'll end up with perfect porridge. 1 cup of oats weighs 80g and 4 cups of milk equate to 946ml.
- If you prefer your porridge slightly less thick and creamy, swap half the milk for water.
- Wipe the inside of the slow cooker with a little butter or oil to stop your porridge sticking whilst it cooks. However, I love the crusty caramelised bits that stick slightly to the sides!
- Blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries
- Sliced banana
- Stewed plums, roasted rhubarb, blueberry compote
- Nuts and seeds
- Chocolate Chips
- Nutella, peanut butter, jam, or Biscoff Spread.
- Dried apricots, sultanas or raisins
- Brown sugar, maple syrup, honey, or golden syrup
- Cinnamon
- Add a teaspoon of cinnamon and a peeled and chopped eating apple to the porridge before cooking. The apple will become lovely and tender.
- Make the slow cooker porridge vegan friendly by using oat or nut milk.
- Make it slimming world friendly and use skimmed milk.
- To Store. Slow cooked porridge is best eaten fresh, but leftovers can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- To Reheat. Reheat the porridge in the microwave with a splash of milk to help loosen it.
- To Freeze. The porridge can be frozen for up to 3 months. Defrost fully in the fridge before reheating as above.
Gwynn Galvin
I love that this recipe is only two ingredients and then I can personalize it with my favorite stir-ins!
Michelle
My new favourite way of making porridge. So easy and delicious each and every time!
Katia
I tried this with a blueberry compote and it took me back to my grandmas where she would make that every morning. So lovely.
Sharon
This warm and comforting porridge is perfect for colder mornings. Add any topping you like and breakfast is served.
Michelle
So easy and great for our big family!
Elaine
This is one of my favorite dishes to make in the morning. Especially when it's cold outside. Yum!