How to Make Oat Flour (plus recipes!) | Ambitious Kitchen (2024)

If you’ve been doing a lot of AK baking this year you’ve probably noticed a special ingredient that I’ve *slightly* fallen in love with.

Say hello to beautifully simple oat flour.

I’ve been adding oat flour to some incredible breads, muffins, cookies, and more and it’s truly one of my new favorite flours to bake with. It creates light and fluffy textures that you’ll absolutely love, which keeps your favorite baked goods gluten free. You can, of course, buy oat flour from the store, but it’s also so easy to make your own at home using a key pantry staple: rolled oats!

Don’t take my word for it, take a scroll to see exactly how to make oat flour right at home, plus tips, tricks and your most common questions about using it.

How to Make Oat Flour (plus recipes!) | Ambitious Kitchen (1)

What is oat flour?

Oat flour is a finely ground flour made, of course, from oats! It’s very light in texture and has a similar absorbency to coconut flour (another one of my fav gluten-free flours), making it much more absorbent than all purpose flour or wheat flour.

Is oat flour gluten free?

I always have oat flour on hand for all of my gluten-free baking adventures. If you buy oat flour made from certified gluten free oats or make your own with certified gluten-free oats, then you will have gluten-free oat flour. Be sure to double-check your packaging to be sure!

How to Make Oat Flour (plus recipes!) | Ambitious Kitchen (2)

The best type of oats to use to make oat flour

I recommend using old fashioned rolled oats or quick-cooking oats (gluten-free if desired) to make your homemade oat flour so that it has a light and fluffy consistency. Steel cut oats may result in grittier oat flour. Learn about more types of oats, plus plenty of recipes in our guide here!

Benefits of using oat flour

  1. Tons of health benefits. Oats are a whole grain food, which means they pack vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, fiber and are even a great source of protein.
  2. It will fill you up. Because oats are fiber & protein packed, they’ll keep you feeling satisfied for longer. That means with recipes using oat flour (as opposed to regular flour AKA white, refined flour) you’re less likely to spike your blood sugar and experience that 3pm hanger later.
  3. Versatility. Oat flour is extremely versatile, and if you’re like me, you always have old-fashioned oats in your pantry! You’ll see that I use oat flour in tons of baking recipes and even savory ones because it provides the perfect texture and holds recipes together. It also makes a great substitution for other flours in baking — just be sure to read the recipe’s notes section to see if it’s a good sub.

How to Make Oat Flour (plus recipes!) | Ambitious Kitchen (3)

How to make homemade oat flour

The best part about oat flour? It can be made with just one ingredient in one simple step:

Simply place your rolled oats in a high-speed blender or food processor and blend or pulse them until the mixture is smooth and resembles flour or a fine powder. This should only take a minute or two and is the most affordable. Check out this video to see how it’s done!

How to Make Oat Flour (plus recipes!) | Ambitious Kitchen (4)

Can I use oat flour in place of all purpose flour?

Unfortunately, no, I would not recommend using oat flour 1:1 in place of all purpose flour. The texture and liquid ratios will be very different when making this swap. However, you can substitute half of the all purpose flour in your recipe with oat flour! For example, if the recipe calls for 1 cup all purpose flour, feel free to use 1/2 oat flour and 1/2 all purpose flour.

Overall, I recommend only using oat flour in recipes that specifically call for it within the recipe or in the notes section.

How to Make Oat Flour (plus recipes!) | Ambitious Kitchen (5)

Tips on measuring oat flour

  • After blending your oats and before adding oat flour to a recipe, be sure to measure it out to what the recipe calls for.
  • 1 cup of rolled oats equals about 3/4 cup oat flour, so you’ll need a bit more rolled oats if you need a full cup of oat flour in your recipe.

Storing tips

Store your homemade oat flour in an airtight container at room temperature. It has a shelf life of about 3 months.

How to Make Oat Flour (plus recipes!) | Ambitious Kitchen (6)

Recommended tools for making oat flour

Recipes using oat flour

The possibilities are truly endless with oat flour! Here are some of my favorites:

  • Healthy Peanut Butter Banana Muffins (dairy free + gluten free)
  • Healthy Lemon Poppy Seed Bread
  • Healthy Birthday Cake Bread
  • Ooey-Gooey Dark Chocolate Espresso Date Oat Bars
  • Ultimate Vegan Black Bean Burgers with Creamy Tahini Garlic Sauce

Get all of our amazing oat flour recipes here!

I hope you love this easy guide for making your own oat flour! If you try it be sure to leave a comment and let me know how it went. Enjoy, xo!

How to Make Oat Flour

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How to Make Oat Flour (plus recipes!) | Ambitious Kitchen (7)

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 10 minutes minutes

ServesServes 1 cup oat flour

Learn how to make oat flour right at home with just one simple ingredient and one step! In about 5 minutes you'll have homemade oat flour to use in your favorite breads, muffins, desserts and more. Skip the store-bought version and make a batch of oat flour for your fav recipes!

Ingredients

  • 1 1/4 cups old fashioned rolled oats (gluten free if desired)

Instructions

  • Place oats into a blender or food processer and blend or pulse until smooth and the mixture resembles flour.

  • Before using in recipes, be sure to measure out the desired amount of oat flour. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 months.

Recipe Notes

Store your homemade oat flour in an airtight container for up to 3 months.

Recipe by: Monique Volz // Ambitious Kitchen | Photography by:Eat Love Eats

How to Make Oat Flour (plus recipes!) | Ambitious Kitchen (2024)

FAQs

Can I mix oat flour and all-purpose flour? ›

I also like to combine it with regular all-purpose or whole wheat flour to give pancakes, cookies, and other baked goods a really delicate, soft texture.

How many cups of oats make 1 cup of oat flour? ›

Tips on measuring oat flour

After blending your oats and before adding oat flour to a recipe, be sure to measure it out to what the recipe calls for. 1 cup of rolled oats equals about 3/4 cup oat flour, so you'll need a bit more rolled oats if you need a full cup of oat flour in your recipe.

Is baking with oat flour healthier? ›

By incorporating oat flour into your recipes, you can meet your recommended daily fiber intake, which in turn helps with weight loss by preventing overeating. High cholesterol is a primary risk factor in heart disease, the number one cause of death in the United States.

Do I need to add baking powder to oat flour? ›

If does make a great shortbread cookie, pie crust, or any baked item that does not need to raise and you want a very tender product. When making recipes that require baking powder, add 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder per cup of oat flour.

Does oat flour rise like regular flour? ›

Oat flour does not rise as much as wheat flour because it is gluten-free, but there are ways you can get around this by increasing the yeast or using another additive. Oat flour's lack of glutenalso means you will need to add a binder to prevent the result from being crumbly.

Is it cheaper to make your own oat flour? ›

Yes, so much cheaper! You can buy rolled oats at the store for minimal cost and great a ton of oat flour quickly. This is so much less expensive than buying oat flour at the store.

How to replace flour with oat flour? ›

If your recipe calls for 1 cup of regular white flour, substitute it for 1 1/3 cup of oat. If the batter or dough seems too stiff, add a little more liquid.

Is oat flour just ground oats? ›

Oatmeal and oat flour are identical in nutritional makeup and flavor because they're made from the same initial ingredient: whole oat groats. The main difference between meal and flour, though, is how finely the original ingredient has been ground. Meal is coarser and has more texture, while flour is pure powder.

Does oat flour spike blood sugar? ›

Oat flour is not only a good source of fiber and protein but also contains beta glucan, a specific type of fiber that has been shown to decrease blood sugar levels in people with diabetes ( 9 , 10 ). Oat flour has a mild, nutty flavor and can help soften baked goods while giving them a chewy, unique texture.

Does oat flour go bad? ›

Once opened, oat flour stays fresh for up to 6 months, although it's best used within the first few months for optimal flavor. In the freezer, oat flour can last for up to two years. How do you tell if oat flour is bad? Even if you pay meticulous attention to storage, oat flour can still go rancid over time.

How much flour does 1 cup of oats make? ›

You can make oat flour on an as-needed basis, or make a larger batch to save for later. Fill your blender or food processor up to half-way with oats. Keep in mind that one cup old-fashioned or quick-cooking oats yields about one cup flour, whereas one cup steel-cut oats yields about two cups flour.

Which is better for baking oat flour or almond flour? ›

Texture: The biggest difference between oat and almond flour is in their textures. Oat flour is significantly lighter and fluffier than almond flour and will give baked goods a lighter, airier crumb. On the other hand, almond flour is heavier and denser, so baked goods will turn out more dense and structural.

Can I eat raw oat flour? ›

Eating raw oats is generally safe, but may cause digestive issues or increase the risk of foodborne illness.

What is the ratio of oat flour to white flour? ›

To replace 1 cup of all-purpose flour, you'll need to multiply that by 1.4 to get a similar weight of oat flour. For example, if a cookie recipe calls for 1 1/4 cups of all-purpose flour, you'll need to multiply that by 1.4 to get the correct amount of oat flour to use.

Does oat flour help thicken? ›

We're happy to say you can use oats to thicken almost any soup if you use oat flour (or a food processor to grind up rolled oats or quick-cooking oats). Use about 1/3 cup of oats (before grinding) for each quart of liquid in the soup.

What is the ratio of almond flour to all-purpose flour? ›

Almond flour is a little more moist than wheat flour, and doesn't have quite the same binding qualities. You'll do best to substitute 1:1 to begin with, as many recipes respond well to this direct replacement. But be prepared to add more almond flour as you go to compensate for the wetter batter.

Is oat flour ok to eat raw? ›

Raw rolled oats ground into a flour consistency can be used because the processing of rolled oats involves a steam-treating step that is generally sufficient to kill pathogenic bacteria, allowing them to be consumed raw with minimal risk to the consumer.

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