In recent years, oats have gained an increasingly "healthy reputation," and a wide variety of oat products have flooded the market. There are not only "no-cook" and "quick-cook" oat flakes and whole oat groats, but also multi-flavored "instant oatmeal" that's ready with just a splash of hot water. Faced with such a dazzling array of options, how should one choose? Generally, cooked oats are more nutritious than instant ones, with whole oat groats that require a longer cooking time being the best option. The most common type in supermarkets now is the so-called "nutritious instant oatmeal," which, in reality, can hardly be considered a member of the "oat family." It contains very little actual oat ingredient but is loaded with additives like sugar and non-dairy creamer, which not only adds extra calories but is also detrimental to health, so it's best to consume it in moderation.
Another popular choice is "no-cook" oatmeal, which actually requires "hot water to be poured over it." These oats are processed through methods like roasting and then broken into small flakes. This way, they can be ready in as little as three to five minutes with hot water, making them very suitable for the fast-paced modern lifestyle. These oat products are mostly made of pure oats, but due to processing, some of their nutritional value, especially soluble dietary fiber, is lost.
In addition to "no-cook" oats, there are also "quick-cook" oat flakes. The difference from "no-cook" oats is that the groats are not crushed but are instead cut directly into thin slices. Therefore, this type of oatmeal requires cooking, but because it has been pre-roasted, the cooking time is shorter than that of raw oats. These oat flakes generally have no additives and are a bit healthier than the "no-cook" variety, but some nutritional value is still lost due to processing.
The most nutritious option is the original, unprocessed oat groat, which also has the best texture. By first soaking the raw oats in cold water for 30 minutes and then cooking them with rice, the resulting rice has a wonderfully chewy texture. Moreover, oat rice takes longer to digest, causing a slower rise in blood sugar levels, making it an excellent choice for diabetics and others who need to control their calorie intake.