Overnight Chia Oats

Overnight chia oats are a healthy meal prep breakfast recipe. They’re delicious on their own or topped with your favorite fruit.

creamy pale tan overnight orange oats in a mason jar accented with halved strawberries

Do you ever go through phases of wanting the same food over and over for breakfast? I do! I’ll have days and weeks where all I want is avocado toast with eggs. Then sometimes it’s smoothies and other times it’s these overnight chia oats.

Why Overnight Chia Oats are Awesome

  • They’re so easy! Minimal ingredients, minimal prep.
  • Great for meal prep. You can easily and quickly prep a bunch for you and your family all at once.
  • Everyone loves it. Seriously- me, my husband, my kids, my clients. It’s a great, basic overnight oats recipe!
  • Room for lots of variations. There’s a lot of ways you can add flavors or fruits to make this whatever you’re craving. Check out some ideas later in the post!

Nourishing Ingredients

These overnight chia oats have just a few simple ingredients, but they provide a variety of macronutrients and micronutrients, too.

  • Oats: They must be old-fashioned oats. Neither steel cut oats or instant oats will absorb the same way and will create a different texture.
  • Chia Seeds: They help create the best overnight oats texture. Plus chia seeds are super nutrient-dense, packed with protein, fiber, healthy fats, and loads of micronutrients.
  • Milk: Use whatever you like to drink.
  • Nut Butter or Seed Butter: Again – use what you like or have on hand! No matter the type, this adds healthy fats and a little protein to help make this more balanced and satisfying.
  • Sweetener: a little goes a long way! Use whatever you prefer – honey, date syrup, or even something like stevia, monk fruit, or allulose. (Note: honey is not safe for a child under age 1.)
overhead shot of pale, creamy tan overnight oats with chia seeds with a spoon stirring it and half a strawberry on top

How to Make Overnight Chia Oats

  • Whisk together milk, sweetener, and nut/ seed butter. You can also quickly combine all the ingredients by blending in a blender on medium to high speed for 30-60 seconds.
  • Pour liquid in a mason jar or other airtight container and add oats and chia seeds. Seal the lid and shake the mason jar to combine.
  • Refrigerate overnight (at least a four hours). Stir again just before serving and top with any desired toppings.

Chia Overnight Oats Recipe Variations

Because this is such a straightforward recipe, I love making countless variations of it! Here are some of my favorites:

Chocolate PB Banana Overnight Chia Oats

  • Keep the recipe the same, using peanut butter, and also blend a tablespoon of cocoa powder into the liquid. Before serving, add half a chopped banana and a teaspoon of mini chocolate chips.

Blueberry Almond Chia Overnight Oats

  • Keep the recipe the same, using almond butter. Before serving, stir in a half cup of fresh blueberries (or thawed frozen blueberries) and top with a teaspoon of slivered almonds.

Raspberry Lemon Overnight Chia Oats

  • Same recipe, but use cashew butter and blend the juice and zest from half a lemon into the liquid ingredients. Before serving top with (or stir in) a half cup of fresh (or thawed frozen) raspberries.
side view of a small mason jar full of creamy tan overnight oats studded wth chia seeds on a light aqua towel

Shop the Ingredients

Need to stock up on the essentials to make this recipe? Here are the items in my pantry that I use to make these chia overnight oats all the time. P.S. I always try to find the best prices/ price per ounce, personally! (All Amazon affiliate links):

More Healthy Oat Recipes

Try some of these other popular breakfast recipes that can be made ahead!

Did you make this recipe? Give it a 5★ rating below! For more balanced nutrition and no fuss, balanced recipes, be sure to follow me on Instagram!

side shot of pale, creamy tan overnight oats with chia seeds with a spoon stirring it and half a strawberry on top
creamy pale tan overnight orange oats in a mason jar accented with halved strawberries

Overnight Chia Oats

Overnight chia oats are a healthy meal prep breakfast recipe. They're delicious on their own or topped with your favorite fruit.
5 from 2 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Breakfast
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Set Time: 4 hours
Total Time: 4 hours 5 minutes
Servings: 1
Calories: 315kcal
Author: Lindsey Janeiro, RDN

Ingredients

  • ¼ cup old-fashioned oats (gluten-free if needed)
  • 2 tbsp chia seeds
  • 1 tbsp nut or seed butter of choice
  • 1 tsp honey or other sweetener
  • â…” cup unsweetened almond milk or milk of choice

Instructions

  • Whisk together milk of choice, sweetener, and nut/ seed butter. You can also quickly combine all the ingredients by blending in a blender on medium to high speed for 30-60 seconds.
  • Pour liquid in a mason jar or other airtight container and add oats and chia seeds. Seal and shake the jar to combine.
  • Refrigerate overnight (or at least a four hours). Stir again just before serving and top with any desired toppings.

Notes

Nutrition information is calculated with almond butter, honey, and unsweetened almond milk. Nutrition profile will change with ingredient variations and toppings.

Nutrition

Calories: 315kcal | Carbohydrates: 31.6g | Protein: 10.2g | Fat: 17.6g | Saturated Fat: 1.7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 5.2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2.2g | Sodium: 170mg | Potassium: 296.5mg | Fiber: 11g | Sugar: 7.5g | Vitamin A: 206.8IU | Vitamin C: 0.4mg | Calcium: 439.6mg | Iron: 5.1mg

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2 Comments

  1. Hey. Love your recipe. Can i ask where you got the nutrition profile info from? Cause when i logged the exact same ingredients into my cronometer. I got completely different nutrition profile. The kcal was 630 instead of 364. And all values was generally higher.

    1. Hi Veronica! I just entered everything into the Cronometer app and this is what I entered:
      – Oats, Regular or Quick, Dry, 0.25 cup
      – Chia seeds, 2 tbsp, whole pieces
      – Member’s Mark, Creamy Almond Butter, 0.5 x 2 tbsp
      – Honey, 1 tsp
      – Member’s Mark, Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk, 0.66 cup
      (Member’s Mark is just the Sam’s Club brand of almond butter and almond milk I scanned and have in my kitchen currently, but the nutrition is very comparable to any other nut butter or unsweetened almond milk.)
      With everything entered as is, I actually got 315 calories — with yours coming in at 630, is it possible you accidentally doubled it?

5 from 2 votes (2 ratings without comment)

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