I was rummaging through my pantry the other day and noticed that I had way too many half-used bags of dried fruit and nuts, and I knew exactly what I needed to make to use up all those odds and ends. Muesli! What is Muesli? The short answer: muesli is the old-school version of overnight oats. Keep reading below for a more detailed explanation!
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What is Muesli?
Muesli is a mixture of rolled oats, nuts, seeds, and fresh or dried fruit that have been soaked in milk, yogurt, or juice. This dish is attributed to a Swiss doctor, Maximilian Bircher-Benner, who fed this refreshing and filling breakfast to the patients in his hospital. For that reason, muesli often goes by the name “Bircher Muesli.”
Muesli vs. Granola
You might be asking yourself, “How is that different from granola??” While they are similar, there are distinct differences between muesli and granola. Muesli is almost like raw granola. You can turn muesli into granola by adding some sweeteners and binders, like honey or brown sugar and oil, then baking it until it becomes deliciously crunchy.
How Do You Eat Muesli?
There are a few different ways you can enjoy muesli. You can add cold milk or yogurt, stir it on up, and let it soak for just a few minutes so the oats are just barely chewy. Or, if you prefer a softer oat, you can let them soak overnight or for up to about four days. And just like the “overnight oats” that have taken the internet by storm over the past decade, muesli is a great way to meal prep your breakfast for the week.
You can also treat your muesli like little homemade instant oatmeal packets. Divide the muesli into ⅓ or ½ cup servings, place in resealable containers, then every morning add about a cup of milk and microwave for a minute or two and you have a hot bowl of oatmeal.
What Kind of Oats are Best for Muesli?
The best type of oat for muesli is, in my opinion, old-fashioned rolled oats. These oats are hearty and have a lot of texture, but still soften fairly quickly when soaked. Quick oats are very thin and delicate and will create a much mushier texture in your muesli. Steel-cut oats are very tough and will need to be soaked for several hours before they soften.
What Else Can You Put in Muesli?
Just like overnight oats, you can add so many different things to your muesli. You can add any type of dried fruit, nut, or seed to the dry mix (stored at room temperature), or once you begin soaking your muesli you can add wet or perishable ingredients, like fresh fruit or maple syrup.
Muesli
Servings 8 ½ cup eachIngredients
- 3 cups dry old-fashioned oats ($0.68)
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts* ($0.60)
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries* ($0.88)
- 1/4 cup sunflower seeds* ($0.25)
- 2 Tbsp brown sugar (optional) ($0.08)
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon ($0.05)
Instructions
- Combine the oats, cranberries, walnuts, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a bowl. Stir until evenly mixed. Store mixture in an air-tight container in a cool dry place until ready to eat.
- To prepare the muesli, combine 1/2 cup muesli with 1/2 cup of cold milk. Let soak for 5 minutes, or up to four days in the refrigerator.
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Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!How to Make Muesli – Step By Step Photos
Add your oats, fruit, nuts, spices, and sweetener (optional) to a bowl. I used 3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats, ½ cup chopped walnuts, ½ cup dried cranberries, ¼ cup sunflower seeds, 2 Tbsp brown sugar, and ½ tsp cinnamon.
Simply stir the ingredients together and now it’s ready to use!
You can store this mix in an air-tight container at room temperature. It will last just as long as the individual dry ingredients themselves.
To enjoy your muesli, measure ½ cup of the dry muesli mix into a bowl. Pour ½ cup of milk (or more) over top and let sit for about five minutes (or refrigerate overnight for a softer oat).
Enjoy the muesli as is or top with your favorite fresh fruit, maple syrup, or nut butter.
Super easy to make, and delicious! I don’t buy cereal, and this is “cereal-like” enough that my kids loved it – my daughter had 3 bowls for breakfast this morning.
I just made this! I swapped raisins for dried cranberries and half the walnuts for pepitas. I also used vanilla almond milk instead. Topped it with a chopped banana and some toasted coconut and I feel like a Queen. Thanks for the recipe!!
My whole life, I’ve preferred oatmeal like this and I never even knew it had a name. Thank you!
This has been my breakfast for the last 6 months since I found the recipe. I add cinnamon. You can’t beat this in terms of convenience and taste!
Very difficult to maneuver within this page.
This is so good
I will never buy a packet of museli again
I could eat this every day
Thankyou so much
Is it possible to substitute the milk with soy milk or water for a non-dairy alternative?
Yes, absolutely! As a matter of fact, I’ve been making this with soy milk a lot lately. :) I don’t think it would be very good with water, though.
I do it with water all the time. It’s good.
Coconut milk is the best option!
I love muesli with apple juice and or grated apple. Add plain yogurt on top.
Sorry, but I just had to laugh so damn hard! i love your blog, every single recipe of it!
i’m from germany, so sometimes i dont know certain dishes, but explaining Müsli gave me a hard laugh… its like what everyone in germany and a lot of europe eats for breakfast daily, while cooked oats is something extremely unpopular
Hahah, yes, the idea of “uncooked” oats is completely crazy to most Americans! :) So delicious, though.
We were introduced to Müsli while travelling in Germany and Austria in the early 1980s–didn’t take us long to jump on the train, so to speak. I’d been raised by descendants of Scottish immigrants in Iowa where oatmeal was our thing (brown sugar, butter, raisins, maybe some cream as we were a farm family), but I love Müsli! I use dried apricots, raisins, cranberries, and chopped hazelnuts with mine–no added sugar cause there is plenty in the fruits.
So you inspired me to make my own Muesli. I totally freestyled this one.
I took your guidelines for oats, sugar raisins and nuts and added some personal choco-love!
I mixed:
rolled oats
raisins
raw almonds (roughly chopped)
raw walnuts (roughly chopped)
brown sugar (pulsed into powder in the food processor)
70% chocolate (grated)
linseed
Bloody delicious I tell you! Thanks for the idea! Definitely cheaper than buying it. :)
Samantha – Absolutely. If you warm it up, it will be just like regular oatmeal (plus fruit and nuts, of course). I hope you enjoy it!
Could you eat this warm?
thanks i’ve been thinking about this since the last time i bought a box with almost nothing in it for $5. one recipe i saw called for adding rye or wheat flakes (hard to find locally so far), and toasting them with the oatmeal in the oven. gonna try that combined with this recipe.
steve
I’ve been wanting to try make muesli for a long time, but every recipe I looked at seemed too involved. When I found this one it seemed so quick and easy I knew I had to try it. But I think what really made me want to try it was your line ‘it’s a great alternative to hot oats during the warm summer months’, I am always loooking for something cool and delicious for breakfast during our long Florida summers! And this is PERFECT!!
I used the oats, brown sugar, chopped prunes, pecans, flax seed meal, wheat germ and vanilla yogurt. I didn’t let mine sit after I put the yogurt on and it is absolutely perfect! I think I’ll be eating alot of this. The flavor combinations are endless. Next time I might try dried apples and a little cinnamon – yum! I really hope that I can get the kids to try making their own combos. This is a great alternative to the junky cereals that they eat.
Thanks so much for sharing another great recipe!
LeahRose – you can store this like you would any granola or cereal (in a cool, dark place, preferably an air-tight container like a ziplock bag or plastic tub) and it will stay good for quite a while :) All of the ingredients are “dry” so they’re very shelf stable!
How long will this last? As in, how do I store it for the best flavor?! :)