Difference Between Oats and Oatmeal

By: | Updated: Jul-15, 2023
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Difference Between Oats and Oatmeal

We as humans devoured many types of foodstuffs including granules, nuts and kernels. The utilization of certain granules such as wheat, rice and oats can be dated back to old days. You often call these as cereals.

Summary Table

Oats Oatmeals
Have round shape and usually dried Have flat shape and black or brown color
Have crunchy and moist texture Have many layers of texture
Taste sweet and nutty Taste milder and sweeter

If you compare oats with other cereals, it definitely has a higher fat substance. It has been cultivated in numerous parts of the world for hundreds of years. You are familiar with the seed as it is known as the grain of oats.

We also ingest oatmeal in everyday life. As you might know, oatmeal is the cooked form of oats. The English word oatmeal is derived from the Anglo-Saxon word, “ætod” or “ætodmanna” that means porridge made of squashed oats.

The term show up too in some Welsh records goes back to 1296. It was also cited as “heaped-oats”. The figures above are of oat and oatmeal or the grain of oats.

You should know that these two foods have a pretty substantial dissimilarity. In this article, we will discuss the differences between oatmeal and oats.

What is oat?

You need to be informed that oats are the granule of certain cereals. Usually, you will reap them from the wild grass and keep them for your later usage.

You may savor your oats raw or cooked. If you prefer to prepare it first, you have various ways to choose. You can enjoy them by boiling, steaming, or baking. Moreover, you can also pound oats into powder which we mostly called as oat flour or oatmeal. You can use it to produce bread and other breakfast food.

Oatmeal is also a universal component you can apply for porridge or oatmeal. Furthermore, you can take advantage of them too as animal food since oats are a very great source for power.

You will definitely acquire a large quantity of fiber, protein, and healthy fats when you eat oats. They will provide you iron, magnesium, potassium and selenium as well. Oats have avenanthramides which you can use as anti-inflammatory and antioxidants.

You can even generate a kind of beer called oatmeal stout that is fermented with hops, barm and malt.

Difference Between Oats and Oatmeal

What is oatmeal?

Oatmeal is often utilized as a breakfast meal which contains various types of seeds like barley, oats and wheat. You can make use of it to produce oatmeal biscuits or oatmeal blocks. You can try to put the entire oatmeal to your yogurt or other cuisine. It has heaps of advantage in comparison with other cereals.

You already aware that oats are the cooked version of oatmeal. You are able to make it yourself by sizzling water then adding oats, milk and sugar. Some people like to include raisins or dried fruits too for your unique recipe. You may also enjoy to include additional element like nuts, chocolate chips or fruit.

You will be healthy when you start consume the oatmeal because we will meet our need of protein and mineral if we eat it. You have to take note that oatmeal is low in fat and great in fiber. You can try to use the oatmeal to lose some of your weight since it will make you full sooner and longer.

Oatmeal give us a generous amount of nutrition and minerals. You can get calcium from it which can strengthen your bones or you can also boost your immune system with the iron inside oatmeal.

You will have magnesium, phosphorus and sodium as well to make you in good shape. On top of that, you will also receive selenium and zinc from oatmeal that can facilitate you to enhance your stamina level.

Oats will be your great resource of carbohydrates as well. They provide lots of energy so we often use them too to make oatmeal. It also gives you antioxidants to protect your body from many diseases.

How are they related?

As you know, oats and oatmeal are associated because both of them are types of cereals that we consume. They also have several resemblance as foods. Some of you may refer to oatmeal as a type of oat, granola and porridge.

Oats and oatmeal are usually connected with breakfast as you eat them in the morning. You can eat oats either raw or cooked. You can also grind them into powder or use them to make diverse foods.

Because of its versatility, you can take advantage of the various benefits of oatmeal in your kitchen. Oats are a very ordinary type of cereal that you eat for breakfast. You may also cook it as porridge and served with milk.

People usually eat oatmeal on its own or with other foodstuffs. It is often served with milk, yogurt and fruits such as strawberries. You can use it for your cookies and sprinkle it on your cereals or even use it to make scrambled eggs.

What are the differences?

Appearance

Oats have a round shape and you usually find them in dried shape. You also referred to them as grains of oats. You will recognize that the texture is alike to that of whole wheat flour. You can easily notice them at the market or your kitchen counter because of its yellowish white color.

Whereas oatmeal has a round and flat form, you will see them in brown or black color based on the type. You can make it mostly by boiling water, adding oats, milk and sugar. You can also use your own recipe by adding raisins or dried fruits.

Texture

You will find that Oats are usually soft either when you cook it or eat it raw. You will get the crusty and moist texture when you grind them into flour. At the same time, you will have a crunchy and soft texture when you eat it raw.

The texture you get will differ depending on the type of oatmeal you used. Maybe your recipe will use fruit, nuts and chocolate chips as your ingredients. These several components will give your oatmeal an added layer of texture.

Flavor

You will recognize oats very easily at the market or your kitchen since they have yellowish white color. You will taste a sweet nutty flavor that alike to that of wheat flour. Whilst oatmeal will give you the flavor of cooked milk and sugar. If you want a milder taste than the sweet flavor oat, oatmeal may be an ideal option for you.

Nutritional value

If you compared to oatmeal, oats have a greater nutritional value. You will find fiber, protein, vitamin B2 and B12, calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium and zinc on oats. They are also wealthy in avenanthramides which can give you anti-inflammatory and antioxidants.

Oatmeal will give you a great amount of fiber, iron, selenium, and zinc. You can also get other minerals such as calcium, phosphorus and sodium. You will suffer weight loss if you eat oatmeal routinely due to its low in fat and high in fiber.

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