Bread Machine – Oatmeal Bread Recipe

This classic oatmeal bread machine recipe is perfect for great tasting lunch sandwiches… and oatmeal bread adds some healthy oatmeal into your family’s diet. Because this recipe does not contain any overpowering spices, this classic oatmeal bread can be used for huge variety of lunch sandwiches such as ham & cheese sandwiches, chicken salad sandwiches, roast beef sandwiches, etc. Also since you are using a bread machine, this oatmeal bread recipe is extremely easy to make for your family’s lunches!

Oatmeal Bread Machine Recipe – Old Fashioned Goodness!

Oatmeal tastes great and is supposed to have many health benefits. According to WebMD, “Oatmeal’s most enduring claim to fame is its proven ability to curb bad (LDL) cholesterol. Chalk that up to a type of soluble fiber called beta glucan… The fiber in oatmeal also helps you feel full and eat less later on during the day. Fiber also eases constipation and helps control blood sugars”. This is definitely the type of sandwich bread to make for your family if you are trying to add some good old fashioned natural fiber into their diet.

Key Ingredient – Old Fashioned Oat Flakes

Since this bread recipe is done in a bread machine, it is simple & easy to make. It should take you only 5 minutes or so to prepare and then you let the bread machine do the rest of the work. For more great recipes, please visit Bread Dad’s main Bread Machine Recipes section. Bread Dad also has a printable and “pin-able” recipe at the bottom of the page. If you like this recipe, we hope you will leave a comment below and give us a 5 star rating. Thanks!

Ingredients – Bread Machine Oatmeal Bread Recipe – 1.5 lb Loaf

•  1 1/8 Cups – Milk (lukewarm) – 259 milliliters – 1 1/8 cups of milk is equivalent to 1 cup and 2 tablespoons of milk
• 3 Tablespoons – Unsalted Butter (sliced & softened) – 43 grams
• 2 1/4 Cups – Bread Flour – 270 grams
• 3/4 Cup – Old Fashioned Oatmeal (oat flakes) – 68 grams – Do not pre-moisten oats. Use DRY oat flakes.
• 1/4 Cup – Light Brown Sugar (packed) – 54 grams – If you prefer non-sweet oatmeal breads, you should use only 1 1/2 tablespoons of brown sugar.
• 1 Teaspoon – Salt – 6 grams
• 1 Teaspoon – Bread Machine Yeast – 3 grams – Not active dry yeast

Ingredients – Bread Machine Oatmeal Bread Recipe – 2 lb Loaf

•  1 1/2 Cups – Milk (lukewarm) – 345 milliliters 
• 4 Tablespoons – Unsalted Butter (sliced & softened) – 57 grams
• 3 Cups – Bread Flour – 360 grams
• 1 Cup – Old Fashioned Oatmeal (oat flakes) – 90 grams – Do not pre-moisten oats. Use DRY oat flakes.
• 1/3 Cup – Light Brown Sugar (packed) – 72 grams – If you prefer non-sweet oatmeal breads, you should use only 2 tablespoons of brown sugar.
• 1 1/2 Teaspoons – Salt – 9 grams
• 1 1/2 Teaspoons – Bread Machine Yeast – 4.5 grams – Not active dry yeast

Servings – Roughly 12 slices

Equipment Needed – Measuring cup & spoons, silicone spatula, oven mitts, cooling rack and a bread machine.

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Oatmeal Flakes Sprinkled on Dough after Kneading Completed

Instructions – Bread Machine Oatmeal Bread Recipe

• Bread machine settings – 1.5 or 2 pound loaf, light color and “basic” bread setting
• Unplug the bread machine & then remove the bread pan.
• Add all ingredients starting with the milk into the bread machine “bucket” (loaf pan). Make sure the yeast is last and does not touch the milk or salt. Some people like to make a small “divot” on top of the flour in order to hold the yeast in one spot before the machine starts.
• Place the bread pan (with ingredients) back into the bread machine.
• Plug in bread machine. Enter the correct settings (for either 1.5 lb or 2 lb loaf version) and press the “start” button.
• Optional – After the bread machine has finished kneading and before the baking cycle commences, sprinkle some old fashioned oatmeal flakes on top of the bread dough.
• When the bread machine has finished baking the bread, unplug the bread machine. Remove the bread and place it on a cooling rack. Use oven mitts when removing the bread machine container (bread loaf pan) as it will be very hot!
• In our Sunbeam bread machine, the baking takes about 3 hours for a 2 pound bread loaf (and 2:53 hours for a 1.5 lb bread loaf) at the light color & basic bread settings. However, some machines can differ and you don’t want to be away from home when the bread machine “finished” alarm goes off! Your bread machine should show you the length of the baking time after you have entered the settings into the machine. This will allow you to know when to be in the kitchen in order to remove the bread.
• Before using your bread machine, you should read the bread machine manufacturer’s instructions in order to use the bread machine effectively and safely.
• Please read the tips section below for extra information on how to make this recipe successfully.

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Other Bread Dad Sections

• Bread Machines – My favorites
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• Bread Tools – Bread slicers, etc.

Tips – Bread Machine Oatmeal Bread Recipe

• The tips below are designed to help bread machine “novices” and those who haven’t touched their bread machine in years.
• Click on our “print recipe” link if you want to print out this recipe. It includes all of the recipe’s ingredients and instructions. However, the recipe print function does not include our tips section. Please read the tips section in order to avoid common recipe problems.
• This recipe is part of Bread Dad’s series on easy Bread Machine Recipes.

• Optional – Try our oven-baked Oatmeal Bread Recipe if you want to make the oatmeal dough with your bread machine and finish it in your oven in order to achieve the classic bread loaf shape (vs the bread machine “block” shape) and avoid any bread machine mixing paddle holes in your loaf. It is the oven version of the recipe on this page.
• If you haven’t used your bread machine in a long time, please buy some NEW bread machine yeast before making your bread. Old yeast can die or lose its potency and this will lead to bread that does not rise properly. Bread machine yeast may not be viable if it has been sitting in your pantry for years.

• Do NOT confuse the 1.5 lb & 2 lb ingredient amounts and bread machine settings when making your bread (i.e. accidentally use some of the 2 lb amounts when making the 1.5 lb loaf version). I have… cough, cough… made this mistake before!
• This recipe is NOT for 1 lb capacity bread machines. Please check the capacity of your bread machine before making this recipe. This recipe helps you to create 1.5 lb and 2 lb bread loaves. If you have a small bread machine (i.e. a bread machine that has only a capacity for 1 lb breads), you will be unable to make this recipe. The loaf will be too large for your machine and overflow the bread pan (and the top is likely to collapse). An example of a bread machine with only a 1 lb capacity is the Zojirushi Home Bakery Mini Breadmaker (model BB-HAC10).
• For bread machines with a loaf capacity greater than 1 lb, consider making the 1.5 lb version first. Some bread machines with a supposed 2lb loaf capacity are smaller than advertised. See how the 1.5 lb version works in your bread machine before attempting the 2 lb version.

• To make this bread look more “authentic”, I like to sprinkle some old fashioned oatmeal flakes on the top of the dough after the bread machine has finished its final kneading cycle. I use old fashioned oatmeal (versus instant oatmeal) in order to get large oatmeal flakes. Of course, for safety, I wear oven mitts & don’t put my hands inside the bread machine.
• If this oatmeal bread is too plain for your family, you can add some dried fruit such as raisins, dried cranberries, dried blueberries, etc.
• This oatmeal bread recipe uses plain “old fashioned” oat flakes (oatmeal) because they are less processed & have larger flakes than “one minute” or instant oats. However, you can use unflavored one minute/instant oats (oatmeal) as a substitute if you are out of old fashioned oat flakes.
• FYI – I usually use Quaker Oats Old Fashioned Oats (oat flakes) to make this recipe. However, there are also many lower cost supermarket old fashioned oat flakes brands too.
• You should use DRY oat flakes to make this bread (don’t use already cooked/boiled oatmeal). Boiled oatmeal has varying amounts of moisture and could mess up the recipe. If you use boiled oatmeal, the bread might have too much liquid (versus what is called for in the recipe) and come out undercooked. Do not pre-moisten the oat flakes.

• This recipe uses bread machine yeast (instant yeast) and NOT active dry yeast.
• When adding the yeast, it should be placed in a position that is separate from the salt (i.e. placed on opposite sides of the bread pan). Close contact with salt can kill or slow the growth of the yeast. I like to make a small “divot” on top of the flour in order to hold the yeast (separate from the salt) before the bread machine starts mixing the ingredients.
• This recipe uses bread flour. Not whole wheat flour. If you use whole wheat flour, the bread is likely to have problems rising properly.
• Do not use cold milk. The main problem with using regular milk is that people tend to use cold refrigerated milk and this can slow the yeast growth. Try to use warm milk (or instant powdered milk mixed into warm water). However, you should also be aware that the milk/water should not be too hot because very hot milk/water can kill the yeast.
• Optional – If you are out of dairy milk, you can replace it with soy milk, oat milk, water, etc. I use whole milk because it adds a little flavor to the bread but you can use a milk substitute that is best for your family.
• Optional – If you do not have butter, you can replace it with a neutral tasting vegetable oil (i.e. canola oil or corn oil) on a 1 to 1 basis (i.e. replace 3 tablespoons of butter with 3 tablespoons of oil). However, you will be giving up the buttery flavor.

• Once you have mastered basic bread machine bread recipes (like this bread), you might like to try some more advanced bread machine bread recipes (i.e. French bread or Italian bread). In these recipes, the bread machine will still do the hard work of kneading the dough but you will have to shape the bread by hand.
• According to Wikipedia, “In a 100-gram (3 1⁄2-ounce) serving, oats provide 1,630 kilojoules (389 kilocalories) of food energy and are a rich source (20% or more of the Daily Value, DV) of protein (34% DV), dietary fiber (44% DV), several B vitamins and numerous dietary minerals”.
• Having trouble with bread collapses & misshapen bread tops? Make sure to read Bread Dad’s article on Bread Machine Bread Collapses. It has reasons and solutions to potential bread collapses.
• If your bread comes out too dense, it is likely due to one of the following reasons; You are using old or stale yeast, using a cold refrigerator temperature liquid (which slows yeast growth), baking in a cold winter temperature kitchen (yeast likes kitchen temps of 75-80 degree F), using all purpose flour (versus bread flour as called for in the recipe), placing salt on top of or next to the yeast (salt kills yeast so it must be placed away from the yeast in the bread pan), etc. For more reasons, you should visit Bread Dad’s Why Is My Bread Machine Bread So Dense? page.

• If you start substituting ingredients (i.e. using different types of flour not called for in the recipe), you are experimenting and should not expect similar results to the recipe shown above. Experimenting can be fun. However, you should expect some successes but more potential disappointments when you start to experiment with recipes. For example, if you substitute whole wheat flour for the bread flour, you will probably experience a problem (as whole wheat flour doesn’t rise nearly as well as bread flour). Moreover, whole wheat flour has a totally different flavor.
• If you have a problem with a bread machine recipe, please make sure that you are following the recipe exactly (i.e. using the correct bread machine settings), you are using the correct amount of an ingredient (i.e. don’t eyeball the measurements versus using a measurement cup or accidentally add a teaspoon when a tablespoon is called for), you are using the correct ingredients (i.e. bread machine yeast versus regular yeast or bread flour versus all purpose flour), etc. Please don’t “wing” things with recipes.

• Be aware that some bread recipes may differ slightly between different types of bread machines. Therefore, please read your bread machine manufacturer’s  instructions for basic bread recipes (i.e. white bread or whole wheat bread) as these are more likely to work on your individual bread machine.
• FYI – Bread machine yeast loses its potency over time. Generally, bread machine yeast lasts for only 3-4 months after you have opened the bottle. However, if the yeast is exposed to air & moisture (i.e. the bottle not sealed tight) or exposed to higher temperatures, the yeast will expire even more quickly.
• Once you have opened the bottle that contains the bread machine yeast, the yeast will last longer if you store the bottle in the refrigerator or freezer. Just make sure the bottle is sealed tight (as yeast will deteriorate quickly if exposed to air, moisture and/or heat).
• Bread machine yeast in a bottle that has never been opened should last until the bottle’s “Best If Used By” date… but only if the bottle has been stored properly (i.e. in a refrigerator, freezer or in a dark, dry & cool spot in the pantry) and the bottle remains unopened.

• Kitchen humidity can impact a recipe. A winter kitchen tends to be drier due to your heating system drying out the air. In contrast, a kitchen in the summer can be much more humid. This change in humidity impacts baking as flour can soak up humidity from the air. Therefore, you might have to add 1-2 teaspoons of liquid in the winter if the dough is looking too dry. Or you might have to add 1-2 teaspoons of flour in the summer if the dough is looking too wet. If your kitchen is very dry or humid, you might have to add even a little more (but start with 1 teaspoon at a time until you achieve the right consistency). Of course, excessive kitchen humidity or dryness can impact a recipe at any time during the year (not just in the summer & winter)!
• Moreover, you should read this very useful comment from Pete (one of our amazing visitors) – “Newcomers to bread machines – especially those who like to hover over the loaf – have to be careful with this recipe. The 100% hydration level is necessitated by the dry oats. It takes a while for the oats to absorb the milk so it may be well into the first kneading cycle before the dough ball begins to “look” like that of a lower-hydration recipe. So resist the temptation to add more flour.”
• Humidity is also one of the reasons that people should store flour in an airtight container (if they have already opened the flour package). Flour (not in airtight containers) can pick up extra moisture from the air while sitting in the pantry. This can throw off recipes, spoil the flavor, degrade shelf life, etc.

• If you like baked goods with old fashioned oat flakes, you should also try our soft Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cranberry Cookies recipe.
• My recipes are based on US ingredient measurements (i.e. US cups & tablespoons). However, as a courtesy to our European visitors, I have also included some very ROUGH European equivalents (i.e. grams & milliliters). Since I rarely use European measurements when baking, please let me know in the comment section below if any of the European ingredient measurements need to be changed (i.e. for XYZ ingredient, milliliters are more commonly used versus the grams information listed in the recipe).
• Always wear oven mitts/gloves when dealing with a bread machine. The bread pan and the rest of the bread machine can get very hot during the baking process. This means that the bread pan and bread machine is likely to be very hot when you attempt to remove a baked good from the bread machine and/or bread pan.
• For more easy bread ideas, please visit Bread Dad’s sections on Bread Machine Recipes and Homemade Bread Recipes.
• Did you make this recipe? Did your bread come out amazing? We would love to see a picture of your masterpiece! Please post a photo of it on Instagram and tag it with @BreadDadRecipes

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More Bread Dad Recipes

• Bread Machine Recipes
• Bread Recipes
• Banana Bread Recipe
• Quick Bread Recipes – Pumpkin bread, cranberry bread, etc.
• Cookie Recipes

Oatmeal Bread Questions

Can bread be made from oatmeal?

Oatmeal bread is generally not made completely from oatmeal. It is often a mixture of wheat-based flour (usually bread flour) and oatmeal. Most oatmeal bread recipes use more wheat-based flour than oatmeal (i.e. 3 cups of bread flour and 1 cup of oatmeal). Bakers use more bread flour because it contains gluten protein and this enables the bread to rise during the yeast fermentation process. This helps to create a taller & fluffier bread. In contrast, oat flakes & oatmeal have very little or no gluten and thus do not rise. This inability to rise limits the amount of oatmeal used in many bread recipes. Oatmeal is often added to a bread recipe in order to provide healthy oat fiber.

Is oatmeal bread better?

Oatmeal bread tends to provide more healthy fiber than regular white bread. Other health benefits from oatmeal supposedly include the ability to lower LDL cholesterol (bad cholesterol), reduce constipation (due to the extra fiber), etc. Finally, in my opinion, homemade oatmeal bread tastes far better than boring store packaged white bread.

For more information on the benefits of oatmeal, please read this WebMD article.

Does oatmeal have fiber?

Oatmeal is a good source of soluble fiber. According to the Mayo Clinic, soluble fiber “found in beans, oats, flaxseed and oat bran may help lower total blood cholesterol levels by lowering low-density lipoprotein, or “bad,” cholesterol levels.”. In contrast, whole wheat provides more insoluble fiber. Insoluble fiber doesn’t break down significantly and thus helps everything in the digestive tract to “move along”. This means insoluble fiber is good for issues such as constipation. If you are looking for more insoluble fiber, you should try our bread machine whole wheat bread recipe.

For more on oats & soluble fiber, you should read this Wikipedia article. You can also read this WebMD article called Soluble and Insoluble Fiber: What’s the Difference.

What is the difference between oats and oatmeal?

The difference between oats and oatmeal is the processing. Oats are the unprocessed seeds of a cereal grain plant known as the oat plant or common oat. In contrast, oatmeal is made from processed oats where the oat seeds have been ground, steel-cut or rolled. However, due to marketing purposes, oats and oatmeal are often used interchangeably. You can find different types of oatmeal called instant oats, rolled oats, steel-cut oats, Irish oats, etc. Confusing but if the oats have been processed, the product is an oatmeal (regardless of the branding name).

Can I make bread machine oatmeal bread with all-purpose flour?

You can use all-purpose flour to make bread machine oatmeal bread. However, all-purpose flour doesn’t have as much gluten as bread flour. Gluten helps to trap the carbon dioxide released by the yeast. Therefore, bread flour rises better than all-purpose flour and creates a chewier bread. However, if you are out of bread flour and can’t get to the store, you can use all-purpose flour instead.  An oatmeal bread made with all-purpose flour should be a decent substitute… just not as good as an oatmeal bread created with bread flour.

For more on the differences between various types of flour, you should read this Wikipedia article.

Can I make this bread machine oatmeal bread without butter?

Yes, you can make bread machine oatmeal bread without butter. Some people like to make “no butter” breads because they have run out of butter or they are trying to reduce the saturated fat in their diet.

You just need to substitute vegetable oil for the butter in this recipe. They are almost equal substitutes. For example, 1 tablespoon of butter equals 3/4 to 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil (depending on the vegetable oil that you use). In addition, when making no butter oatmeal bread, you might want to consider using a neutral flavored vegetable oil (i.e. corn or canola oil) versus a stronger flavored vegetable oil. However, while the oatmeal bread made with vegetable oil will be okay, it will lack the delicious buttery taste of the recipe above.

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Reference Sources

• Wikipedia, Bread Machine
• Wikipedia, Oat
• Wikipedia, Oatmeal

Your fantastic comments motivate us to write more easy & delicious recipes. Also beginning bakers learn a ton from your helpful suggestions, tips and amazing recipe variations. Thank you!

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