The Oat Milk Revolution: From Grain to Glass

If you have ever tried making oat milk at home, you might have found some stark differences between your result and the sweet and creamy commercial version. How is oat milk made at a large scale, and what makes it so delicious?

As someone who loves oat milk in my cereal, tea, smoothies, and baked goods, I’ve tried countless times to make it at home. The process appears simple enough: blend oats with water, and presto! You also save on costs, avoid packaging waste, and can experiment with unique flavors—like the time I added a cardamom pod for a twist. Despite these efforts, however, each attempt ends in mild disappointment. No matter what I do, the result inevitably tastes like, well… blended oats. It’s understandable, but still disheartening.

It turns out there’s a reason why my homemade attempts haven’t measured up to store-bought versions. Commercial oat milk uses specific techniques and ingredients that elevate its taste and texture far beyond what most of us achieve at home. Below, I’ll share some insights into what sets commercially produced oat milk apart from its humble homemade counterpart.

Plant-based milk now accounts for 11% of the European milk market, with oat milk leading the charge in this growing category.

Turning oat groats into rolled oats

Although different producers have different methods, most of them make oat milk from rolled oats - the kind you see in muesli or porridge - as they are notably easier to break up than the whole grain or ‘oat groat’. The groats are cleaned and graded, dehulled, steamed, and rolled into flakes. When the oat husk or bran (the shell of the oat groat) is removed, we are left with the oat base, which contains less insoluble fiber but still holds the macronutrients and soluble fiber (beta-glucans) of the groat .

Oats and water are mixed and milled

together

The first step consists of mixing rolled oats with water, usually at a similar ratio we would use for most homemade recipes (commonly about 1:2.7), and milling them into a soft homogeneous slurry. Some manufacturers already buy oat flour (finely ground oats) to make the process quicker, while others may have oat dehullers and steamers within the oat milk processing plant to control the full procedure.

Adding enzymes

This is an essential step, and the one responsible for the big difference in taste between homemade and store-bought oat milk. Different enzymes, such as α-amylase, break down the complex sugars (like starch) found in oats into simpler sugars, such as maltose, in a process called hydrolysis. This is what makes the oat milk sweeter to taste than the oats themselves.

Since oats consist of around 50-60% starch, and this starch acquires a gelatinous texture when blended or heated, enzymes hydrolyzing (i.e. breaking down) starch also helps to create a smoother and creamier texture than if you were to simply blend oats with water.

While the addition of enzymes may seem foreign and potentially uninviting, the addition of enzymes in the production process to break down complex carbohydrates into simpler ones is fairly common in a number of other foods. For example, to create lactose-free milk, the enzyme called lactase is added to break down lactose into glucose and galactose, making it possible for lactose-intolerant people to drink cow’s milk .

Fun fact: Amylases, the enzymes that break down starch into the simpler and sweeter sugar maltose, are also found in our saliva.

Adding ingredients for texture, taste, and

shelf life

This step of the process involves the addition of ingredients for taste, texture, and appearance purposes. The most common added ingredient is vegetable oil, resulting in a creamier beverage - making it particularly important for the manufacturing of barista versions of oat milk! Salt is also a commonly added ingredient, as it enhances the sweet and natural flavors of the oat milk. Some brands of oat milk add calcium or vitamins in this step, making a fortified and more nutritionally complete plant-based beverage. Lastly and optionally - ingredients such as cocoa powder, sugar, vanilla extract, coffee extract, or other natural flavors are added.

What makes barista oat milk different?

Dairy milk foams because of its high protein and fat content. Non-dairy milk alternatives that are used for steaming or frothing often use thickeners and gums, in addition to vegetable oils, to compensate for their naturally lower protein and fat content. These thickeners and gums help the air bubbles adhere to each other, creating a dense foam that is more similar to dairy versions.

Barista versions will also often contain a ‘pH buffer’ (most commonly dipotassium phosphate) to prevent oat milk from curdling and separating when added to coffee. Interestingly, this addition isn’t necessary with dairy milk, as it naturally contains phosphates which already act as buffers to sudden drops in pH.

Compare the environmental footprints of plant-based milk alternatives

Sterilization, homogenization, and

packaging

The final product is then sterilized with heat treatments, either with UHT or pasteurization, to increase its shelf life and kill off any bacteria remaining in the mix. The resulting beverage is then mixed at high pressure with a “homogenizer” (essentially a high-pressure, high-speed blender) to ensure that the fat droplets are broken down into smaller and more uniform droplets, giving the milk a creamy and uniform mouthfeel without any ‘clumps’. At last, the oat milk is ready to be packaged and shipped!

Why home-made options need to be

refrigerated

You might have noticed that there is often an option for non-refrigerated cartons of oat milk on the shelves - something most homemade recipes don’t recommend. The key difference here is that commercial non-refrigerated options have been aseptically packaged in a highly controlled environment and thus can last for months or even years in your pantry. When you make oat milk at home unless you live in a sterile laboratory, you will expose it to microorganisms in the environment that can quickly multiply and become harmful. Therefore, it wouldn’t be safe (or pleasant) to drink a glass of homemade oat milk more than a week after you have made it. But then again, the deliciousness and versatility of the drink may prevent it from lasting this long anyway!

About author

SS Engineers and Consultants is a premier engineering firm specializing in innovative design solutions, sustainable practices, and comprehensive project management. With decades of combined experience across various industries, their team of expert engineers and consultants delivers tailored services that meet the unique needs of each client, ensuring safety, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness in every project. This line emphasizes their professionalism, expertise, and commitment to delivering high-quality results. If necessary, adjustments can be made based on specific areas of focus or achievements!