Strawberry Banana Overnight Oats

Get your breakfast ready the night before and you'll be in for a treat in the morning! These Strawberry Banana Overnight Oats are my go-to Basic Overnight Oats Recipe. Naturally sweetened with banana, and gut-friendly with yoghurt and a long soak to ferment the oats, this make-ahead breakfast is creamy, dreamy, and packed with good nutrition.

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If your weekdays are anything like mine, you want something healthy, tasty, and filling, but also something super speedy. And you really can't beat a meal prep breakfast that's already waiting for you when you wake up. 

I love hot oatmeal as much as the next guy, but for a ready-made meal, these Strawberry Banana Overnight Oats are my go-to. This Basic Overnight Oats recipe is the perfect template for whatever you want to add to it, but berries (fresh or frozen) is my favourite way to top them.

They've got an incredible creamy texture and have a great flavor from banana and a splash of vanilla along with oat milk and tangy yogurt. 

If you're not into banana (my big kid isn't a banana fan) then give these Apple Cinnamon Overnight Oats a try instead. Or these Pumpkin Overnight Oats for a seasonal taste. 

If you're looking for other ideas, be sure to check out our list of 16 Vegetarian Breakfast Recipes You Can Make Ahead.

Ingredients

Here's my Banana Overnight Oats ingredients lineup:

• Oats! --> Rolled oats, please and thank you. 
• Banana --> Can't make Banana Overnight Oats without banana!
• Yogurt --> I prefer to use a runnier yogurt in this recipe as opposed to something like these Fruit On The Bottom Yogurt Cups where greek yogurt works best.
• Plant-based milk --> Oat milk is my jam these days, but you do you.
• Chia seeds --> These little babies add omega-3's, dietary fiber, and help thicken things up.
• Vanilla extract --> Optional, but delicious. Related: Homemade Vanilla Extract.
• Berries and diced banana --> Toppings central!

Equipment:

Nothing fancy required here. All you need is a jar or bowl to mix up your oats and store them overnight in the fridge. I like to use these Weck jars, but any glass jar with a lid will do. A mason jar works great, or even an empty yogurt container with a lid. 

Can I make overnight oats in advance?

I tend to mix up a jar of overnight oats every evening, as it takes only a few minutes to mash, mix, swirl, and throw the jar into the fridge. However, I've also experimented with making a big batch in bulk and those turn out just fine as well.

I find that a batch will last 3-4 days happily in the fridge, so if you'd rather not have to make oats every day, that's a good option for you.

Do I have to use yogurt?

I like to make my overnight oats with a liquid mixture of plain yogurt and plant-based milk. I just prefer the flavour this way, but there's no reason you can't skip the yogurt or use a dairy-free yogurt instead if you want vegan overnight oats.

I like to use yogurt because it kickstarts a little fermentation as the oats soak overnight, making the oats easier to digest and nutrients more bioavailable than without.

What kind of toppings work best?

These days I'm topping my banana overnight oats recipe with the fresh berries that have just come into season, but throughout the winter months I use frozen berries, which I add on top of the oats before they go into the fridge for the night. In the morning they're melted and juicy and perfect for swirling through your oats.

You can also add a handful of nuts or hemp seeds for extra protein (how about some Oven Roasted Almonds?), some granola for crunch (try this homemade Coconut Banana Granola) or a scoop of nut butter (this Vanilla Almond Butter would be incredible!) if you please.

You could also add a pinch of salt (flaky sea salt is my favourite) and some cinnamon to the top if you like. Yum!

Tips for optimizing your basic overnight oats recipe:

• Prefer your breakfast on the go? No problem! Just make your overnight oats in a jar with a lid that fits tightly, and you can toss them into your bag and take them along with you.
• Don't like banana? Lots of people feel this way. You can leave the banana out and add a splash of maple syrup for sweetness instead. I use about ¼ of a banana per serving, and I find that it makes them perfectly sweet but not too sweet without tasting overwhelmingly banana-y.
• Want to make vegan oats? No problemo. Either you can replace the yoghurt with coconut yoghurt, or leave it out and replace with extra plant-based milk.
• Sensitive to gluten? Be sure to seek out oats that are labelled gluten-free, as oats are often processed in the same factories as gluten-containing grains.
• Prefer a warm breakfast? It's totally fine to gently heat your overnight oats in the morning.
• Forgot to make your oats the night before? Not to worry, a quick soak of 2 hours will do the trick.

Are oats healthy? 

You bet they are! Oats are a good source of dietary fiber, including soluble fiber, which absorbs water as it moves through your digestive tract and help regulate the pace of digestion. This in turn allows more time for nutrient absorption and digestion.

Oats are also a good food source for the friendly bacteria in your lower intestine, where they are fermented and provide energy for our intestinal cells. They're rich in indigestible carbohydrates called beta-glutens which help to lower blood cholesterol levels, and are also host to a number of phenolic compounds which have antioxidant properties.

Due to the high levels of those beta-glucans, oats are also helpful in stabilizing blood sugar. In fact, eating oats in the morning may help keep your blood sugar stable throughout the entire day. Oats are great source of manganese and molybdenum, and a good source of copper, biotin, vitamin B1, magnesium, dietary fiber, and are a decent source of protein.

So let's get at these creamy, dreamy Strawberry Banana Overnight Oats. I hope that you love them as much as I do!

Other make-ahead breakfasts you might enjoy:

Super Simple Chia Pudding
Apple Cinnamon Overnight Oats
Fruit on the Bottom Yogurt Cups
Vegan Banana Flax Freezer Waffles
Pumpkin Overnight Oats
Spelt Flour Pancakes

This recipe was originally published July 24, 2014. It was last edited and updated May 5, 2022.