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Oatcakes are a Scottish pantry staple - crisp, crumbly and full of oaty goodness. Made with just a few simple ingredients, they're perfect for snacking, topping or serving alongside hearty meals.
I always bought oatcakes when I lived in Scotland, but since emigrating, they've been hard to come across (or expensive to buy) - so I started making my own. Many batches later, I finally had a recipe that reminded me of home.
Looking for more Scottish recipes? Try our Scotch Pancakes or our Tattie Scones.
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Reasons to Love This Recipe
- Easy recipe with simple ingredients
- Freezer friendly - great for batch cooking
- Perfect for lunchboxes
- Versatile - enjoy on their own or with sweet or savoury toppings.
Ingredient Information
- Oats: Use a mix of steel cut (pinhead) and rolled (old fashioned) oats, or if you can find Scottish Oatmeal, that's perfect. See "more about oats" section for more info.
- Butter: Adds richness, but can be replaced with oil for a dairy-free alternative.
- Salt: Optional, skip if making for a baby.
- Warm Water: To bind the dough together.
More About Oats
Every country seems to have their own selection and names for different varieties of oats, which can make oat recipes confusing. The type of oat you use affects the texture and outcome of your oatcakes.
Traditional Scottish oatcakes use Scottish oatmeal, which is oats ground to a coarse or medium texture. This isn't always easy to find outside Scotland, so I tested more common oats like rolled oats and steel-cut oats.
Here's what I discovered
- 100% steel cut (pinhead) oats (blended): Dough was crumbly but made textured oatcakes.
- 100% rolled (old fashioned) oats (blended): Easier to work with but softer, less textured oatcakes
- 50/50 steel cut and rolled oats (blended): Best texture and family favourite.
Step by Step Instructions (With Images)
- Blend Oats: Add oats to a food processor or blender and blitz until you have a coarse, flour-like consistency.
- Mix with Butter: In a mixing bowl add the ground oats and melted butter and gently mix until combined.
- Add warm water & knead: Gradually add water and mix until the oats absorb the liquid and a dough forms.
- Roll and cut: Roll the dough out on a floured surface to approx. 3mm (⅛ inch) thick. Use cookie cutters to cut into rounds (or preferred shape).
Serving Suggestions
The great thing about oatcakes is that they can be enjoyed in many different ways and at any time of the day. Enjoy them with sweet or savoury toppings, crumbled into soup or as part of a cheese board.
Some topping suggestion include
- Cottage Cheese Egg Salad
- Mashed Avocado and Tomato
- Peanut Butter & Raspberry Chia Jam
- Cream Cheese & Strawberry
- Hummus and Carrot
- Tuna Salad and Cucumber
- Butter, Cheese & Grape
- Cottage Cheese and Tomato
- Nut Butter, Banana and Cinnamon
Storage Instructions
Store homemade oatcakes in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week. For longer storage, you can freeze them - place in a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 2 months.
Recipe FAQs
Oatcakes can be suitable for babies, 6months +, as long as your baby is developmentally ready for finger foods, and the recipe is appropriately modified.
For babies, it's important to make them softer, soft enough that they can be easily flattened between your fingers. For a baby I would suggest
- Rolling the dough thicker (around ¾ cm) to create a softer texture.
- Use only rolled oats for less textured oatcake.
- Skip the salt to keep sodium levels low
- Cut into finger to make them easier for baby to hold
- Try serving with sweet or savoury purees to dip into for added flavour and variety.
For informational purposes only - each baby develops at their own place. Make informed decisions for your baby and consult a professional for personalised advice. Always provide a safe eating environment and watch your baby closely while eating.
Oatcakes have a nutty, wholesome flavour and a dry, crumbly texture. They're savoury rather than sweet - so don't be fooled by the word "cake"! They aren't an indulgent treat, more a humble snack that pairs great with cheese, soup or spread of choice.
Oatcakes can vary in texture .They can be rough to fine, depending on they type and how the oats are ground. They can be slightly chewy, crumbly or crispy depending on water content, and how thick they are rolled out and how long they are bakes.
This recipe produces an oatcake that is crunchy with a medium to rough texture.
Gluten free - although oats are naturally gluten free, most commercial oats are processed in facilities that also process wheat, barley and rye. The gluten in these ingrediesnt can contaiminate oats. Make sure to buy gluten free oats if intolerant.
Dairy Free - You can replace butter with a different fat (eg olive oil or lard)
Cracker and Bite Recipes to Try
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Oatcakes
Ingredients
- 95g (½ cup) Steel Cut (Pinhead) Oats * SEE NOTE 1
- 95g ( 1 cup) Rolled (old fashioned) Oats
- ¼ tsp Salt (Optional)
- 28g (2 tbsp) Butter (melted) *SEE NOTE 2
- 75ml (¼ cup + 1 tbsp) Hot water
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 190℃ / 375℉
- Add the steel cut oats to a food processor and blend until you achieve a coarse flour-like consistency,(see picture above for video for illustration). *SEE NOTE 3
- Add the rolled oats to the blender and continue to blend until they also represent coarse flour.
- In a large bowl, mix together the blended oats and salt (if using). Add the melted butter and use your fingers to mix it through the oats until coated.
- Add the hot water and knead the mixture together. It will feel very wet, to begin with, but as you continue to mix the dough, the oats will absorb the water. Continue to knead until the mixture no longer feels sticky. *SEE NOTE 4
- Form into a ball, sprinkle the work surface with some extra blended oats (or flour) and roll out to approx 3mm (⅛inch) thick.
- Cut your oatcakes with a cookie cutter into your desired shape. *SEE NOTE 5
- Carefully place your oatcakes onto a baking tray and bake for 25-30 minutes, until dry and lightly golden. (Turn oatcakes after 15 mins)
Video
Recipe Notes
- See above post for information on oats. The type of oats you use, and how much you blend them, will affect the texture of your oatcake. This was our preferred combination and ratio. If you decide to change the oats, replace them by weight (total weight 190g), as different oats yield different cup measurements.
- You can replace the butter with a different fat (e.g olive oil) to make dairy free.
- The steel cut oats take a while to break down, I blended mine for around 5 mins. The rolled oats break down very quickly.
- I used 75ml of water. If the dough is too dry and not rolling then you may have to add a little more, 1 teaspoon at a time.
- The pictured oatcakes were made using a circle cutter with a diameter of approx. 5.5 cm (2¼ inches). I have however successfully made smaller and larger ones too.
jane
I have made this recipe several times. I always double it and probably add more water to have it form without crumbling. Sometimes I grind the oats too much but they still taste great. I got some Orkney store bought oatcakes but they don’t taste nearly as good
Amy Whiteford
Thanks so much for your comment, Jane, it’s great to hear you’ve made the recipe several times.
I’m also very happy to hear they beat the Orkney store-bought ones, that’s fantastic!
Sarah McCance
How long do these keep well for?
Amy Whiteford
Hi Sarah, these will keep well in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week. If you’d like to store them for longer, you can freeze them in a freezer-safe container for up to 2 months.
Just so you know, most of my recipe posts include storage tips, either under the "Storage Instructions" header or in the FAQ section.
Thanks, Amy
Earlene
Medium oatmeal is available on Amazon.
Amy Whiteford
Good to know, thanks Earlene 🙂
JohnD
ever since I discovered this recipe about 40 days ago on 15 February 25 I have made it 14 times! It is spot on for very yummy oak cakes.
1) I only use steel cut oats - the first 95 g I put in the food processor to be cut up into powder for about 5mins and then the second 95 g I just add in with the other ingredients and the hot water and mix.
2) I use avocado oil (or olive oil for the savory flavored bisquits) rather than butter. It works perfectly.
3) I find adding freshly boiled water is perfect to get enough energy in the mix for the oats to absorb the moisture.
4) I found a much simpler and faster way rather than rolling out. I use a 1 tablespoon meatball scoop. I use 13” round pizza trays with silicone liners. Once I portion out the balls on top of a tray with liner - typically between 11 and 14 - I then put another silicone liner on top of them and use a second round pizza tray to press down on top thereby flattening them into a biscuit thickness. I remove the top tray but do the first half of the bake with that silicone liner on top (since the dough sticks to it!) At half-time I put the cold tray on top and flip them over onto the other pizza tray and remove the original lower silicone liner from on top so that they are exposed to the oven heat and cook the rest of the time. It works like a charm after 14 times and there’s no mess! If you don’t have silicon liners I think parchment will do.
5) I have used rosemary powder, kale powder, ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, pumpkin pie, cumin, turbinado sugar, dark brown sugar, orange sugar, salt and black pepper, smoked paprika, Parmesan cheese, essentially the sky is the limit for adding that extra ingredient to pop your oat cakes, and make them irresistible! I now make these about once a week. Typical amounts start at 1TSP for spice but 2-4TBSP for sugar.
6) With added sugar the time to bake is typically 20 minutes compared to 25 without sugar since they get dark very quickly. Sugar gives them a great snap and crunch.
6) I use a countertop Breville oven - 370’F (with convection)
Amy Whiteford
Wow, John! Thank you for sharing all your fantastic tips and flavour ideas! I'm so glad you're enjoying the recipe
JohnD
This recipe is so easy and results in spot on oatcakes!
I used 2 Tbsp Avocado oil as others have done.
I used a food processor with cutting blade for the whole thing - it is a bit runny at first but soon absorbs the moisture.
I have a lot of steel cut oats to use up so I ran 95g in the food processor to get it powderized and then added 95g straight from the package.
The first time I used a 1 Tbsp meatball scoop and hand flattened them with 11 total on a round pizza tray with silicone liner - 30mins to get golden.
The second time I added 1Tbsp Turbinado sugar which gave it a bit of sweetness and also helped to bind it together. The sugar made the cakes brown faster so only about 23mins to get golden.
This second time I layed the 11 1Tbsp balls on the silicone liner and placed a second silicone liner and pizza tray on top to flatten them uniformly. Since they initially stuck to the liner I just baked it and removed the top liner after 15mins when I flipped them over. Worked like a charm - the edges were more jagged than hand cutting/shaping but a lot less mess and work!
Amy Whiteford
Thanks for taking the time to rate and give your detailed feedback John.
Cindy
Loved recipe. Have made them and shared.
Amy Whiteford
So glad you loved them, Cindy! That’s wonderful to hear—thanks for making and sharing them!
Susan Clellen
try using a tortilla press as a faster way to make uniform sized wafers. I also use a hand crank Corona corn grinder to mill the steel cut oats and rolled oats for a rustic blend.
Thelma Thomas
I used bacon fat instead of butter. It has a great flavour.
Amy
Sounds great! 🙂
AMoreyRakosi
I love your alternate fat suggestion. Everything is better with bacon!
Kalina
Fantastic recipe! Here’s my notes…
I’ve never made oatcakes or even knew what they were. I had zero idea what to aim for but I followed the recipe and then used my intuition from there.
I used olive oil to test out a vegan option. I used 2 tablespoons of olive oil.
I found the amount of water not enough this could be due to the amount I ground the oats and steel cut oats, making them absorb more water. I left some of the oats and steel cut oats a bit chunky for texture.
Next time I would blend 3/4 of both oats into a flour, and then blend the last 2 quarters chunkier to create the texture. I think it would create a dough easier that way, making it easier to roll out.
I found the longer the dough sat waiting to be used, the more I would have to add extra water. I think this made the last few I cut out a bit softer in the centre (although I did make them thicker).
I cut mine thin as suggested in the recipe. I also cut some half a cm thick to compare. Both were nice!!! I preferred the thicker ones as they were a little softer in the centre and more of a “meal” as they are a savoury option to have with coffee for my cafe.
For half the batch I added chopped rosemary and black pepper. Those ones I cut thicker. They made a nice, softer, flavoursome biscuit which was exactly what I was after!
Thank you for the great recipe I’m excited to experiment with flavours!
Jess
I made this for my scottish boyfriend who lives with me in aus. He's kind of picky, even the walkers oatcakes are not the best for him. So I hope he enjoys the oatcakes I made from your recipe. I sure have. Thanks for leaving it available for us 🙂