Edit: I’ve found a method to improve this, I’ll edit the post below. Photo attached!
I made a mistake, and bought a bag of muesli thinking it was cereal clusters. There is nobody else to blame other than my stupidity.
I don’t think I know how to eat this thing. It’s practically rolled oats with bits of fruit and nuts and all bran kind of cereals added in the mix but hardly noticeable.
I tried eating it like cereal, adding it to yoghurt or milk. It tastes like insipid cardboard flakes sprinkled with fruit. I tried cooking porridge with it, that was an improvement but I still find it boring.
Perhaps you have some suggestions on how to actually enjoy eating what’s left of it? Bonus points if you know how to make it crunchy.
Thanks
Edit: I don’t typically add sugar to things or even buy sugary cereal. My problem with this thing is the texture first and foremost. Thanks for your concern on how much processed foods I don’t buy or like are harming my life.
Edit 2: Tried the overnight method, it’s better than porridge as the consistency is much firmer and less slimey. Plus, it’s cold already.
Toasting or baking on a tray makes it so much better and crispy, it doesn’t feel chewing cardboard anymore.
Finally I tried making clusters and this is the best method for me. Just let the muesli soak a few hours in water until it takes a semisolid consistency. I spread the paste in blotches on a tray, and baked for around an hour at low heat. These clusters are very crunchy!
Photo shows the round container with the muesli straight out of the bag vs the toasted and clustered versions I made in the other container.
I assume it’s the ‘swiss style’ raw rolled oats not toasted.
I have it with plain yoghurt and a bit of jam. Milk is nice too. I like the texture and it’s fantastic for your gut.
Having said that you obviously hate that, so try this:
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Mix equal parts honey, brown sugar and coconut oil (or olive oil you could even add a dollop of butter) and heat in a saucepan until the sugar is melted. (About a 1/3 cup of each should be enough for about 3-4 cups of muesli mixture.) While you wait, put your oven on a medium to low heat like 150C.
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Separate out the fruit bits and set aside. Combine the rest of the ingredients with the melted honey oil mix, and spread out thin on a baking tray (you may want to do batches, keep it spread thin here!
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Bake on low for about 20-30min, stirring every 5-10min. (Don’t let it burn)
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Once cool, break it up and add your fruit back, Voila! You have crunchy home made granola cereal! Feel free to add anything else, pecan nuts / almonds / coconut flakes - either raw or toast it with the granola at the beginning. I like banana chips. Chocolate chips are nice too. You can’t really go wrong and it’s easy as.
Note:: The only thing you want to avoid is burning it while you toast it, the burn flavour will take over the whole mix! So keep an eye on it and keep it moving.
Note:: melted sugar is like lava. Melt it on the saucepan slowly and don’t let it smoke. Keep the heat low. Don’t stir in to the muesli with your hands. Use a wooden spoon. That shit will burn.
Okay, I might need more ingredients but I like the sound of this. Thanks for the suggestion!
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Mix it with frozen berries and plain (unsweetened) yoghurt, and let sit in the fridge over night. It’s delicious in the morning.
I tried overnight oats with yoghurt once and it failed miserably, the oats didn’t absorb anything. Tried it with some milk later and it was perfect.
Proper Bircher Muesli right here.
That doesn’t sound like proper bircher muesli to me. Bircher is: soak oats in water, add grated apple, lemon juice, ground hazelnuts, “Kondensmilch” (like tubed, sweetened concentrated milk).
I usually do it as follows (but it’s not “Bircher”): Mix oats with soymilk, sugar and cinnamon. Sometimes I add a little joghurt to get a denser consistency. Then some fruit. Berries, grated apple or banana (in slices) work well. Mix and soak overnight. Eat cold in the morning. I usually also prep 3 portions and eat them over the next 3 days.
Throw in some chia seeds or ground flaxseed if you want to publish the recipe on a foodblog.
Huh, overnight you say? I’ll try this, I got all the ingredients already
Yep, it takes a couple hours for the moisture of the yoghurt to fully seep into the muesli. If it’s too soggy for your taste afterwards, you can always stir some more back in to balance it out, but personally I like it very soggy. It becomes almost porridge-like. If it’s too sour, I’d add honey instead of sugar.
If you’re not overly concerned with sugar content, try some flavoured milk. I bought some banana flavoured soymilk (Alpro I think) a while ago and put it in the fridge overnight with the oats, was amazing, didn’t even need any added fruits or whatever, though I did add some walnuts I had laying around (after the soaking in the fridge).
Some brands seem to make it crunchy. I just eat that like cereal with soy milk or yogurt. I made the mistake of buying cheap muesly from the local convenience store and it was exactly how you described it. It was the “let sit overnight” type. Except it had cornflakes in it that would get soggy and fall apart.
I forced myself to eat most of it, the rest went to my local murder of crows who picked at the dried fruit and cornflakes and left the oats to the pigeons to deal with. I guess I wasn’t the only one who didn’t like them.
As for the crunchiness, maybe try making it into granola in the oven? Not sure if that would work but it’s worth a shot.
Heh, that’s funny. I’m learning with this post that there are two muesli types and I was unlucky enough to get the overnight type too. Some people are suggesting toasting and baking too, I’ll have fun with that
Add some brown sugar and butter, little bit of flour. Use it as a crumble topping.
Hmm yes this sounds enjoyable, although it requires a bit more effort and ingredients. Will keep in mind, thanks!
I top it off with the expensive muesli that has the crystallised fruit.
I like to lightly toast it in a pan then add milk (I use almond milk) to the pan and simmer. Stop simmering when it reaches a consistency you like.
You can add anything to it: fruit, nuts, honey… If it comes out too thick just add more milk till you like it.
I guess this is also easy to experiment with, I’ll see how it goes, thanks
i shelve it
Best as a float with whiskey.
Honestly this is just what natural food tastes like when not filled with sugar. It takes a little getting used to if you are normally having processed stuff.
Really? My problem is the texture, not the sweetness. Literally like chewing cardboard.
I guess it’s good I’m asking for crunch, not sweetness? No idea why people are upvoting the “get off processed sugary foods” comment. Wtf.
The overall impression I get from peoples’ replies to you is “natural food is to suffer blandness and dislike, just endure”
It’s tragic.
To me it sounds best to go with the honey baked guy’s suggestion, they seem to know what’s up.
I agree 100%. Since I don’t have honey and I’m not planning to get groceries again in a week I might just bake it as it is. I doubt I can ruin this.
I’ve updated the post with results and a photo. Cheers!
I eat a lot of sweets… Like, I will eat a stool-liquifying amount of nutella by the spoon if given the opportunity… But I mostly drink water and the only time I do soft drink is as a mixer. When I drink coke or eat most cereals I am disgusted by the diabetus-inducing gluttony of sugar. When I eat a jar of Nutella I know what the fuck I signed up for. When I eat cereal I expect carbs and fibre; not a heart attack.
It’s amazing how much you notice sugar when you cut it out of your diet. Store bought shit tastes sickly-sweet after only a couple of weeks of keto.
Coming from Germany, I don’t know if the traditional way to eat muesli is just adding yoghurt. Most people I know normally add fresh milk to it.
Personally, I enjoy my daily Müsli with vanilla soy milk (but I tend to be the only one liking that), fruit skyr (or yogurt), some oatmeal and/or crunchy granola, and most importantly, at least two kinds of fresh fruit, like bananas, peaches, apples, pears, or grapes. Without fruit, it just tastes bland.
I use Greek yogurt and a bit of honey. Eventually you may not need the honey if you are trying to reduce the added sugar.
I find the texture is better if I let the muesli sit in th3 yogurt for 30 mins or so
I like to sweeten mine with honey
Try baking it like granola. Mix it with a little honey and maybe more dried fruit if you like that, spread a thin layer on an oiled baking sheet, and bake slow and low until it’s crisp. Should improve the texture and make it a better contrast with the yogurt.
Yes, this is great advice. Toasted is awesome.
Never did it on a very low heat, myself, though…
I guess “very low” is subjective. When my oven is on I’m usually broiling, so I’m probably not the best at estimating.
If you don’t like the texture, you can let it sit in the liquid for a bit to soften.
Thicker liquids like (like Turkish or Greek style) yoghurt will take longer, for me about 5 minutes, but I’m guessing you like it mushier. Some have suggested overnight (an unforgivable sin IMHO), but you can easily try it at different intervals to see when is right for you.
With milk it soaks faster, might be enough for you with 10 minutes.
The flavors and textures do come from the grains and fruits being only lightly processed though, it might be that you need to transition yourself to it. Feel free to add stuff to get the right texture and flavors, and maybe work backwards from there?
Yeah, as I said making porridge with it ( adding water and cooking it) improved it slightly, but I want crunch, not mush. I’m not a fan of porridge because of the mushyness. It’s still better than chewing dry cardboard though. If this was like crushed bricks instead, I wouldn’t complain.
