What is the Difference Between Muesli and Granola? (2024)

FAQs

What is the Difference Between Muesli and Granola? ›

Muesli is made with uncooked rolled oats, which retain their natural texture and taste. Granola is made with baked rolled oats, which gives it a crunchy texture and a toasted flavor. Muesli typically contains fresh or dried fruits like apples, bananas, berries, and raisins, which add natural sweetness and flavor.

While both muesli and granola can be part of a balanced diet, muesli often emerges as the healthier choice due to its lower sugar content and minimal processing. Its versatility and ease of preparation make it an excellent option for a nutritious breakfast or snack.

Muesli and granola are considered by some people, especially Americans, to be the same thing…but they are not! Granola is made with similar ingredients as muesli, specifically oats, nuts, seeds and fruit, but granola typically has a lot more sugar and oil than muesli does.

Granola is higher in calories and sugar

Granola is closer to conventional sugary cereals than it is to muesli. While a serving of granola has about 250+ calories, muesli has about 150 to 250 calories, depending on the kind (types with more nuts and seeds will have more calories due to their supply of healthy fats).

Granola and muesli can both be eaten for breakfast, like granola oats, but they can also be eaten as a snack or dessert. Muesli can be eaten after soaking it in milk or yoghurt, which fills each oat and makes a creamier meal, much like overnight oats.

As mentioned, muesli is a mixture of oats, nuts, seeds, and dried fruit. It was created by Maximillian Bircher-Benner, a Swiss doctor and nutritionist, and is popular throughout Europe as a healthy breakfast meal. Unlike granola, the ingredients in muesli are not baked, meaning they're raw and loose.

Oats is rich in key nutrients, protein and fibre, but muesli has comparatively higher protein and nutrient due to presence of additional ingredients in it.

In Switzerland, it is also consumed for supper as Birchermüesli complet – muesli with Café complet (milk coffee, accompanied by Butterbrot (bread, butter and jam)). In addition to being prepared raw, muesli can be toasted.

Apparently it's mainly because of the price of some of the raw ingredients going up so much, particularly almonds and hazelnuts.

Once you add your desired liquid, stick it in the fridge and let the muesli + milk do their thing. Muesli can be soaked overnight, but no worries if you forget to start the process the night before. Even after a short 10-15 minute soak, the grains will start to soften up.

Will I lose weight if I eat muesli everyday? ›

Muesli is enriched with beta-glucans that aid in cutting down the body's cholesterol. In addition to that, muesli has low amounts of sugar and lesser calories as well, these two properties can aid in speedy weight loss.

Eat muesli cold:

The easiest way to enjoy muesli is just like cereal: pour it in a bowl, add your favorite milk (whether cow, nut, oat, soy milk or another type.) and then dig right in. The longer you let it soak, the richer the flavor will be, plus the oats will soften and become similar to oatmeal.

It's safe to eat muesli straight from the bag, and you can also use raw muesli as a topping on things like yogurt parfaits or smoothie bowls. Muesli does, however, have a bit of a tougher texture, so many people prefer to soak it in liquid to soften it up and make it easier to digest.

Muesli is lower in sugar and fat than granola, making it a better option for people who are watching their calorie intake. Granola is a good source of protein and healthy fats, making it an ideal option for people who want to maintain their energy levels throughout the day.

Untoasted, raw or natural muesli usually starts with a base of rolled oats, loaded with nuts, seeds and/or dried fruit. Untoasted muesli is usually lower in saturated fat and added sugars than the toasted varieties, making it a healthy choice.

Muesli, on the other hand, is best prepared before consumption, but can be eaten straight from the bag. To prepare muesli, you soak or cook it in a liquid of your choice. You can soak muesli in milk overnight in the fridge and eat it cold, or you can cook it in water or milk just like you would oatmeal and eat it warm!

Muesli can be a healthy choice, but it's important to check that it has no added sugar or salt, or it can be almost as sugary as a bowl of frosted flakes. You'll still get some health benefits from the nuts, grains and fruit but these will come with free sugars which are not good for our health.

It's Good for Your Heart

According to studies , beta-glucan can help reduce cholesterol levels by up to 10 percent. By eating muesli regularly, you'll be drastically improving your heart health.

The Bottom Line

Granola is healthy in small amounts, especially because oats, nuts, seeds and dried fruit in granola provide some fiber that's good for heart and gut health. However, granola can also be a rich source of calories, saturated fat and sugar, depending on the brand you buy.