Muesli ( [1][2]) is a cold Swiss dish that has become a common breakfast cereal prepared without cooking. Developed around 1900 by Swiss physician Maximilian Bircher-Benner for patients in his hospital, in Switzerland, it is also consumed for supper as, i.e., muesli with café complet (milk coffee accompanied by Butterbrot [bread, butter and jam]).[3]
Traditionally, the primary ingredient is rolled oats which have not been processed further. The original preparation was to soak the oats in water overnight ("overnight oats") and eat the next morning with fresh apple, nuts, lemon juice, and sweetened condensed milk. Variation over time was natural: substituting other citrus juice or adding additional ingredients such as grains, seeds, and fresh and dried fruits.[4] Yogurt, milk or other milk products, or milk substitutes are now common ingredients in both homemade and commercially packaged muesli recipes.
Modern commercial brands market muesli that is toasted. If it is processed further, by adding sweetener and oil to bind the ingredients together and baked, it is granola.[5][6]
Etymology
Originally known in Swiss German as Birchermüesli after its creator Bircher-Benner, the word Müesli is an Alemannic diminutive of Mues (non-Swiss Standard German: Mus) meaning 'mush' or 'purée'.[7]
History
Muesli was not originally intended as a breakfast food, but as an appetiser similar to bread and butter. It was consumed as Schweizer Znacht (lit. 'Swiss supper'), but not as a breakfast cereal.[8]
It was introduced around 1900 by Bircher-Benner for patients in his hospital,[9] where a diet rich in fresh fruit and vegetables was an essential part of therapy. It was inspired by a similar "strange dish" that he and his wife had been served on a hike in the Swiss Alps.[4]
Bircher-Benner himself referred to the dish simply as d Spys, Swiss German for "the dish" ; it was commonly known as Apfeldiätspeise (lit. 'Apple Diet Meal'). Bircher opened a chalet-style sanitorium on Zürichberg called Lebendige Kraft (lit. 'lively power'). These facilities had risen in popularity during the era of lebensreform, a social movement which valued health foods and vegetarianism.[8]
Recipes
Original Bircher-Benner recipe
The original Bircher-Benner recipe consists of the following ingredients:
The dish was prepared by mixing the cream and honey or condensed milk with the soaked oats and lemon juice and, while stirring, grating the whole apple into the mixture. This method prevented the apple pulp from browning. The intent was to serve the dish fresh, immediately before any other dishes in the meal.[10][11]
- Apples: "two or three small apples or one large one". The whole apple was to be used, including skin, core, and pips.
- Nuts, either walnuts, almonds, or hazelnuts: 1 tablespoon.
- Rolled oats: 1 tablespoon, "previously soaked in 3 tablespoons water for 12 hours".
- Lemon juice: from half a lemon.
- Either cream and honey, or sweetened condensed milk: 1 tablespoon.
Research
Regular muesli consumption has been associated with a lower body mass index and less risk of being overweight.[23] A 2025 analysis found that muesli consumption was significantly associated with reduced total and cause-specific mortality risks.[24] Muesli is recommended by the British Heart Foundation as a cholesterol-lowering food.[25]