Chia Seeds For Egg Substitute

What Is A Chia Egg Substitute

Often used by people who follow an egg-free diet, a chia egg is nothing more than chia and water. Chia seeds hold about ten times their weight in liquid meaning they suck up a lot of water to create a gel-like structure.

Chia eggs are a great option if youre low on eggs, too, which has recently been the case for many! With fewer trips to the grocery store, chia is a relatively shelf stable alternative to eggs for baking. We most often use it in muffins, quick breads, and whole grain waffles and pancakes.

Why Chia Seeds Work As An Egg Substitute

So just how are chia seeds able to take the place of an egg? It may seem kind of weird, but it really does work. The secret lies in the super-absorbent power of chia. When you mix the seeds with water, they absorb the liquid to the point where they turn into a sort of gel, and the gel has the same binding power that eggs have when combined with other ingredients.

If you’re wondering whether baked goods made with chia have a funny taste or are maybe not as soft and tender as ones made with eggs, Hahn set our minds to rest on the subject. She’s done a lot of baking with chia, and she assures us, “There is absolutely no difference in taste or texture when you use a chia egg instead of a real egg.”

When To Use A Chia Egg

Think recipes where eggs arent playing a central role, and where another leavening agent is used. These whole grain waffles or buttermilk muffins would be good recipes to sub out the eggs in.

You can use a chia egg in any recipe that calls for a flax egg, too, like these vegan bran muffins. Youll most often see flax and chia eggs called for in vegan recipes, but you can make substitutions a lot of the time.

So if youre using whole grains, and eggs arent a main ingredient to ensure rise or lightness, you can probably use a chia egg. Even in cake this whole grain chocolate cake uses rye and whole wheat flour, so the chia would blend right in .

Also Check: How Long To Hard Boil Eggs In Air Fryer

How To Use Flax Or Chia As Egg Substitutes

Step 1. Grind the seeds.

Grind your own Flax seeds or chia seeds in the Vita-Mix dry container , in a heavy-duty blender, or in a coffee grinder. A food processor will not achieve a fine enough grind. Grind the seeds until theyre fine, like a flaky powder. When the meal begins to clump together, that is generally fine enough.

It is best to grind just the amount of flax seed meal or chia seed powder you need, at the time you need it, because exposure to light and oxygen will compromise the nutritional benefits. The next best option is to grind a few days worth or a weeks worth and store it in the freezer in a dark colored jar, to minimize light exposure.

Step 2. Mix with water.

For every egg in the original recipe, use 1 tablespoon flax seed meal or chia seed powder and 3 tablespoons water. Whisk together in a separate bowl, and let the mixture sit for about 5 minutes. It will get gummy, just like eggs.

Step 3. Add to recipe in place of eggs.

Then the mixture can be added into the recipe where it calls for egg. No other adjustments are usually needed!

Usually, you will not be able to tell any difference in baked goods where flax seed meal has been substituted for the eggs. However, small items like cookies may be more crumbly. I recommend making cookies as bars. Anything that bakes as a bigger solid such as muffins, quick breads, cakes, or bar cookies will do just fine.

How To Make A Chia Seed Egg Substitute

There are just two ingredients you need to make a chia egg, and those are chia seeds and water. Hahn used whole seeds in this instance, but you have the choice of using ground chia seeds as well if you want the seeds to be less visible in the final product. Whole chia seeds may also add just a tiny bit of crunch, which could be a good thing, but if you want a smoother texture, you can simply grind your chia seeds to powder in your blender before using them.

Take the chia seeds, whole or ground, and mix them with three tablespoons of water. Let the mixture sit for five minutes to “gel,” then use it in place of a single beaten egg. If you need to replace multiple eggs, simply multiply the recipe as needed. The proportion will always be three parts water to one part chia.

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Flax And Chia Eggs Explained

The main challenge for plant-based cooking is the fact that eggs are off-limits. While not everyone loves them , they are very useful especially when baking! Luckily, some very clever people have come up with a great egg alternative that is very accessible and works well in things like cakes, veggie burgers and pancakes. You can use this method in every recipe where an egg is used as a binder .

The replacement is ground flax or chia seeds with a few tablespoons of water and a few minutes in the fridge. Chia seeds are much more gelatinous and therefore do not really require chilling, but the drawback is that they are not the cheapest things to buy.

Flax seed with water looks like an unlikely egg replacer until you put it into the fridge for 15 mins. The cold thickens the mixture considerably and makes it ready for use. Furthermore, both flax and chia seeds are extremely nutritious so dont feel bad for sneaking them into your recipes.

Flax seeds are rich in micro-nutrients, dietary fiber, magnesium, vitamin B1 and omega-3. In addition to what flax seeds offer, chia seeds have copious amounts of phosphorus, calcium and the antioxidant selenium which is has been linked to lower cancer and heart disease risk. According to the highly entertaining book about running, Born to Run, it is one of the reasons that the Tarahumara are the incredible athletes that they are so why not give flax and chia eggs a try.

How To Use A Chia Or Flax Egg Substitute

When deciding between chia seeds vs flax seeds as an egg substitute you might choose one over the other depending on the recipe. For the reasons mentioned above.

Though, generally these options are completely interchangeable if you only have one option laying around.

A chia vs flax egg substitute can be used in just about any recipe to replace eggs, but they do work better in certain kinds of recipes.

Like any kind of substitute, there are certain recipes that do best while others dont tend to turn out as they should. Certain recipes require a lighter egg substitute, such as aquafaba, apple sauce, or carbonated water.

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You Can Make Your Own Chia Seed Egg Substitute To Thicken Foods

Egg replacements hold onto moisture and stick to other ingredients. They wont make puffy doughs, but they will be perfect in eggy fillings, toppings, or binding compositions. Flax and chia seeds are gelatinous and gummy when mixed with water.

This consistency is binding and helps them act just like eggs. The thing is you have to grind flax seeds into a fine powder to get them to release their goodness. Then let them sit in water so that the polysaccharides become all gooey. Here is how to make flax and chia seed egg substitutes:

How To Make A Chia Or Flax Egg

Making a chia or flax egg substitute is very easy and can be used to adapt non-vegan recipes into vegan friendly ones!

This is great for when you are dying to recreate an old favorite but to veganize it to fit your new lifestyle.

Eggs are one of the most intimidating ingredients in baking when you switch to a vegan diet. They can make or break a recipe which is why you need to find an egg replacement for them.

Something that is similar in texture and recreate the effect that eggs have on food. This can be binding, leavening, or rising.

To make a flax egg use:

• 1 Tbsp. Chia meal or finely ground chia seeds
• 4-5 Tbsp. water

Both chia and flax eggs are made in much the same way though the measurements might differ a bit.

To make either egg substitute combine the dry ingredient with the water and stir thoroughly to get any lumps out.

Then let the mixture sit for 3-5 minutes until it has thickened into a gel consistency. If for some reason your gel takes longer then this you can put it in the fridge to speed up the process.

These measurements should make enough to substitute for one medium sized egg.

Also keep in mind that ground chia seeds thicken quickly so you might be able to use it within 1 to 2 minutes. Chia eggs seem to thicken considerably faster than flax seed eggs.

Also Check: Can You Sale Your Eggs

How To Make And Use Egg Replacers

Academy of Culinary Nutrition Health How To Resources

Eggs are unquestionably an amazing source of nutrients that support our brain, nervous system, blood sugar levels and yes, even our hearts. There was once a time when we were terrified of the cholesterol in eggs, but now the science has proven there is nothing to be afraid of. Unless, of course, you have an egg allergy or egg intolerance in that case, no matter their nutrients, eggs simply arent a health-promoting food, so we need to learn to work around them by using egg replacers.

Weve explored working without eggs in a variety of cooking and baking recipes. Once you get the hang of it, making and using egg replacers is a fun and delicious thing to do!

There are a variety of egg substitutes out there, and each one has its own special flavour, texture and best uses. Here are some of our favourite egg replacers and recipe inspiration to help you use them!

What Is Chia Egg

Chia egg is made by combining chia seeds with water and letting it sit for 10 minutes until it has gelatinized. If you have eaten a chia pudding before, then you know that chia seeds become gelatinous when combined with any liquid.

Although whole chia seeds do gelatinize, just try it in chocolate chia pudding, I prefer using ground chia seeds for eggs. This will create the right single congealed consistency rather than separate gelatinized seeds.

Chia eggs dont contain the same structural benefits as eggs, meaning that your baked goods wont rise as much. This can be slightly fixed with leavening agents but it still wont be an exact replica.

While the results arent an exact match to an egg, this chia seed egg substitute has impressive binding skills in quick breads, muffins, waffles, and certain pancakes recipes.

Chia seeds are actually jam-packed with nutrients and health benefits for body and brain health!

Also Check: What Is In Just Egg

Replacing Eggs In Baked Goods

Replacing eggs with chia seeds does require a little finesse. For example, chicken eggs are an important binder for many baked goods. You can usually substitute a chia seed egg in the following:

• Gluten-free vegan cakes. Because gluten is such a powerful binder, I dont often use an egg replacer . However, vegan + gluten-free means youll want to add an egg replacer such as a chia seed egg.

If you dont get it right, dont cry over crumbly cake. Make Vegan Cake Pops instead!

The good news about a chia seed egg replacement is that its relatively neutral in flavor profile so it wont impact the flavor of your baked goods like a flax egg.

Chia Egg Ratio: One tablespoon of chia eggs combined with water will replace 1 chicken egg in a recipe. I dont recommend using more than 2 chia seed eggs in a recipe. See more on that below.

Learn How To Cook Plant

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Here are some great resources to get you started:

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What Other Egg Substitutes Would You Recommend Whats Been Your Experience With Chia Or Flax Seeds As Egg Substitute

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Chia Seeds Gel As Egg Substitute In Baking

I have a slight obsession with banana loaf. If you ask my beloved, maybe slight is an understatement ha! I have several banana loaf recipes on my blog and I have just featured a vegan and dairy friendly version two weeks ago.

When it comes to baking, one of the frequently asked questions I received was what I would do to substitute egg.

Instead of commercial egg replacement such as xanthan gum, I thought I would go for something that I am more familiar with such as chia seeds which I have learned from a friend that you can use chia seeds gel as a binding agent in a baking recipe.

To replace an egg, I used 1 tablespoon of chia seeds mixed with 3 tablespoons of water and let the mixture sit for 15 to 20 minutes or you can prepare it the night before.

Also Check: Old Fashioned Chicken Salad With Eggs

Baking : My Favorite Vegan Egg Substitutes

September 1, 2014 by Joy the Baker

Ive been experimenting with baking alternatives lately. I dont want anyone to miss out on baked doughnuts or chocolate chip waffles because they cant eat / dont like / wont stand for eggs, wheat flour, or dairy. It takes some real doing to find the right baking alternatives, and while I dont consider myself a vegan or gluten-free baking expert, I want to share what works in my kitchen.

Lets talk about vegan egg alternatives.

Eggs pull a heavy load in most baked goods. A whole egg adds an important amount of moisture, fat, structure, and leavening to baked goods like cookies and cakes. To replace an egg, we need to replace every aspect of what an egg provides to baked goods. That can be a little tricky! Eggs do a lot of work! Here are a few of my favorites substitutes.

Flax Seed Vegan Egg Substitute

Flax seeds are packed with omega-3 fatty acids and fiber. When ground and combined with water and a bit of baking powder, the fats and moisture in flax seeds can mimic that of an egg. Flax seed substitute creates a very healthful and slightly earthy/nutty tasting egg replacement.

How to use it: I find that flaxseed egg substitutes is great in quick breads, muffins, pancakes, waffles, sturdy cookies, and heartier chocolate cakes.

Chia Seed Vegan Egg Substitute

Others in the Baking 101 Series:

Why We Love This Recipe

• Great substitute for eggs. So, for Vegans, knowing how to make a Chia Egg is pretty important. Youre going to make this little recipe a close friend of yours. Youll use it in most of your baked goods to replace eggs. However, I would caution you not to put oil in a pan and try to make an omelet with this Chia Seed Egg Replacement. These seeds dont, I repeat dont, taste like eggs. However, when you put them in baked goods, your taste-buds arent going to know the difference.
• Very quick recipe! This is probably the quickest recipe imaginable. Youre going to put Chia seeds in water and whisk them until thick. Thats it. It takes maybe 5 minutes at the most.
• Extremely healthy! Chia seeds are a very healthy food source. So, lets take a look at some of their benefits.
• Chia seeds are packed with antioxidants, inhibiting the production of free radicals which cause cell damage .
• These seeds are mostly all fiber which makes them a low-carb food source.
• They absorb roughly 12 times their own weight in water causing them to expand which increases the feeling of fullness when they are consumed.
• One study found that consuming Chia during breakfast increased satiety .

Read Also: How Much Can I Get For My Eggs

How To Make A Chia Egg

A simple chia egg replacer is a great substitute to use in your vegan baking! Learn how to make one with this step by step tutorial.

When you eliminate eggs from your diet, it not only changes your breakfast options, but it also changes how you bake.

Thankfully, there are several options for vegan egg replacers. One of the simplest ways to make an egg replacer is to make a chia egg.