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Vegan Recipes, Beauty & Lifestyle

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How To Replace An Egg (Vegan)

There are many ways you can replace an egg as a vegan, the main question when deciding which method you’re going to go down is what purpose the egg serves in your recipe. Unfortunately, it isn’t as simple as using x can replace the egg in all situations, you need to take a look at the culinary science before making a choice. But before that, there’s one more question… 

Featured Photo by Heather Ford on Unsplash

Do you even need an egg (replacer)? 

Vegans are often frustrated when unnecessary ingredients are added to things – milk in salt & vinegar crisps, milk in dark chocolate…eggs. That’s right, there’s a pretty good chance you might not need one. Most of the time, eggs are used for the following reasons: 

  • Binding 
  • Raising agent 
  • Glazing and sealing  
  • Thickening 

Binding – this depends on what you’re making. If you’re making a veggie burger made from beans/ vegetables and it’s all being processed up to be a little sticky ball, you don’t need an egg replacer. Something bean based with a smooth texture will be able to hold its own. If it’s something more loose, like a lentil meatball, you’ll need a replacer.  

Raising agent – This is the main reasons eggs are used in cakes. It helps form that fluffy, bubbly texture. However, do you need your cake to be fluffy and bubbly? If you’re making something typically more heavy and gooey, like a fudge cake or a brownie, you don’t need an egg replacer. If you’re making a traditional sponge cake, you will need to replace the egg.  

The other two reasons do require replacing, so let’s chat about how we go about that.  

Vegan Egg Replacements  

The flax egg – 1tbsp ground flax, 3tbsp water and leave to thicken. One of the easiest egg replacers, best for binding purposes.  

An egg replacer – I bought this quite recently and haven’t managed to use it yet. I’m saving it for a recipe that I’d struggle to use one of my regular methods for to truly test it.  But it comes with handy instructions on how to swap this for specific recipes.  

Bicarbonate of soda & cider vinegar – One to make your cakes rise. 

Aquafaba  – A does it all vegan egg replacer. You can whisk it to make meringues, use it to help cakes rise. Who knew chickpea water would be so useful? This isn’t my favourite egg replacer simply for the fact I have to schedule my chickpea use around it and it can get a little messy. But it’s a great, affordable option.  

How To Replace An Egg | Vegan 

If you’re opting to use the egg replacer, you can substitute that for an egg in any recipe. If you’d prefer to substitute for ingredients you’re more likely to have in your kitchen, you can use the following methods.

Binding  

If you’re making something that will require a replacement, the flax egg is the easiest one to use. You can stir it in or add it to the food processor with your other ingredients. This method adds omega 3 too which is an added bonus.  

Vegan cauliflower dippers recipe

These cauliflower dippers use a flax egg.

Raising  

A few methods. One of my favourites is the bicarb and cider vinegar method, add both to a small dish, wait a few seconds for it to fix, then mix it into your batter accordingly.  

This loaf recipe uses bicarb & apple cider vinegar.

Aquafaba can also be mixed into cakes to help them rise. You can also use whisked aquafaba for things like meringues. 

Glazing 

For glazing, you don’t need a typical egg replacer as such, you can use a light wash of non-dairy milk for things like sealing pastry.  Alternatively, you can use some oil or non-dairy butter.  

Thickening  

Eggs are traditionally used in things like custard to thicken it. In these situations, you can substitute the egg for corn flour, like I did to make this custard tart. 

Do you have a favourite vegan egg replacer? Or an alternative method? 

Until next time,

Sophie

33

Comments

  7. Thank you for sharing. I’m in no way vegan but I am trying to make healthier changes so I’m really grateful for your inspiration. The custard tart looks delicious and I know I wouldn’t miss the eggs in baking.

    Kate |

    Reply

  10. I didn’t know aquafaba could be an egg replacer, I’ll have to try it. We tried an egg replacer in muffins before and they came out fine, and I glaze my scones with soya milk

    Reply

  11. What a helpful piece!
    I have eaten aquafaba meringues before; they seemed to have a lemony flavor to me. I have used egg replacer in bean burgers before, and it seems to work quite well, while a friend of mine swears by the the flax egg!
    I am curious to try the bicarbonate and vinegar. It is something the pioneers used long ago in their cakes.

    Reply

  14. I knew about the flax seed option but had no idea there were so many other ways to create eggs substitutes! thanks for sharing! 🙂

    Hope that you had a great weekend 🙂

    Reply

  18. I just discovered using flax as a egg substitute last week. Going to make a lentil loaf. So excited. Thank you for this post. =D

    Reply

  19. This is a GREAT resource for those who are just starting to get into Vegan baking. It can be overwhelming considering substitutions and what decisions are best to obtain your desired end result. Thank you for breaking it all down!

    Reply

  20. I’ve actually never heard of any of these egg alternatives so this was a great one to read! I’ve been enjoying vegan food so much this year x

    Reply

  23. I use all these methods when baking. Like you said, the easiest is flaxegg! Sometimes bananas, pumpkin puree and applesauce are great replacements as well. Great post!

    Reply

  32. I’ve used the flax egg when making some healthy muffins or other baking goods, but I hadn’t heard of the others! I would have never thought about using baking soda & vinegar, but that totally makes sense. I’m gonna deffo bookmark this post and come back to it in the future when I want to try these egg substitutes in varying recipes x

    Reply

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