Lauren Caris Cooks

Vegan recipes & lifestyle

  • About
    • Contact
  • Recipes
  • Food Photography
  • Cookbook
    • Pinterest
    • Instagram
    • Facebook
    • YouTube
    • Twitter

Lauren Caris Cooks

Vegan recipes & lifestyle

Need some vegan inspiration?

Join thousands of other passionate foodies today and get your FREE copy of our 20+ page vegan starter guide, with 7 exclusive recipes!

How To Make Aquafaba – Maybe the BEST Egg Replacement Ever!

16th August 2016 Cooking Tips

Today I want to share with you possibly one of the most powerful things I’ve discovered in vegan cooking, and that’s aquafaba. Before you start thinking aquafaba is one of those hard to get hold of, expensive superfoods that so many vegan recipes seem to require, I can assure you it’s not. Aquafaba is simply the water that comes as a by-product of soaking and cooking chickpeas, yep, that’s it. And the stuff from a can works too… let’s jump right into some more information about it, and an easy way to make your own!

Aquafaba is probably the best and most powerful egg replacer ever. It's made from the water created as a by product of cooking beans, so canned bean water will work just fine! Click through to find out how you can make your own!

There are already so many milk replacers on the market (you can read my complete guide to non dairy milks here), but egg replacers aren’t so easy to find. Often, egg replacers you can buy in the shops are highly processed and expensive, but aquafaba provides a much easier, and healthier whole foods alternative.

What makes aquafaba unique, is unlike other egg replacers, it has some of the characteristics of both egg white and yolk, meaning it can be used as a thickener, binder, emulsifier and foaming agent. The scientific research into aquafaba is still being conducted, but so far, it seems like the proteins in aquafaba behave in a similar way to those in egg whites, which is what makes it such a great and stable egg replacement.

As I mentioned before, water straight from a can of chickpeas (or any other white beans) will work just fine, so there’s really no need to make your own. However, I prefer to soak my own beans most of the time, and rather than discard the water, I now have a great use for it.

Homemade aquafaba freezes really well and can be kept for up to a year when frozen. I would recommend freezing 1 tablespoon portions in an ice tray, and then popping them out and storing them in a ziplock bag in the freezer. To replace one egg, you will need about 3 tablespoons of aquafaba, although this can be flexible.

The Method

Soak your chickpeas overnight in cold water, then strain them and discard the soaking water.

Add the chickpeas to a large saucepan, and cover with water so the chickpeas have about 1-2 inches of water above them. Cook until you reach the desired softness. You will want to cook them until they are very soft if you are making hummus, and a bit firmer if you’re eating them on a salad. Cooking time can vary from 45 minutes to 90 minutes depending on the desired outcome.

Related: The Only Hummus Recipe You’ll Ever Need

Once cooked, transfer the chickpeas and the water to a heatproof bowl and allow the chickpeas to cool whilst soaking in the water. Once fully cooled, cover the bowl and store in the fridge overnight. This step allows the water to become a little gelatinous, mimicking the egg white texture.

Drain the chickpeas and store the water separately. If the water is a bit thin, you can reheat it in a saucepan to a simmer and reduce it until it has the texture of egg white. This is not an exact science and you can keep checking the water to see the texture, and return it to the pan if necessary.

The aquafaba will keep in an airtight container for 7 days in the fridge, or in the freezer for up to 1 year. As mentioned above, I recommend freezing it in 1 tablespoon portions, then storing those ice cubes in a ziplock bag for future use.

Recipes using aquafaba

There are hundreds of great recipes out there using aquafaba, here are some of my favourites that I think you’ll love too!

Vegan Nougat – by Cassie Heneghan

Vegan Swiss Meringue Buttercream – Gretchen’s Bakery

1 Hour Cinnamon Rolls – Vegan Richa

Spanish Potato Bombas – Cilantro and Citronella

I hope you find this guide useful, I know that aquafaba is going to become a staple in my kitchen as I explore more vegan baking. Let me know in the comments if you’ve tried this great egg replacer, and what you’re favourite recipes are!

© LAUREN CARIS COOKS. All images & content are copyright protected. Please follow my Sharing Policy if you would like to use or share any part of this post.

Share this with your friends!
Pin on Pinterest
Pinterest
Share on Yummly
Yummly
Share on Facebook
Facebook
Tweet about this on Twitter
Twitter
Share on StumbleUpon
StumbleUpon

About Lauren Caris

Lauren is the author and chef of the vegan food blog, Lauren Caris Cooks. She is passionate about showing people just how awesome vegan food can be with simple, delicious recipes and vegan lifestyle tips.

  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • Twitter

You may also like

Vegan Eton Mess

Vegan Eton Mess

Vegan Meringue Kisses, the perfect little festive treat

Festive Vegan Meringue Kisses

This Vegan Aioli (garlic mayonaisse) will blow your mind! It tastes JUST like the real thing! Check out this super easy recipe

The Best Vegan Aioli (Easy, Secret Ingredient!)

Read more about Lauren Caris Cooks

Hi I'm Lauren! I'm here to show you how simple, delicious and amazing a vegan lifestyle can be!

Learn more about us here!

I want to…

Cook a recipe
Watch a video
Read some vegan resources
Learn some cooking tips
My Vegan Story. Read all about my journey to veganism through the years
The Easy, Delicious, Vegan e-book is a vegan recipe book by Lauren Caris Cooks

Get your FREE copy now!

Comprehensive guide to veganism + 7 free, exclusive recipes!

You may also like…

  • The Best Vegan Aioli (Easy, Secret Ingredient!)The Best Vegan Aioli (Easy, Secret Ingredient!)
  • Vegan Eton MessVegan Eton Mess
  • Festive Vegan Meringue KissesFestive Vegan Meringue Kisses
  • Roasted Pepper HummusRoasted Pepper Hummus
  • Warm Lentil and Tomato SaladWarm Lentil and Tomato Salad
  • 3 Vegan Picnic Recipes3 Vegan Picnic Recipes
  • Mushroom Crostini with Harissa HummusMushroom Crostini with Harissa Hummus
  • Mexican Style Loaded Baked Sweet Potato Fries with Vegan AioliMexican Style Loaded Baked Sweet Potato Fries with…
  • The Ultimate Vegan Breakfast BurritoThe Ultimate Vegan Breakfast Burrito
  • Roasted Cauliflower Detox Bowl with Tahini SauceRoasted Cauliflower Detox Bowl with Tahini Sauce

Error: Access Token is not valid or has expired. Feed will not update.
This error message is only visible to WordPress admins

There's an issue with the Instagram Access Token that you are using. Please obtain a new Access Token on the plugin's Settings page.
If you continue to have an issue with your Access Token then please see this FAQ for more information.

Home | About | Contact

  • Pinterest
  • Instagram
  • Facebook
  • YouTube
  • Twitter

© Copyright Protected
Site design by Lauren, built by Ben.

Privacy Policy | Disclosure | Sharing Policy | Disclaimer