• recipes
    • small plates
    • large plates
    • sweets
    • baking
    • salads and soups
    • breakfasts
    • pantry staples
    • drinks
  • about
  • contact
Lazy Cat Kitchen

A food blog with plant-based recipes from all over the world

Homemade aquafaba – vegan egg replacer

June 11, 2016 by Ania - 124

aquafaba, chickpeasgo to recipe

go to recipe

vegan-meringue-kisses-top-down

If you’ve visited my blog a few times, the chances are that you’ve heard of aquafaba – a miraculous plant-based egg replacer – as I’m in love with its amazing properties and use it often. If this is the first time you hear about it, here goes: aquafaba is a legume cooking liquid that has been discovered to emulate egg whites.

If you would like to read up more about this discovery and the science behind it, check out this informative website set up by the people who discovered that what we all used to chuck down the drain is, in fact, an invaluable cooking ingredient.

People report success with many varieties of legumes (cannellini, black beans and lima beans to name just a few), but I myself love chickpeas and so chickpea aquafaba is the only type I’ve ever used. Below is full explanation on how to get this magic liquid out of dry chickpeas.

You can also use the brine from a tin of chickpeas, but there are a few problems with that. Firstly, most tins contain harmful BPA, which has been linked to many serious illnesses, so many people try to avoid it. Secondly, ideally you do not want any salt in your aquafaba and all tinned chickpea brands I am aware of add sodium. Thirdly, using tinned aquafaba is more expensive than making your own. Finally, people have reported issues with consistency with some brands – some brands work, some don’t. For all these reasons, I prefer to prepare aquafaba from scratch.

What can I use it for? I hear you ask. Pretty much anything you would use an egg white for…Here is a round-up of SOME of the foods aquafaba has helped me make or to make better. If you love experimenting in the kitchen, I recommended joining a group called Vegan Meringue – Hits and Misses on Facebook, where you’ll find plenty of encouragement, great tips and knowledge from a bunch of amazing vegan cooks.

things to make with aquafaba

1. fudgy brownies
2. creamy strawberry cheesecake
3. airy chocolate mousse
4. vegan meringues
5. moist orange semolina cakes
6. vegan lemon meringue pies
7. Sriracha vegan mayo
8. Greek zucchini fritters
9. Mediterranean meatballs
10. crispy veggie tempura
11. smooth, oil-free hummus
12. crispy low-fat granola

whipping-aquafaba

4.95 from 19 votes
Print
  • serves: 1 cup
  • prep: 0 min
  • cooking: 120 min

Ingredients

  • 2 cups of dry chickpeas
  • 8 cups of water

Method

  1. Soak dry chickpeas in plenty of water (chickpeas should be well covered) for about 8 hours. I tend to leave them to soak overnight.
  2. Discard soaking water and rinse the chickpeas. Place them into a pot, which you have a lid for and cover with 8 cups of water. Do not add any salt or baking soda.
  3. Cover the pot with a lid and bring to the boil. Be careful as chickpeas like to boil over if the heat is too high so keep an eye on them until they come to boil. Skim the foam that has come to the top and discard.
  4. After the chickpeas come to boil, decrease the heat to low-medium and simmer the chickpeas (with a lid on) until tender. It takes about 60-75 minutes.
  5. Once the chickpeas are ready, turn the heat off and leave the chickpeas to cool down in its cooking water (this infuses the cooking water with more protein, which gives aquafaba its miraculous properties of an egg white).
  6. Remove chickpeas from the cooking water with a slotted spoon. Make sure the spoon is clean and has no grease residue on it as even trace amounts of grease inhibit aquafaba’s foaming properties – this is especially important if you intend to whip your aquafaba into a meringue.
  7. Depending on the intended application of your aquafaba, you may want to reduce the liquid a little to make it more potent. I find that this is especially necessary for when you intent to use it as a binder, in vegan meatballs for example. Please remember also that the more reduced the liquid the more intense chickpea flavour will be so when you intent to use it for desserts, like meringues or chocolate mousse, you do not need to reduce as much or at all. To reduce aquafaba, return the remaining cooking water to the stove. Set the heat to low-medium and reduce aquafaba (without a lid) for about 30-45 minutes until some of the water evaporates and you are left with thick yellow liquid.
  8. Let the reduced liquid come to room temperature and then transfer to a clean container and store in the fridge – once chilled aquafaba will turn gelatinous and resemble an egg white. If you are not in a rush to use your aquafaba, pop cooked chickpeas back into the container with aquafaba and store them together overnight – this will make aquafaba even more gelatinous. Store in an air-tight container for 3-4 days.
If you want more info on some of the ingredients that we use in our recipes, check out our glossary.
SHARE
vegan matcha coconut tarts cross section
Previous:
Vegan matcha coconut tarts
Next post:
Red rice stir-fry with spicy tofu + an announcement
rice stir fry with spicy tofu

get a sweet e-book

on joining our mailing list

I’d like to receive new recipe emails and a link to your free e-book.
(By submitting this form you agree to our privacy policy.)
This recipe has been written by Ania. She is the cook, stylist and photographer behind Lazy Cat Kitchen. You can read about her journey into food blogging here. You can also check her out on Pinterest and Instagram.

You may also like

vegan beet hummus

Vegan beet hummus

carrot hummus and quinoa cumin crackers

Quinoa cumin crackers with carrot hummus

hummus topped with chilli oil top down

Smooth hummus topped with chilli oil

Vegan meringue kisses

    Comments

    Leave a comment

  1. Lori says

    August 2, 2020 at 8:13 pm

    Hi Ania, thanks so much for this recipe! I followed the instructions exactly, including reducing the cooking liquid for about an hour. I was concerned with how thin the liquid seemed when it put it in the refrigerator with some of the cooked chickpeas. When I pulled it out of the refrigerator in the morning, my aquafaba was perfectly gelatinous and my vegan mayo had a much better texture than when I used the liquid from canned chickpeas! I ended up with about 3 1/2 cups of aquafaba, so I had plenty to freeze for future use.

    Reply
    • Ania says

      August 3, 2020 at 5:03 pm

      Great to hear, Lori! Yes, it does seem to gather strength when stored overnight especially when there is a few stranded chickpeas present. Ania

      Reply
  2. Gram says

    August 5, 2020 at 10:25 am

    How much would an individual use in proportion of 1 egg?

    Reply
    • Ania says

      August 5, 2020 at 12:33 pm

      Hi Gram,

      Traditional wisdom says that it’s about 3 tbsp per egg, but unfortunately, it is not that simple – if you were to replace 4 eggs in a cake with 12 tbsp of aquafaba, it would be a mess. It’s best to use recipes that already use aquafaba already as the recipe developer has gone through a lot of trial and error before they arrived at the final result. Hope this helps! Ania

      Reply
  3. Sarah says

    August 5, 2020 at 5:45 pm

    I’m planning to freeze some small batches of this. Any tricks to freezing and thawing I should know about? This is my first time making my own aquafaba. Also, another question…. when making things with aquafaba, for example mayo, should it be used within the 3-4 day threshold?

    Reply
    • Ania says

      August 5, 2020 at 6:12 pm

      Hi Sarah,

      No, there aren’t any special tricks really, but it’s a good idea to freeze small amounts in an ice-cube tray or a similar container. Yes, it is likely to go off after 3-4 days in the fridge so best to use it fairly soon after making/thawing. Hope this helps! Ania

      Reply
  4. Carrie says

    September 10, 2020 at 9:28 pm

    Thanks for this info, Ania! Have you tried making aquafaba with an Instantpot? I can make chickpeas in about an hour from dry in an Instantpot, now I’m curious about the water. I’ll try saving it next time, I’d love to make some mayo. Thanks for this inspiration!

    Reply
    • Ania says

      September 12, 2020 at 3:29 pm

      Hi Carrie,

      I assume so but I don’t have an Instantpot myself so I cannot be sure, sorry. Ania

      Reply
  5. Caro says

    September 10, 2020 at 11:07 pm

    Hi! Thank you for sharing all your tips!
    I have a question regarding to reducing the aquafaba as you say it’s better not to do it if you’re are using it for meringues. I’m planning to try this recipe to make macarons and I wanted to know if you recommend me to reduce it a little bit or not.
    I’ve tried making meringues plenty of times with homemade aquafaba but succeeded only the first time haha 🙁 so I hope that following this tips I’ll be able to make it right!

    Reply
    • Ania says

      September 12, 2020 at 3:36 pm

      Hi Caro,

      I think that reduced (more strength) aquafaba is better in terms of efficacy but the trade off is that it will have a stronger taste, which you obviously do not want in meringues. Having said that I never reduce mine (I tend to leave chickpeas in my aquafaba until it’s cold and store them together to give it more protein) and I never have any issues with whipping it into a stiff foam. I would say don’t reduce unless your aquafaba is really thin and watery. Ania

      Reply
  6. Anette says

    September 19, 2020 at 10:23 am

    thank you for sharing! i want to ask. do we have to peel the chickpea’s skin off ? is it necessary ?

    Reply
    • Ania says

      September 19, 2020 at 4:22 pm

      My pleasure 🙂 No, there is no need to peel them at all. Ania

      Reply
  7. Hari Kanta says

    October 1, 2020 at 6:35 pm

    Any tips for making this using a slow cooker? Usually we cook dry beans on low overnight.

    Reply
    • Ania says

      October 1, 2020 at 8:38 pm

      Hi Hari,

      Unfortunately, I do not own one myself so I’m unable to help you. Ania

      Reply
  8. Sharon says

    November 16, 2020 at 11:42 am

    Finding this super frustrating. Followed the instructions to the letter, including reducing. I’ve been left with yellow water. Certainly nothing like the consistency’s the aquafaba from tinned chickpeas. It’s been left in the fridge for two days, with the peas in too. 🙁

    Reply
    • Ania says

      November 16, 2020 at 3:46 pm

      Hi Sharon,

      I’m sorry to hear that you are not getting the results you were expecting. From what you describe it sounds like your aquafaba was really thin to begin with and it needed reducing even more, perhaps. Or maybe the chickpeas weren’t the freshest (they sit around for a long time before being sold in shops so it is possible to get a dodgy batch even if you’ve just bought them). I’m sorry, I don’t know what else to advise. I have never had any trouble with any of my aquafaba. I simply cook the beans, let them cool in the aquafaba and separate the two at the end. I tend to eat the beans and either use aquafaba straight away or freeze it for later. Ania

      Reply
  9. Salehah says

    November 27, 2020 at 5:19 am

    Hi Ania,

    I am so excited to try this. I wonder can we make Aquafaba with soya beans?
    They seem so similar?
    Thankyou.

    Reply
    • Ania says

      November 27, 2020 at 1:12 pm

      Hi Salehah,

      I am not sure, it might though. Ania

      Reply
  10. Eszter says

    December 1, 2020 at 12:31 pm

    Hi!
    Thank you so much for the idea!
    Please forgive my silly question:
    I was wondering.., if the liquid is yellow.. how It will be white at the end?

    Reply
    • Ania says

      December 1, 2020 at 5:48 pm

      Hi Eszter,

      Yes, it’s yellowish and it stays yellowish, not sure why you are expecting it to turn white? Unless you mean me saying it will end up like egg whites? I meant consistency, not colour. Hope this helps! Ania

      Reply
  11. Dustin says

    December 2, 2020 at 4:39 am

    This looks so good. I should try it.Thank yor for sharing this unique recipe!

    Reply
    • Ania says

      December 2, 2020 at 3:52 pm

      Thanks and my pleasure. Ania

      Reply
  12. Long says

    December 25, 2020 at 4:57 am

    Great recipe, thanks! 1st time making this and it was enjoyed by my family and friends. Thank you.

    Reply
    • Ania says

      December 25, 2020 at 2:34 pm

      Thank you although I am guessing you were meant to leave this lovely comment under a different recipe?

      Reply
  13. PREVIOUS COMMENTS

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Fields marked as * are mandatory
This form collects your name and email so that we can correspond with you and display your name and the content of your comment. Check out our privacy policy for more information.

I consent to having Lazy Cat Kitchen collect my name and email

Ania Marcinowska
Hi, I'm Ania. I love good food but I love animals more! Adopting a plant-based diet has been the best decision I've made and that's how this blog was born. It's a space where I want to show you that creating delicious plant-based food isn't actually hard at all.
read more

Follow us on Insta

View on Instagram

Like us on Facebook

Lazy Cat Kitchen
Lazy Cat Kitchen is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.ca.

Follow Us On Pinterest

Copyright © 2018 · Privacy Policy · Theme by Lazy Cat Themes · Logo by Sarah from The Small Object