This chia seed egg substitute could save the day next time you’re short on eggs or you could keep this trick handy if you ever need to replace eggs in your baking.
This chia seed egg substitute is a fun little trick I learned a few years ago and I’ve been testing it out in various tasty ways over the last little while. I can definitely confirm that this is a good one and that it actually works so I thought I absolutely had to share it with you here in case it might come in handy one day. 🙂
If you have a jar of chia seeds in your pantry to use in smoothies or on top of oatmeal, then you also have eggs! Well, not exactly, but you have something that you can use for those times when baking inspiration hits, but you find you’re all out of eggs. This is also a great alternative for people who are allergic to eggs, or who just don’t eat eggs, but who love baking. Because who doesn’t love warm baked goods fresh from the oven? I also love chia seeds as an egg replacement because it gives your baked goods a little nutritional boost! Chia seeds are high in omega-3’s, protein, fiber, antioxidants and all kinds of other good things.
So here’s how you use chia seeds instead of eggs!
Chia Seed Egg Substitute
First of all, we’re going to be using ground chia seeds instead of chia seeds in their full seed form, the way you buy them from the store. You can grind up chia seeds a number of ways, like by using a food processor, but I just like to use a little coffee grinder that I have that I mostly use for spices and stuff like that. This little coffee grinder is a similar type of blade grinder. It’s the most basic type of grinder you can find and it works perfectly for this. You’ll want to grind up only about as much as you need, rather than doing a whole big batch at once because all of the nutrients in the chia seeds are pretty delicate and you don’t want to compromise them by exposing them to too much air, heat, light, etc. for a long period of time. If you do want to do a big batch of ground chia seeds at once, just store your ground seeds in the freezer in an airtight container.
To make the equivalent of one egg, you’ll need 1 tablespoon of ground chia seeds and 3 tablespoons of water. Once you mix the water into the chia seeds, you’ll see how quickly they get a very egg-like texture.
Flax Seed Works Too
If you have ground flax seed, you can use them in very much the same way. With the flax seeds, most people suggest combining the ground seeds with the water in a little dish and letting them sit for a few minutes while you assemble all of your other ingredients. This gives them time to turn all eggy. 🙂 I found with the chia seeds though that you really should just add the water to ground seeds right before you incorporate them into your recipe because they get eggy pretty much instantly. If you let them sit for a few minutes they become almost like one big solid mass and that can be a little challenging to mix in with all of your other ingredients. So I find it’s easiest just to use them right away, as soon as you mix them with the water.
Taste Tested
I’ve been testing this little trick out quite a bit lately on things like brownies, cornbread, and banana bread and I haven’t been disappointed yet!
And I didn’t stop at human treats either: Simple Chia Seed Dog Treats Recipe
Definitely keep this one in mind for those times when you run out of eggs or if you want to do a little baking for someone who doesn’t eat eggs!
Have you ever tried using chia or flax seeds to replace eggs in your baking? How did you’re baking turn out using this chia seed egg substitute?
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Courtenay Hartford is the author of creeklinehouse.com, a blog based on her adventures renovating a 120-year-old farmhouse in rural Ontario, Canada. On her blog, Courtenay shares interior design tips based on her own farmhouse and her work as founder and stylist of the interior photography firm Art & Spaces. She also writes about her farmhouse garden, plant-based recipes, family travel, and homekeeping best practices. Courtenay is the author of the book The Cleaning Ninja and has been featured in numerous magazines including Country Sampler Farmhouse Style, Better Homes and Gardens, Parents Magazine, Real Simple, and Our Homes.