Vegan Egg Substitutes: A Complete Guide

From baking to breakfast foods, consider this your complete guide to going 100% egg-free. If you're considering going vegan, removing eggs from your diet, or simply cutting back on them for health or humane reasons, you've come to the right place.

Eggs were the single hardest thing to cut out of my diet on my path to transitioning to a plant-based lifestyle. Breakfast burritos were a staple of my diet and I couldn't imagine my morning routine without them. Like many vegan-curious eaters, I initially didn't think there was any harm in consuming eggs—after all, no animals were killed in the process of farming them...or so I thought. My sister, Megan, enlightened me (as she often does) to the fact that hens are only supposed to lay 10 to 15 eggs a year, however, the eggs we eat come from a variety of “laying hens” which have been inbred to lay more than 300 in a single year. We will get into more of this in a later post, but today, let's talk egg substitutes!

BREAKFASt

1. TOFU SCRAMBLE

• How to make it: Crumble one block of organic firm tofu, add 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon turmeric (mainly for color)1/4 teaspoon garlic powder. See recipe here.

• Uses: Breakfast burritos, breakfast tacos, on top of avocado toast, etc.

• Taste: This gets really close to tasting like scrambled eggs and definitely satisfies the craving. The consistency is also very similar.

2. JUST EGG

• How to make it: Just Egg comes in a bottle that you can easy pour over a skillet to make scrambled eggs. It's made out of mung beans and has less saturated fat than conventional eggs and no cholesterol.

• Uses: Breakfast burritos, breakfast tacos, breakfast sandwiches, on top of avocado toast, etc.

• Taste: In my personal opinion, it tastes too much like egg to the point where it kind of freaks me out. I don't like to eat it on its own, but rather inside of a sandwich or burrito with peppers, avocado, etc.

BAKING

1. FLAX EGG

• How to make it: Whisk together one tablespoon of ground flax seed meal with three tablespoons of water. Let it sit for 10ish minutes in the fridge. The consistency will get gel-like. This serves as one egg for baking purposes.

• Uses: I love this in almond flour pancakes and microwavable mug cakes. Great for all baking and desserts.

• Taste: Nutty

2. EGG REPLACER

• How to make it: To make one "egg", mix one tablespoon of Bob's Red Mill egg replacer and two tablespoons of water and let sit for one minute.

• Uses: I use Bob's Red Mill egg replacer if I'm baking something very precise.

• Taste: Flavorless.

3. AQUAFABA

• How to make it: Take a can of chickpeas, pour the water into a bowl (remove chickpeas) and whisk the water using a mixer.

• Uses: This is an egg white replacer. It can be used in meringues, macaroons or even cocktails that call for egg whites like whisky sours.

• Taste: Flavorless.

4. CHIA EGG

• How to make it: To make one "egg", mix one tablespoon of chia seeds and two tablespoons of water and let sit for five minute. It'll turn into a gel (also known as chia pudding).

• Uses: Pancakes, waffles, cookies, etc.

• Taste: Flavorless.