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Love is in my Tummy

Plant-based flavor

May 17, 2017 By Tina Dawson 38 Comments

Homemade Aquafaba – The VEGAN Egg

Homemade Aquafaba – learn how to make the magical egg substitute using chickpea cooking liquid. VEGAN. Gluten Free.Homemade Aquafaba - learn how to make the magical egg substitute using chickpea cooking liquid. VEGAN. Gluten Free.

Do you hate procrastinators? Then you should absolutely hate me! Because I have inflicted upon myself these past few days nothing but unprejudiced hatred for having waited almost a year to get started on Aquafaba!

It’s been exactly one year since I found out about the wonder that is Aquafaba. I had it added to my ‘to-do’ list, but as I kept ticking things off that list, the aquafaba stayed on, permanently it seemed, simply because I was too frightened to give it a try.

I did save the aquafaba whenever I cooked chickpeas at home (which considering how much I love the thing was almost every other week!), but it got thrown down the sink every other week just the same, because I was too much of a coward. And oh how I regret it now!

What is Aquafaba?

For those of you who are still wondering what Aquafaba is, here’s a quick lesson.

In Latin, Aqua means water and Faba means beans. One of the most recent and newest culinary discoveries (as recent as 2014), chickpea cooking liquid has been found to be an effective substitute in it’s ability to whip and hold air almost as effectively as an egg. Its uses have astounded everyone so much so that it has its own official site! There you’ll find tips, recipes, answers and more to all your questions (which, trust me, you’ll have a LOT of!).

Yes, I am talking about the liquid that comes along with chickpeas in a can, or the brownish liquid left behind after you’ve cooked chickpeas from scratch!

Homemade Aquafaba - learn how to make the magical egg substitute using chickpea cooking liquid. VEGAN. Gluten Free.

Last weekend I mustered up the courage to finally take this item off my to-do list, and spent all Friday baking VEGAN Macarons (you’ll see a recipe for it shortly here), an experiment that kept me up till 3 am on Saturday.

Those of you who’ve made macarons will know the joy of watching the ‘feet’ develop. It is nothing compared to the joy I experienced when the 7th batch of my eggless VEGAN Macarons started forming their feet instead of pooling in a puddle as the other batches did.

Homemade Aquafaba

You don’t always have to open up a can of chickpeas to get a little aquafaba. You can cook chickpeas at home yourself and make all the aquafaba you’ll ever need!

Step 1: Soak 1 cup of dried chickpeas overnight. Or here’s a shortcut to get it done in 2-3 hours.

Step 2: Drain out the water in which the chickpeas soaked in, rinse and drain again. Here’s why you should always soak your grains, beans and legumes.

Step 3: Add 2 cups of water and pressure cook the chickpeas. It’s a faster method that uses lesser liquid to cook.

Step 4: Cool completely with the chickpeas still in their cooking liquid. Drain and store the aquafaba in a clean, dry container for upto 2 weeks.

Homemade Aquafaba - learn how to make the magical egg substitute using chickpea cooking liquid. VEGAN. Gluten Free.

Notes:

  1. Even though aquafaba looks brownish in color, it whips up to a pure white, just like egg whites do.
  2. You do not taste the ‘chickpeas’ in the final product, not even slightly.
  3. If you are not pressure cooking the chickpeas, you might end up with more cooking liquid, in which case, you’ll need to reduce the aquafaba on the stove to a thick, brownish and syrupy consistency. Homemade Aquafaba at it’s proper consistency should ‘feel’ like egg whites.

When you make these (which I really think you SHOULD!), be sure to SHARE YOUR PHOTOS with me through Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. I’d love to see what you cook from here!

Homemade Aquafaba

Created by Tina Dawson on May 13, 2017

Homemade Aquafaba - learn how to make the magical egg substitute using chickpea cooking liquid. VEGAN. Gluten Free.

  • Cook Time:15m
  • Total Time:30m
  • Yield: 200ml aquafaba

Ingredients

  • 1 c dried chickpeas
  • 2 c water + more for soaking

Instructions

  1. Soak chickpeas in water overnight , completely submerged.
  2. Drain and rinse out the soaked chickpeas. Add 2 cups of water and pressure cook until soft. Cool completely.
  3. Drain out the cooking liquid - it should be a light brown color and slightly viscous. When left at room temperature or cooler, it may coagulate into a semi-solid, it's completely normal.
  4. Refrigerate for 1-2 weeks in a clean, air-tight container.
  • Print
Homemade Aquafaba - learn how to make the magical egg substitute using chickpea cooking liquid. VEGAN. Gluten Free.

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Filed Under: 5 Ingredients or less, All Recipes, Gluten-free, Kitchen Wisdom, Vegan, Vegetarian Tagged With: aquafaba, Chickpeas, egg replacer, egg substitute, eggless

Previous Post: « Vegan Dessert Samosas
Next Post: VEGAN Pavlova Puffs »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Donna Williams says

    February 9, 2021 at 9:32 am

    I recently started using aquafaba & love it. Have used it in cakes, muffins, & yeast breads. I freeze it in an ice cube tray then empty in a baggie for later use. Each section in the ice cube tray is 1 T. Also, instead of using canned aquafaba I started making my own because of the sodium content in canned garbanzos.

    Reply
  2. Donna Williams says

    February 9, 2021 at 9:28 am

    I always used the liquid from canned garbanzos until it dawned on me that there’s too much sodium in it. Now I’m cooking my own garbanzos to make aquafaba. I freeze mine in ice cube trays for later use. Works fine.

    Reply
  3. Salvador says

    August 24, 2020 at 3:33 am

    Hi Tina
    Do you really have to throw away the water you soaked the chickpeas in? Isn’t that wasting whatever nutriments leached out into the water. I’m tempted to transfer the whole bowl of chickpeas along with the soaking water into the pressure cooker.

    Reply
    • Tina Dawson says

      September 11, 2020 at 11:34 pm

      Hi Salvador,

      Yes, it is not recommended to use the water chickpeas (or other beans, letils, legumes) soaked in because although nutrient leeching is minimal, phytic acid release is high, and phytic acid prevents nutrients from being absorbed into your bloodstream. I wrote an in-depth post here about it.

      Reply
    • Gita dasgupta says

      October 31, 2020 at 2:15 am

      We use chickpeas a lot, in India. And we do discard the water in which it has soaked overnight. However it needn’t be down the drain!! Plants love it!! Also, after you have gained confidence with the aquafaba, there’s no harm in trying to use the same water. You never know, the results may be even better!!

      Reply
      • Tina Dawson says

        November 6, 2020 at 10:46 pm

        Love the idea of using soaking water for plants. I also use rice rinsing water for plants! Excellent fertilizer!

        Reply
    • Gaby says

      January 14, 2021 at 8:35 pm

      soak your beans to remove phytic acid, which is toxic for humans.

      Reply
  4. Sakshi Jethwani says

    June 13, 2020 at 2:05 pm

    How much aquafaba will i get with this recipe?

    Reply
    • Tina Dawson says

      September 12, 2020 at 12:17 am

      200 ml

      Reply
  5. kiara says

    April 10, 2020 at 5:04 am

    Hi Tina, I don’t have a pressure cooker would it be ok if I boil them instead?

    Reply
    • Tina Dawson says

      April 13, 2020 at 9:07 am

      Absolutely you can!!!

      Reply
    • Bernadette says

      May 21, 2020 at 8:46 am

      You would want to use about 3-4 cups of water for boiling 1 c dried chickpeas if not using a pressure cooker. That means your pot liquor (the water left after cooking) will be too thin for immediate use as aquafaba. So Tina recommends cooking that down to a thicker consistency, more syrupy and feels like egg whites.

      Reply
  6. Brandy says

    June 11, 2019 at 3:50 pm

    What if you did not pre-soak beans can you still use the extra liquid in the pressure cooker as aquafaba?

    Reply
    • Tina Dawson says

      June 12, 2019 at 8:59 am

      It will definitely work as aquafaba, yes. The pre-soak helps cook the beans faster. Doesn’t really affect the quality of aquafaba, to my knowledge.

      Reply
      • Salvador says

        August 24, 2020 at 3:28 am

        Once I didn’t bother (forgot) to soak the chick peas, I thought just a bit of extra cooking time in the pressure cooker would suffice. They turned out tough. That was before I had heard of aquafaba

        Reply
        • Tina Dawson says

          September 11, 2020 at 11:37 pm

          Here’s a trick to soften chickpeas before cooking, if you missed the overnight soaking. I hope it helps!

          Reply
  7. Nats says

    March 23, 2019 at 2:56 pm

    Hi Tina
    Do I necessarily need to reduce the liquid further after pressure cooking the chickpeas? If left to cool it does get to a semi solid state, will that do? I tried reducing it once and refrigerated it but it just wouldn’t whip the next day.

    Reply
    • Tina Dawson says

      March 26, 2019 at 11:20 pm

      Looks like you might have reduced it too much, and gel-like aquafaba might have trouble whipping as you cannot incorporate air bubbles into gels. I would suggest diluting the congealed gel with a little water till it’s a murky water and then try whipping. Normally, I pressure cook the chickpeas according to the recipe in the post, and let the cooked chickpeas sit in the water till it cools down to room temperature. This extra sitting time infuses the chickpea protein in the liquid, while also thickening it. Filter then use.

      Reply
  8. Melissa says

    November 18, 2018 at 8:43 am

    Can you freeze it for use later?

    Reply
    • Tina Dawson says

      November 19, 2018 at 10:10 am

      I’ve never done it myself, but I’ve heard others say that frozen-then-thawed aquafaba whips just as well as a freshly made one. So give it a try!

      Reply
  9. Fil says

    November 10, 2018 at 2:55 pm

    Are you really using a pressure cooker? It comes out very running

    Reply
    • Tina Dawson says

      November 14, 2018 at 4:01 pm

      I do reduce just the liquid after the chickpeas are cooked.

      Reply
  10. Susan says

    October 3, 2017 at 12:32 am

    Hey Tina! Awesome idea. I was wondering if you had any clue whether aquafab would work as an egg white substitute in white cake? I’m planning to try it, but was curious to know if you already had. Thank you!
    P.S. Love your blog, the recipes and pics 🙂

    Reply
    • Tina Dawson says

      October 3, 2017 at 2:15 pm

      Hi Susan, I’ve personally never used aquafaba to make cakes, but looks like you can (http://www.veganbaking.net/articles/guides/how-to-veganize-a-cake-recipe). I have however made a Mini Vegan Chocolate Cake with a ganache frosting (http://loveisinmytummy.com/2017/08/mini-vegan-chocolate-cake.html) without any aquafaba and it was delicious! Happy Baking!

      Reply
  11. Gayathri says

    September 14, 2017 at 4:13 am

    I have been wanting to make this for long. Will try and tag you.Thank you for sharing.

    Reply
    • Tina Dawson says

      September 15, 2017 at 11:31 am

      I hope you like it, Gayathri! I’d love to see pictures!

      Reply
  12. Ali from Home & Plate says

    May 17, 2017 at 11:07 am

    I have never heard of aquafaba but imagine this is a great substitute for those with egg allergies. Love this idea.

    Reply
    • Tina Dawson says

      May 17, 2017 at 11:59 am

      Thanks Ali!

      Reply
  13. Kelly @ trial and eater says

    May 17, 2017 at 11:06 am

    I’m even more of a procrastinator than you, because it’s been a long time since I’ve heard of aquafaba too and I’ve never tried it! You make it sound super easy though, so I’m definitely pinning yours to refer to when I finally get around to it 😉

    Reply
    • Tina Dawson says

      May 17, 2017 at 12:00 pm

      When you ever get to it Kelly, you’ll fall head-over-heels in love!

      Reply
  14. Lisa | Garlic & Zest says

    May 17, 2017 at 10:48 am

    I’ve heard about this, but I’ve never actually tried it. Frankly, I’m leery of that viscous fluid that I ALWAYS rinse away from my garbanzo beans. I guess if you’re vegan, it makes sense to have a suitable substitute, but if you’re not, why not use an egg, you know? I commend your efforts though — and congrats on attaining “feet”

    Reply
    • Tina Dawson says

      May 17, 2017 at 12:01 pm

      I agree Lisa, but this year I’ve been trying to go VEGAN and it was like a god-send, because I just simply cannot imagine life without macarons!

      Reply
  15. Beth @ Binky's Culinary Carnival says

    May 17, 2017 at 10:33 am

    I used aquafaba to make a vegan cheesecake on Easter. My recipe needs perfecting because it was very bland. I am definitely going to try it again, though!

    Reply
    • Tina Dawson says

      May 17, 2017 at 12:01 pm

      Try, try, try again Beth!

      Reply
  16. Suzy says

    May 17, 2017 at 10:19 am

    What a great post! thanks for sharing.

    Reply
    • Tina Dawson says

      May 17, 2017 at 10:34 am

      No problem, Suzy!

      Reply
  17. Rebecca says

    May 17, 2017 at 9:56 am

    great photos! I’ve been meaning to make/use aquafaba! I’ll have to try this

    Reply
    • Tina Dawson says

      May 17, 2017 at 10:34 am

      You’re gonna love it, Rebecca!

      Reply

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Hi! I'm Tina - the human behind all the content you see on this blog. Welcome to my little corner of the internet where I create flavorful and unique plant-based recipes.

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