Flax Egg is actually made from flax seeds. Flax seed is also called linseed. Flax is grown both for its seeds and for fiber. Flax seeds come in 2 basic varieties, brown and yellow/golden and both these types are the most concentrated source of essential omega-3 fatty acids, so it should be a part of our diet even if it is not used as an egg substitute.
I top it on both cold and hot cereals and salads, blend it with the rest of the ingredients while making smoothies, milkshakes. Various parts of this versatile plant are used to make fiber, dye, paper, medicines and soap. Textile made out of flax is called linen.
How To Buy & Store Them?
Although ground flaxseed or flaxseed meal is readily available in the grocery stores, it is recommended to buy the whole seeds and grinding them as and when needed. Also the ground flax seed should be stored in a well sealed container in the fridge or freezer. Otherwise it will turn rancid. Learn more about flax seed and how it is used in cooking/baking.
Interesting Facts
- Just 2 tablespoons of flax seed meal delivers 4 grams of fiber, as much fiber as 1 and ½ cups of cooked oatmeal! Studies prove that when this is added to the diet, harmful LDL cholesterol drops, while good HDL cholesterol stays put.
- Flax seed contains high levels of lignans, a natural antioxidant, which can maintain breast and colon health by binding circulating estrogens that might promote unchecked cell growth. To get the lignans that are in just 2 tablespoons of flax seed meal, you'd need to eat about 30 cups of fresh broccoli.
- Flax seed is a mega-source for the plant version of omega-3 called Alpha-Linolenic Acid. The oil in flaxseed is about 50% ALA. One serving (which is 2 tablespoons) contains 2400 milligrams of omega-3.
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Recipe
Flax Egg
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon ground flax seeds
- 3 tablespoons warm water
Instructions
- Take a tablespoon of ground flax seed.
- Add 2.5 to 3 tablespoons (I personally prefer 3) of warm water.
- Whisk it for a few minutes and set it aside.
- After about 5 minutes you would see a change in the texture. It would become gelatinous, sticky. Now the flax egg is ready to be used in your recipe as egg substitute.
My Notes
- Throughout the internet and in vegan baking books one can find flax egg recipes. Flax egg is best suited as an egg substitute in waffles, pancakes, bran muffins, oatmeal cookies, etc.
- I have come across two flax egg substitute ratio. In the sense, in place of 1 egg in a recipe, one of the following 2 flax egg recipes can be used. Either one tablespoon of flax seed meal can be whisked with 2.5 to 3 tablespoons of warm water (this is the most commonly used flax egg substitute method) or 1 teaspoon on ground flax seed can be mixed with ¼ cup of warm water. (This is from the book Sinfully Vegan by Lois Dieterly).
- I have tried both and do not find much of a difference. Or maybe I should try the same recipe twice with these two flax egg recipes and see how it turns out to know the impact. But that later.
Rosemary says
Hi - I use flax seed all the time. I grind up some and keep it in an airtight jar to use when necessary (1 tablespoon to 3 tablespoons of hot water). I use it mostly in pancakes and when making waffles. They always turn out fine. Haven't tried it for Yorkshire pudding though. Must try it as had a failure when using a proprietary egg replacer. They were nice and crunchy but looked more like hockey pucks as they didn't rise!!
Madhuram says
Thanks for sharing your experience Rosemary.
rinkal haria says
Hi there. I made cheesecake which required 6 large eggs. So I substituted it with 6tbsp. of flax seed powder and 12 tbsp of water, but the top of cheesecake was brown in colour instead of regular cream colour n was puffed up. Can you suggest me if I can use it or not and how much?
Madhuram says
Rinkal, I haven't tried an eggless cheesecake so far but I very well know that flax seed powder is not a good egg substitute for cheesecakes, except for chocolate cheesecakes maybe. Even that not so much. Tofu is the best choice and I have seen quite a few recipes using tofu as substitute. Google for vegan cheesecakes and you should come up with a lot of recipes.
Barbecue says
[...] egg can be replaced with two egg whites or a quarter cup of egg substitute. Flaxseed is also a good replacement for eggs; each egg that you want to replace only requires 1 tablespoon [...]
Khushboo says
Hey, Can we replace eggs with Flax seed powder even in Cheesecakes?
Madhuram says
The best substitute for eggs in cheescake would be tofu and some cornstarch/tapioca starch to bind it. Flax seed is good in muffins, brownies, quick breads and in some cookies.
Khushboo says
Thanks. I am from a small city in India, Tofu is not readily avaiable in the market. Instead of Tofu can I use Cottage cheese?How to bind with cornstarch? Any specification for the quantity proportion to replace eggs?
Also please let me know if I can use Flaxseed powder for replacing egg in Cake Mixes?
Mistie says
I made a banana bread and replaced the eggs with 2 tablespoon flax seed ground then added 6 tablespoons water (to replace 2 eggs) and ground that together and put it in the fridge for about 15 minutes. I mixed all of the ingredients together dry into wet then I added the flax seed. The texture and consistency turned out GREAT!! I was very surprised and very pleased with the result.
That's great to know Mistie. Thank you for sharing the tip here.
Pam says
Hi, Madhuram!
I haven't tried this yet because I have all ready ground flax seed meal that I would like to use instead of flax seed.
How much water would I want to add for the replacement of one egg?
Pam, there are a couple of measurements being followed by different people. But I have so far tried only 1 teaspoon of flax seed powder blended thoroughly with 1/4 cup water and it works fine.
Fiona says
Nope didn't work. I premixed & pureed 1 tb powdered flax with 3 tb of water. The muffins I made were just glug inside - not even remotely cooked.
Fiona, try using 1 teaspoon flax seed powder and 1/4 cup water. It works well. I have tried it in a couple of recipes.
veganish says
I measure out a tablespoon of whole flaxseeds. Then I grind them in the coffee grinder. I put the ground mixture in a small bowl and add water... heat in the microwave... until it's a paste that works great in baked goods. I'm not vegan, but I like this as a substitute.
You can even use toasted flaxseeds for an added flair. I plan on doing that today for my cornbread stuffing for Thanksgiving.
jane says
So I've tried to use flaxseed as an egg substitute but it hasn't worked. Could it be that I have to mix it with water *before* adding to the other ingredients? I sort of just throw everything into a bowl and mix it up all at once. would appreciate the help
Jane
Yes Jane, the flax seed powder and water should be blended well (it will be gooey) before adding it to the other ingredients.
koren douglas says
I saw a video on baking bread on youtube, and the person said sometrhing about using oatmeal as a substitute for eggs. how would you do that?
Katarina says
I read the other day on a parenting site that one shouldn't eat more then 2 tbs flax seeds per day, because it turns into a poisoning hydrogen cyanide ...or whatever it was called.
I'll check it out. Moreover we use only a teaspoon of flax seed powder for each egg, so a maximum of 2 or 3 teaspoons on the whole and each serving of a cookie or bread will have only a very small quantity of flax seed.