Knowing how to make a flax egg is a crucial part of vegan baking.
When I figured out that you could use one of these babies to replace a regular (chicken) egg in vegan baking, well…to say I was excited would be a massive understatement.
And YES, they work like a freaking charm I tell ya!
Of course you can’t go whipping them up like egg whites or anything – for that you can use aquafaba – check out our recipe for vegan meringue.
They do very well to replace chicken eggs in baking though.
So when you want to make a cake or pancakes or muffins or biscuits, the humble flax egg is your firm friend.
And oh – how easy!
Check out the ‘how to’ pictures below plus an awesome ‘how to’ video.
And what’s also awesome?
Flax seeds are good for you!
Omega 3’s yay!
So not only are you getting a very handy little baking friend here, you’re also adding some solid healthy goodness to your baked goods! 🙂
Ideal in cakes, pancakes, crepes, muffins and more!
A few notes about flax eggs
A flax egg will usually only replace 1 chicken egg in a recipe. If a recipe has something like 4 chicken eggs in it, then you generally won’t be able to use 4 flax eggs to replace them. The reason being eggs firm up when baked, flax eggs are more watery and won’t act like an egg in that way.
So if you are trying to replace more than 1 egg in a recipe, you would likely use a flax egg to replace one of the eggs and then make other adaptations to the recipe to account for that.
In that way it’s better for you to look for an alternative recipe to veganize that only uses 1 egg rather than trying to veganize the 4 egg recipe.
I have used up to 2 flax eggs in a recipe (see our vegan carrot cake) but usually if you are veganizing a non-vegan recipe you will need to be careful with using more than 1 flax egg to replace chicken eggs in a recipe.
You must use ground flaxseed meal. Flaxseed flour is a different thing. I have tried using flaxseed flour to make a flax egg and it’s not the same. It can work in a pinch but generally it turns out quite lumpy and it’s really just not the same.
If you can’t get ground flaxseed meal in your country but you can get regular whole flaxseeds, then you can make your own ground flaxseed meal by placing the whole flax seeds into the blender and pulse blending until you have ground flaxseed meal.
You don’t want to overblend and turn it into flour. It should look like what you see on the tablespoon in the picture above.
Flax Egg
- Prep Time: 3 mins
- Total Time: 3 mins
- Yield: 1
Print Recipe
Pin RecipeDescription
The step by step guide to how to make a flax egg. Can replace a regular egg in vegan baking for cakes, pancakes, muffins and more!
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp Ground Flaxseed Meal
- 3 Tbsp Hot Water
Instructions
- Add the tablespoon of ground flaxseed to a bowl.
- Add 3 tablespoons of hot water from the kettle (just boiled).
- Allow to sit for a minute or two – using hot water makes the thickening process much faster, and it usually gets to the right (gloopy/gelatinous) consistency in only about one minute.
- Use it in place of an egg in recipes, it’s not an exact science, but usually 1 for 1, so 1 flax egg replaces 1 chicken egg in a recipe.
- Of course – it won’t work for things like vegan meringues! You definitely can’t whip it (for that you need aquafaba!)
- However, in cakes and quick breads and pancakes and biscuits, it works perfectly!
- Category: How To
- Method: Mix
- Cuisine: Vegan
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 flax egg
- Calories: 37
- Fat: 3g
- Carbohydrates: 2g
- Fiber: 1.9g
- Protein: 1.3g
Keywords: flax egg, how to make a flax egg
perfect consistency! I used it to make french toast
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Hi there. To make this flax-egg can I use Ground Flaxseeds? Or does it have to be Flaxseed Meal? Thank you for your response.
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Hi Sissy, I think they are the same thing. When it’s ground very finely into a flour then I find it gets clumpy and I don’t like it as much when making a flax egg but it still works!
Hi question:
What if I want to double a recipe that has 2 flax eggs in it. Can I still use 4 flax eggs? Because you write that it wouldn’t work the same but if I double everything in the recipe will it still work?
Hi Iris, if the recipe calls for flax eggs then you can usually double the amount of flax eggs if you’re doubling the recipe, that should be NO problem. I was referring to when you’re veganizing a recipe that uses chicken eggs. If it is already veganized and is using flax eggs, then doubling it should be no problem at all.
But what about the seeds ? You have to put them in the cake as well? Thanks
Hi Sivy, not sure I understand the question. The flax seeds are first ground up, so they are not whole seeds anymore, then they are soaked with hot water to make a flax egg and then the whole thing goes into the batter for whatever baked good you are preparing.
Hi there,
Thank you for this recipe. It is going to be an immense help. I was just wondering, if the cake requires let’s say 4 eggs, can I use 4 flax eggs? Will it give a different taste to the cake? Thanks
Hi Ruby, generally it’s best when you’re switching out 1:1, it gets more complicated to veganize a recipe that has 4 eggs, as you can’t just replace it with 4 flax eggs because they react differently when baked. If you replaced 4 eggs with 4 flax eggs it is likely that your recipe wouldn’t work out. It is usually better to look for a recipe with less eggs, I wouldn’t personally use more than 2 flax eggs maximum in a recipe and that is also when other tweaks have been made.
Haven’t tried it yet but just wanted to tell you that your page looks amazing very informative and helping me on my vegan journey
I’ve been reading flax eggs everywhere in vegan recipes, now I know what it actually is ???
That’s fantastic Marwa, I’m so glad I could help! Thanks for posting! 🙂
Thank you for sharing this recipe! It looks delicious 🙂 How long does the flax egg need to sit for or is it ready as soon as you stir the flax seed and hot water?
Up to a minute. But it can sit longer, so usually it works to just mix it and then get on with a few other things and then come back to it and it’s nice and gloopy.
I’m going to try your flax egg, thanks for the tip. Have you tried marshmallow root for a similar purpose? It has a very neutral flavor.
Cool! I have not tried marshmallow root, sounds interesting! 🙂
This is awesome! Thanks!
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awesome
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Hey Alison. Are there any replacements to flax or chia seeds by any chance? My local supermarket didnt have any 🙁 amazing recipe btw
Hi Hareesh, not that I know of. It depends on what you are wanting to use it for, if it’s as an egg replacement then there are other things you can try (like applesauce), it depends on the recipe.
Hi. So do I remove the flax seed and just use the gloopy or do I use all of it as my egg? Thank you.
You use all of it. Just pour it all right in. 🙂
can this be made up in advance in larger quantities and stored and still retain its binding properties? 🙂 Cheers. 🙂
Hey Joe! If stored in the fridge it will definitely retain its binding properties. It actually becomes even more gloopy and binding. I haven’t tried to store them for any length of time personally but I believe that they can usually last up to 2 weeks in the fridge if you make up a batch.