If you are vegan, plant-based, allergic or intolerant to eggs, agar makes a great egg replacement, especially egg whites. Eggs are often seen as a key ingredient in many baking, desserts and other recipes, but did you know you can achieve the texture egg gives dishes by using agar instead?
There are two things to consider when replacing eggs – each part of the egg performs a different function – here are our suggested alternatives:
|
|
Function it performs |
Alternative |
|
Yolk |
a rising or lifting agent |
Agar is a better substitute for egg whites (which it is most similar to), as it will help bind the ingredients in a recipe but won’t give it a good rise or lift. |
|
Egg White |
to bind ingredients together |
Add an extra 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder in a recipe to help prevent it from being too dense. Use another ingredient, such as mashed bananas (depending on what the recipe calls for), to replace the egg yolk. |
Use Agar powder to replace egg whites
We recommend the following recipe if you’re looking for a creamy mousse or custard-based dish that replaces egg whites with agar and can be made sweet or savoury:
- For each egg white you need, dissolve 1 tsp agar powder in 1 tbsp water. To dissolve, first sprinkle the powder over the liquid, rest for 5 minutes and warm to 90 C over medium heat.
- Using a whisk, whip the agar mixture well to help dissolve, then refrigerate for 15 minutes and whip again. Add the agar to the baking mixture as the last ingredient and mix to just combine, do not overwork the mixture.
Learn more about Agar in our blog collection here:
- What is Agar?
- the amazing health benefits of Agar
- Our 8 tips for working with Agar
- Using Agar in a raw food diet
- How much agar to use?
