Chia Egg

The Chia Egg recipe is an easy one to make and is so versatile! Why would you use chia in your favorite baked goods? Because this egg substitute is a great binder and it’s healthy, too!

A bowl is full of chia seeds.

When I was vegetarian and thinking about a vegan diet, I did so in a series of steps. The very first, and easiest for me, was to give up eggs.

I never really liked eggs all that much, especially the runny yolks. And I especially didn’t like the impact eggs had on my digestive tract.

Surprisingly, giving up eggs wasn’t difficult in my day-to-day diet, but it did leave me scratching my head about baking. I was pleasantly surprised to discover this little trick: chia seeds as egg substitutes!

For example, I used a chia seed egg in these Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies and they’re delicious!

I know it sounds implausible, but this chia substitute is easy to use in many of your baked good recipes, and it works! I like to use it in baked goods like cookies, muffins, and even pancakes.

How to Make Chia Eggs

It’s easy to make a chia egg. Simply combine chia seeds with water. You can use whole seeds or chia powder (my favorite).

Don’t like chia? Or can’t find them? Ground flax works too. In the whole flax egg vs chia egg debate, I’m pretty neutral. I use them interchangeably and have great success with both.

Replacing Eggs in Baked Goods

Replacing eggs with chia seeds does require a little finesse. For example, chicken eggs are an important binder for many baked goods. You can usually substitute a chia seed egg in the following:

  • Cookies
  • Muffins
  • Gluten-free vegan cakes. Because gluten is such a powerful binder, I don’t often use an egg replacer (such as this Vegan Vanilla Cake recipe). However, vegan + gluten-free means you’ll want to add an egg replacer such as a chia seed egg.

If you don’t get it right, don’t cry over crumbly cake. Make Vegan Cake Pops instead!

Quick Fix Tip

You don’t always have to soak chia in water first. In some recipes, you can simply add chia seeds to the wet part of the batter and allow it to sit in that mixture before combining it with dry ingredients.

The good news about a chia seed egg replacement is that it’s relatively neutral in flavor profile so it won’t impact the flavor of your baked goods like a flax egg.

Chia Egg Ratio: One tablespoon of chia eggs combined with water will replace 1 chicken egg in a recipe. I don’t recommend using more than 2 chia seed eggs in a recipe. See more on that below.

When to not use Chia Eggs

There are some situations where a chia seed egg will not work.

  1. Multiple Eggs. When a recipe calls for 3 to 4 eggs, the eggs are doing more than binding, they’re adding texture, too. I recommend finding a vegan recipe for the dish you’re trying to make.
  2. Meringue. You can’t whip chia seeds like egg whites in meringue. They don’t have the level of starches provided in egg whites. However, if you want a vegan meringue, I’ve got you covered.
  3. Scrambled Eggs. You can’t scramble chia seeds. But this Tofu Scramble works nicely.

What is a chia egg?

A chia seed egg is a combination of chia seeds and water that creates a gelatinous mixture that can be used as a plant-based egg replacer. It works best to bind baked goods, like cakes, pancakes, cookies, and more.

Do chia seeds need to be ground up before using?

Whether to grind the chia seeds before using is up to personal preference. Some don’t like the small seeds showing up in baked goods. If so, feel free to grind the chia seeds before adding the water.

Can you replace flax egg with chia egg?

A flax egg and a chia seed egg are pretty much interchangeable when using them to replace eggs in baked goods like cakes, cookies, muffins, and more.

Chia Benefits

For the number of calories involved, the chia seed provides a lot of nutrients. Interestingly enough, it falls in the mint family of plants. Two tablespoons of chia seeds have 11 grams of fiber and 4 grams of protein. You’ll also get omega-3 fats, magnesium, calcium, and some of those healthy B vitamins too!

If you’re watching carbs, you’ll be interested to know that chia seeds have 12 grams of carbs per 2 tablespoons. But because most of those carbs are in fiber form, it’s only 1 gram of net carbs.

Ways to use a Chia Egg

Here are some great recipes where you can use chia seeds:

A bowl full of wet chia seeds, referred to as a chia egg, is being poured into batter.

Chia Seed Egg

Use this chia seed egg to replace eggs in various baked goods, including cookies, muffins, and even some cakes!
5 from 3 votes
Course: Sauce
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 1 minute
Cook Time: 3 minutes
Total Time: 4 minutes
Servings: 1
Calories: 58kcal

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon chia seeds
  • 3 tablespoons water

Instructions

  • Add chia seeds to a bowl.
    A tablespoon full of chia seeds is pouring them into a small glass bowl.
  • Add water, stir, and set aside for a minute or two to let the chia seeds soak.
    A hand holds a glass measuring cup with water and is pouring it into a bowl with chia seeds.
  • Add this chia seed egg as an egg replacer in your favorite baked goods, such as cornbread, cookies, muffins, cakes, etc.
    A bowl full of wet chia seeds, referred to as a chia egg, is being poured into batter.

(The products above contain sponsored links to products we use and recommend)

Calories: 58kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 4mg | Potassium: 49mg | Fiber: 4g | Calcium: 76mg | Iron: 1mg

The nutrition information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator and should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

One Response to Chia Egg

  1. Avatar thumbnail image for MarlyMarly Reply

    5 stars
    I’m Marly, the author of this recipe, and I’m pleased to say it’s easy to make and a great egg substitute in my favorite vegan baked goods.

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