What can I use instead of egg?

The commonest reason an egg-free bake fails is that someone used a moisture substitute where the egg was providing structure, or a binding substitute where it was providing lift. Work out what the egg was doing first, then pick from the list for that job.

Step by step

1. Identify the job first.Was the egg binding, aerating, emulsifying, setting, adding moisture or glazing? A recipe with one egg and a lot of other ingredients is binding. A recipe with separated whites is aerating. A recipe where eggs are most of the volume is setting.
2. Pick from that job's list, not from a general one.Flax for binding, aquafaba for aeration, tofu or cornflour for setting, purée or yoghurt for moisture, milk or oil for glaze. Using the wrong one is the entire failure mode.
3. Expect to compromise on recipes with three or more eggs.Below two eggs, substitution usually works well. At three or more the egg is doing so much structural work that substituting produces something noticeably different. Look for a recipe designed to be egg-free instead of converting one.
4. Adjust the liquid and the raising agent.Most substitutes bring different water content. If the batter looks stiffer or looser than the recipe describes, correct it. Adding an extra half teaspoon of baking powder often compensates for lost lift.
5. Handle the safety and allergy side properly.If you are substituting because of an egg allergy, check every other ingredient too — mayonnaise, pasta, some breads, glazes and many biscuits contain egg. Egg is one of the fourteen allergens that must be declared in the UK, so the information is always available.

Tips

• Aquafaba keeps in the fridge for a few days and freezes well in an ice cube tray. Use the liquid from unsalted chickpeas where you can.
• A flax egg needs the full ten minutes to gel. Used straight away it does almost nothing.
• For an egg-free glaze on pastry, plant milk with a teaspoon of maple syrup gives the closest colour and shine to egg wash.
• If a cake recipe uses one egg and plenty of butter and milk, you can often simply add an extra two tablespoons of milk and a half teaspoon of baking powder and skip the substitute entirely.
• Vegan meringue from aquafaba wants a little cream of tartar and a longer whip than egg white, but it is genuinely good and it dries crisp.

Common mistakes

• Using mashed banana in a whisked sponge — The egg there was providing all the aeration and much of the structure. A purée adds moisture and weight and you get a dense, damp slab. Use aquafaba, or use a different recipe.
• Substituting eggs in a quiche or custard — The egg is the entire structure. A cornflour or tofu version can be very good, but it is a different dish rather than the same one with a swap. Follow a recipe written for it.
• Using more substitute to compensate for a poor result — Doubling flax makes it gummy, doubling purée makes it wetter and heavier. If one measure did not work, the substitute is wrong for the job, not insufficient.

Alternatives

• Flax or chia egg — for binding: One tablespoon of ground flaxseed or chia in three tablespoons of water, left ten minutes to gel. Excellent in burgers, fishcakes, cookies, flapjacks and dense cakes. Adds a slight nuttiness and a little colour. Does not aerate and does not set.
• Aquafaba — for aeration: The liquid from a tin of chickpeas. Three tablespoons replaces one whole egg, two replaces one white. It whips to a stable foam and makes genuinely good meringues and mousses. The only common substitute that does the whipping job properly.
• Commercial egg replacer — for baking generally: Usually a starch and raising agent blend. Reliable in cakes and biscuits where the egg was doing moisture and a little lift. Does not emulsify or set, so it will not carry a quiche or a custard.
• Fruit purée — for moisture in cakes: About 60g of mashed banana, apple purée or prune purée per egg. Adds flavour and sweetness and makes a denser, moister crumb. Works in muffins and tray bakes; makes light sponges heavy.
• Silken tofu — for body and setting: About 60g blended smooth per egg. Good in dense bakes, brownies, quiche-style tarts and set desserts. Neutral in flavour, adds no lift, and needs to be blended completely or it stays lumpy.
• Yoghurt or buttermilk — for moisture and tenderness: About 60g per egg, dairy or plant-based. Adds acidity, which helps bicarbonate of soda lift. Good in soda breads, muffins and pancakes.
• Cornflour or arrowroot slurry — for thickening and setting: Around two tablespoons whisked with water, or the amount the custard recipe implies. Replaces the setting job in custards and pie fillings without any of the richness. Set texture is cleaner and less silky than egg.
• Bicarbonate of soda with vinegar — for lift: A teaspoon of bicarbonate with a tablespoon of vinegar per egg, mixed in at the last moment. Purely a raising substitute for cakes; contributes nothing else and cannot be used more than once or twice in a recipe.

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