What is aquafaba and why is it not missing from vegan cuisine?

Aquafaba is a novel way to replace eggs in recipes , which has been used very well in vegan cuisine. It has important advantages over banana, flaxseed, chia or corn starch and is that it has a very delicate flavor and when beaten it forms a snow point that cannot be achieved with any of the other substitutes. In this article you will learn what aquafaba is, how to obtain it and everything you can do with it in the kitchen.

What is aquafaba?

Aquafaba is nothing more than the viscous water left over from cooking a legume , the most popular being chickpeas and white beans. Although you can use the water from other legumes such as lentils, kidney beans, black beans, peas and soybeans. Its name comes from the Latin aqua (water) and faba (bean). In addition to its properties, high protein content and no cholesterol, it has important qualities that are used in vegan cuisine to create delicious recipes at home.

How to get aquafaba?

To obtain aquafaba, simply cook the selected legume and once ready, strain the grains to obtain only the water. The recommendation is to soak the chickpeas in water for around 8 hours. Then, cook the chickpeas in a pressure cooker with new water (do not use the same water from the soaking). In approximately 25 minutes you will have the chickpeas ready. Let it rest for 2 hours and finally strain the chickpeas. For your recipes to have a greater consistency, a good idea is to let the water thicken naturally. If you see that it is very liquid, you can place it on the heat for a while longer so that it simmers until it reaches a gelatinous consistency. Now, if you like things more practical, you can buy aquafaba on the market ready to use in the kitchen with 99% chickpea cooking broth and sea salt. Once opened you should keep it in the refrigerator. This is an excellent option if you can't find what to do with all the chickpeas you accumulate in the refrigerator.

Uses of aquafaba in vegan cooking

One of the main reasons it is so popular in vegan cuisine is because it has the physical properties necessary to replace eggs , specifically egg whites. Two tablespoons of aquafaba (about 30 ml of water) are enough to replace it. So aquafaba is perfect for making sweet recipes such as meringue, nougat or ice cream. And savory recipes such as mayonnaise, batter, tortillas, carbonara sauce, cocktails and much more. One of the first sweets made with aquafaba was the chocolate mousse and the floating island of Chaville, which were popularized by the vegan Roessel on his blog. So the limit for using aquafaba is your own imagination, since you can use it for almost any recipe that uses eggs.