The Best Egg Yolk Substitutes (2024)

Egg yolk is a staple ingredient in many recipes. It gives richness and texture for many recipes. In some cases, it even acts as binding or leavening agents. We compiled an extensive list of egg yolk substitutes that you can use when you simply don’t have any to use.

Whether you have health problems, lifestyle choices, or you simply ran out of egg yolk, there are many reasons why you might need to use an egg yolk substitute. We covered all of the most common options with many of them being right in your pantry to grab and keep cooking.

Quick Summary

We’ll go into each ingredient below, but use this handy table to help you out.

🥧 For Baking

If you bake a lot, you’ll know how essential yolks are. Cakes, pastries, and cookies need them all the time.

The fat helps to emulsify mixtures. It means that yolks help disperse fats and liquid in the ingredients to create a smooth batter.

What’s more, the fat content gives your baked recipes a velvety finish.

To recreate these qualities, let’s explore some natural substitutes.

Snag our Egg Substitutes Printable {freebie} to put into your Recipe Binder {freebie} for quick reference for pulling out replacements that you already have in your pantry.

🍎 Apple Sauce

Apple sauce has a thick consistency and a lot of water content, making it an excellent substitute for yolks. We are used to seeing apple sauce as a replacement for oil when cutting back on fat, but it works great for yolks too.

If achieving a moist or fudgy cake is your goal, apple sauce does an excellent job.

For every egg yolk, use a quarter cup of applesauce. It’s better to use the unsweetened kind so you won’t have to adjust the sugar levels in the recipe.

🍌 Ripe Banana

Bananas create the same creaminess and consistency as apple sauce when mashed. It’s best to use mashed bananas as a substitute if you’re making cakes, muffins, or brownies because they add moisture and sweetness.

However, expect your baked goods to taste mildly like bananas. This flavor may be more noticeable if you’re putting it in a vanilla batter as opposed to a stronger flavor like dark chocolate.

Use a quarter cup of mashed ripe bananas for every egg in the recipe. For easier measurement, a typical large banana makes half a cup when mashed.

Simply mash half a ripe banana to get that quarter cup.

Chia or Flax Seeds

Chia or flax seeds are popular yolk replacements in vegan recipes. Not only are they healthy substitutes, but they also work wonderfully. They’re perfect for cookies and cakes.

You can either grind these seeds or turn them into a gelatinous mixture by soaking them in water.

Chia seeds have a relatively bland flavor, while flax seeds provide a nuttier flavor. So, choose the variety based on your recipe.

For each egg replacement, combine a tablespoon of chia or flax seed with three tablespoons of water. Wait until it creates a thickened mixture before using.

Puréed Silken Tofu

Puréed silken tofu is another vegan favorite to be a replacement.

It’s perfect for vegan brownies and cheesecakes since it offers a creamy texture without overpowering other ingredients.

Keep in mind that silken tofu isn’t the same as regular tofu. This one has more water content that gives it that silky finish.

Purée a quarter cup of silken tofu for every egg. Using this alternative may give a denser result. So, it’s important to use it sparingly.

Plain Yogurt

Plain yogurt provides moistness and richness to muffins, cakes, and bread.

Try to stick with non-flavored yogurt since additional flavor may conflict with your other recipe flavors and give you a weird-tasting result.

Make your own yogurt in the slow cooker or Instant Pot.

You can also use Greek yogurt if a plain yogurt is unavailable. It can provide a slight tang to your recipe, which elevates the overall flavor.

Replace every large egg in a recipe with a quarter cup of plain yogurt.

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For Creamy Desserts

Creamy desserts like custards, puddings, or mousse need yolks to give them a sturdy structure and a silky finish.

When you can’t consume eggs or have none at hand, there are a few other ingredients that can recreate these textures.

🥑 Avocado

Avocados are known for their creamy and rich-tasting qualities, especially when you blend or mash them.

Because of the mild flavors of avocados, they make an excellent substitute for sweet recipes like chocolate pudding or mousse. They don’t alter the flavor as much as using other mashed fruits. We even used them in our delicious Avocado Chocolate Brownies!

Purée or mash avocado until you can fill a quarter of a cup.

Cashew Cream

If you’re looking for a mild nutty flavor for creamy desserts, cashew cream may be a perfect egg yolk replacement. It’s smooth, silky, and has a high fat content that makes desserts to die for.

Cashew cream is even better if you make it from scratch. There’ll be no added sugar, and you can maintain all the good fat and protein.

How to Use Cashew Cream as a Substitute

In a large bowl, soak raw cashews for at least four hours or overnight if you have the time. This step removes the phytic acid and helps release more nutrients from the cashew.

Rinse and pat them dry. Blend them until you achieve a creamy consistency.

A powerful blender can cut the blending time, but a regular blender works just as fine. Remember to scrape the sides occasionally to ensure that all cashew bits blend smoothly.

For every egg in a recipe, use three tablespoons of cashew cream.

🥥 Coconut Milk

Coconut milk is another dairy replacement with high fat that you can actually make yourself. You can add it to ice cream, cream pies, or custards. Using this adds a mild coconut flavor that enhances your dessert’s flavor profile.

For a thicker consistency, you can also use coconut cream instead. It comes in cans and is readily available in most grocery stores.

How to Use Coconut Milk as a Substitute

Let the coconut milk firm up in the fridge overnight.

Alternatively, you can blend the milk to form a cream.

For recipes, use two tablespoons plus two teaspoons of coconut milk and mix it with a teaspoon of baking powder for every egg.

For Leavening

Whipped eggs puff up baked goods, making them soft and fluffy. That’s why it’s hard to leave out eggs from recipes.

Lucky for you, there are substitutes if you’re specifically looking to leaven your recipe.

Sparkling Mineral Water

Sparkling water helps in creating the air pockets you see in cakes. In case of an egg emergency, this gives cakes a lighter and fluffier finish.

You can even use flavored sparkling water to add a bit of extra punch. For example, lemon-flavored can provide a slight tang and citrusy edge to the recipe.

The only downside to using this is that it only works for cakes. Other baked goods such as muffins or brownies won’t get the same benefit.

Replace an egg with half a cup of sparkling water. One thing to remember is to avoid overmixing to prevent the mixture from collapsing when baking.

Vinegar and Baking Soda

Like sparkling water, the combination of vinegar and baking soda creates a fizzy effect that makes baked goods soft and fluffy.

Apple cider vinegar has a lower percentage of acetic acid and contains a fruity touch.

You may want to use this instead of distilled white vinegar when adding to sweet recipes.

Equal parts of vinegar and baking soda should work well to replace each egg. Start with one teaspoon of each before increasing, depending on how much your batter requires.

For Binding

Egg yolks contain an essential protein that helps ingredients bind together.

Not only are they useful for sweet recipes, but they also act as a binding agent for savory food like meatloafs and casseroles.

Fortunately, you can make egg-free dishes with these alternatives.

Agar-Agar or Gelatin

Agar-agar powder or gelatin works as a substitute in dishes that don’t need further cooking. You can use this for custards, ice cream, or meatloaf.

These replacements work great without altering the recipe’s flavor.

Vegetarians or vegans use agar-agar powder since it’s made from seaweed, while gelatin comes from collagen.

For every yolk, use a tablespoon of agar-agar powder or gelatin dissolved in a tablespoon of boiling water.

One drawback of this substitute is that you can only use them for recipes that call for less than two or three eggs. It just can’t provide the same stability and binding strength in recipes with four eggs or more.

Chickpea Flour

Another vegan option is chickpea flour, which works well in sweet or savory dishes. The right mixture of chickpea flour with a liquid mimics the same protein in eggs.

Aside from being a binding agent, chickpea flour also works as a good leavening agent.

Combine two tablespoons of chickpea flour with two tablespoons of cooking oil for every egg.

Let the mixture sit for a few minutes before using.

Our Best Ingredient Substitutions

All of your substitutes needs all in one handy reference spot! Comprehensive list substitutes here or to print off for your own menu binder. You to find an ingredient option that will allow you to not run out to the store or you may find a flavor combination you love even better than the original. Garlic Powder Substitute, Cojita Cheese Substitute, Parsley Substitute, Green Chilis Substitute, Italian Seasoning Substitute, Mustard Seed Substitute, Cilantro Substitute, Sriracha Substitute, White Pepper Substitute, Onion Powder Substitute, Five Spice Substitute, Turmeric Substitutes, White Wine Vinegar, Cardamon Substitute, Parsley Substitute, Cremini Mushroom Substitute, Egg Yolk, Leeks, Egg Wash, Coconut Cream, Tomato, Stewed Tomatoes, Coconut Sugar, Palm Sugar, Hoisin,Adobo,Chili Sauce, Oyster Sauce, Escarole, Watercress, Rice Wine Vinegar, Ketchup, Tomato Puree, Tomato Paste, Lemongrass, Chervil, Cheesecloth, Worcestershire Sauce, Fennel, Dark Soy Sauce.

The Takeaway

Egg yolks play an important role in recipes, especially when achieving specific texture and structure.

Fortunately, there are many substitutes for when you don’t have any or simply can’t consume eggs.

So, the next time you plan on making an egg-free recipe, feel free to explore different options!

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