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With the price of groceries somewhere in the stratosphere, it makes sense to use every bit of what you buy. So whether you're soaking fresh chickpeas or using canned, don't throw away the 'juice'.
That liquid is a valuable ingredient known as aquafaba. It makes an outstanding egg white substitute, somehow embodying the sameviscous texture and ability to whizz into fluff.
A hot tip: add a small pinch of cream of tartar to aquafaba when you want to whisk it to meringue-style peaks. It will whip much faster and firmer. Another tip: if you want to use your aquafaba in a sweet recipe, it's best to buy canned unsalted chickpeas, or don't add salt while your dried chickpeas are soaking.
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10 ways with canned chickpeas
Technically, aquafaba is made after soaking any legume, so go to town with your kidney beans, lentils,cannellini and haricot beans if you must. Personally, we are all about the chickpea juice around here. As these amazing recipes prove - it's really all you need.
Aquafaba mayonnaise is set to revolutionise vegan cooking. Source: Getty Images
is aquafaba's egg-morphing capabilities at their peak. Other vegan mayo attempts just haven't been able to nail the necessary creamy, gloopy consistency, but not this one.
To make aquafaba mayo, in a stick blender combine:
- ½ cup aquafaba
- ½tsp mustard seeds, ground
- 3 tsp white or apple cider vinegar
- 1-2 tsp maple syrup
Measure out 1½ - 2 cups of sunflower or canola oil (avocado or any other neutral oil also does well).
Slowly add the oil to the blender. The more oil you add the creamier and thicker the mayo will become. Taste to see if you need more vinegar, mustard or maple syrup and then transfer to a sealed jar and store in the fridge.
You will honestly not be able to tell the difference. Source: China Squirrel
Whisk chickpea liquid with sugar for long enough and it turns into an
. They produce the same almost-crunchy outer with the same sticky insides, only not a stray eggshell to be found.
A treat packed with aquafaba, dark chocolate, banana and hazelnuts is a very good-for-you treat indeed. Source: Tammi Kwok
These molten
are as full of goodness as they are full of decadence.You'll never drain a tin of chickpeas down the sink again. (Not that you would ever do that...)
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Roasted buffalo chickpeas
Once you discover how easy it is to make your own naan at home, you'll never go back. Source: Murdoch Books / Sasha Gill
A little added bean juice makes for fluffier
. Sasha Gill also shares a fab tip: whenever you open a tin of beans, drain the aquafaba into ice-cube trays and pop them in the freezer.
Would you like fries with that? Source: Zacchary Bird
It's hard to believe this
is 100 per cent vegan, but it is. From the bun to the burger to the aquafaba mayo, a Big Zac is all plants, every which way.
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Vegetarian chickpea curry
Like eating a bowl of life. Source: Andrew Dorn
Many chickpea dishes benefit from adding aquafaba and
. Cook your chickpeas, reserve a litre of the braising juice and use it like a stock later in the dish.
Have plenty of bread on hand to scoop up giant mounds of this delicious breakfast dish. Source: Racha Abou Alchamat
We'll finish with a
that combines chickpeas, pita bread, tangy tahini yoghurt sauceand toasted nuts. This time the aquafaba is used as a dressing... is there no end to this marvel's versatility?
Chickpeas out
Roasted buffalo chickpeas
