Chickpea Flour Is The Key For An Eggless Frittata That Doesn't Disappoint

Your savory breakfast options significantly decrease when eggs are taken off the menu. But with options like JUST Egg, the bottled, plant-based egg alternative, that's no longer the case — and it's JUST as easy to make an equivalent at home. In fact, people have been doing it since long before egg alternatives were a thing. When you compare the ingredients to besan chilla, the Indian breakfast omelet that just happens to be vegan, you'll notice that both are made with mung bean flour and water. People have been making it with other flours for just as long. With chickpea flour, it can be used as a substitute to make all of your favorite breakfast dishes eggless — even your frittatas.

Making an eggless frittata starts with making your own egg substitute, which is really just besan chilla, and it genuinely couldn't be easier. All you need is equal parts chickpea flour and water mixed in a bowl along with a dash of turmeric powder for that golden yellow color. The rest of the work depends on what kinds of fillings you'd like to include in the frittata itself, giving you the perfect opportunity to use whatever veggies you have in the fridge. Cooked in a skillet, simply add them into the bowl with the chickpea mixture, stir, and then pour everything back into the pan. From there, you can cook everything on the stovetop or throw it in the oven. Either way, you'll have yourself an eggless frittata that doesn't disappoint.

It's one thing for your eggless frittata to look like an egg frittata, but it's another thing for it to taste like it. Unfortunately, while chickpea flour folds and molds like an egg when it's mixed with water, it doesn't actually taste like an egg. The good thing is that it does provide the perfect blank canvas for you to add egg-like flavors to, and they'll shine all the more because of it. Aside from the turmeric or mustard powder (both of which will give your chickpea flour mixture an egg-like color), there are a handful of other common ingredients that you can reach for that will give it an egg-like taste, the most important being some form of umami.

For that, look no further than black salt aka kala namak, nutritional yeast, MSG, miso paste, soy sauce, or tamari. Once you've covered that, you can add the other seasonings you'd normally add to a frittata, such as garlic and onion powder and salt and pepper. If you like your frittata on the creamier side, you can add a dollop of your favorite cream cheese (vegan or not) to the mix. You can also squeeze in some dijon mustard for a tangier flavor. From there, the fillings will give your frittata a flavor boost. Mushrooms are a great option as they bring an extra boost of umami, but you can also add your go-to shredded vegan or non-vegan cheese.