Egg Substitutes for Pancakes
Need a quick answer for how to replace eggs in pancakes! I gotcha! Here are 15 different ideas for egg substitutes for pancakes, both from scratch and a box mix.
No matter if you have an egg allergy or forgot to pick some up at the store, sometimes you need a quick fix on how to replace eggs in pancakes. These solutions will work in both pancakes made from scratch, or in a boxed pancake mix.
Want a recipe designed to work without eggs? Check out my eggless pancake recipe here or my gluten free and vegan pancake recipe here!
Learn how to substitute eggs in any recipe with my egg free baking guide!
Best Egg Replacement for Pancakes
- Flax egg
- Sour Cream
- Baking soda + vinegar
These are my top 3 picks for the best egg substitute. Obviously, use the ones that work for you and your family. I love to have a fluffy pancake topped with maple syrup and I find that these 3 options consistently make for a great substitute.
Eggs do three different things in recipes: They provide moisture, they bind the ingredients together, and they act as a leavening agent. While no one egg alternative can identically replace real eggs, they can come really close!
Applesauce
How to substitute: 2-3 tablespoons of unsweetened apple = 1 egg
Applesauce is a great egg substitute for pancakes! It provides moisture and the naturally occurring pectin helps to bind the ingredients together. Use unsweetened applesauce so that it is free from added colors or flavors.
As applesauce is a heavier ingredient than eggs, it may be helpful to add an additional ½ teaspoon of baking powder to the recipe.
Applesauce makes for a great egg replacer as it makes the pancakes sweet and fluffy.
Agar agar
How to substitute: 2 teaspoons of agar agar + 2 teaspoons warm water = 1 egg
Agar-agar is a powdered seaweed that is commonly used in foods to help them stick together. It is made from seaweed, making this safe not only for most people with allergies and food intolerances, but also it is safe for vegans.
It can make the pancakes a little gummy so don’t add all of this right away. Add it a little bit at a time until the pancakes are at the right viscosity. I would recommend only using this in recipes that require 1 egg.
Arrowroot powder
How to substitute: 1 tablespoon + 2 tablespoons warm water = 1 egg
Similar to tapioca flour and cornstarch, arrowroot powder is a starch that works well for thickening batters and sauces. It provides a neutral flavor and helps the pancakes rise.
Make sure you make an arrowroot slurry before adding it to your batter. Mix the arrowroot and water together well until no lumps remain, then add it to the wet ingredients. This will ensure there are no lumps of arrowroot in the final batter.
Aquafaba
How to substitute: 2 tablespoons aquafaba whisked until foamy = 1 egg, add 1 extra teaspoon of oil (or butter) for fat
Aquafaba is the liquid from canned chickpeas. It is very common in vegan baking, especially in things like brownies. That is because the micro-nutrient makeup of aquafaba is very similar to egg whites.
Because it is so similar to egg whites, it won’t be quite the same as adding an egg. It needs some extra fat to help it substitute eggs in pancakes.
I find that it does leave a little bean flavor and is better used in savory things rather than sweet. Also, you are left with a can of chickpeas ready to use and make into some hummus.
Try to use unsalted chickpeas as they have less of a bean-y flavor to them.
Bananas
How to substitute: ¼ cup of mashed banana = 1 egg
Similar to applesauce, bananas are one of the best go-tos for replacing eggs in pancake recipes. Bananas are low in fat and protein so they need additional fats from an extra spoonful of oil.
However, pancakes made with bananas will really puff up! Plus, they will have a sweet banana flavor to them, unless you are making pumpkin pancakes or chocolate pancakes.
Baking Soda with Apple Cider Vinegar
How to substitute: 1/2 teaspoon baking soda mixed in with the dry ingredients + 1 teaspoon vinegar mixed with the wet ingredients = 1 egg
To make super light and fluffy pancakes, this is the one to choose! Mixing baking soda and vinegar is a classic elementary school science experiment because it makes carbon dioxide. Those tiny bubbles make the pancake batter light and fluffy; helping them rise in the hot skillet as they cook.
For fluffy American style pancakes, this is the one I would recommend first.
Just be careful as there is no binding agent to help them stick together, they can be more delicate. To offset this, I recommend making the pancakes slightly thicker with the consistency of yogurt.
Buttermilk
How to substitute: 2 tablespoons buttermilk = 1 egg
Similar to how baking soda and vinegar work, buttermilk is a naturally acidic food that provides the lift and rise to pancakes as they cook on the hot griddle.
Buttermilk pancakes are a classic breakfast for a reason. The crumb is very tender and the pancakes will be very fluffy.
If you have a lot of buttermilk leftover, you can freeze it! Pour leftover buttermilk into ice cube trays and freeze. After a few hours, transfer them to a freezer safe container and you will always have fresh buttermilk on hand. Just let it thaw in the fridge for a few hours until liquid again. This will last for about 3 months.
Chia seeds
How to substitute: 1 tablespoon chia seeds + 3 tablespoons hot water = 1 egg
Chia seeds are one of the most common egg substitutes. They are super healthy and full of omega-3 fatty acids and fiber. They are great at providing moisture and binding the recipe together, however, they can impart a bit of chia seed taste into baked goods. They will show up as flecks in your pancakes.
For pancakes, use just 1 chia egg in the recipe and an additional ½ teaspoon baking powder to help the pancake lift.
Corn starch
How to substitute: 1 tablespoon cornstarch + 2 tablespoons water = 1 egg
Cornstarch is similar to arrowroot powder and tapioca flour as being a starch of corn that is used to thicken batters and sauces alike. It is a very neutral flavor that should help your pancakes become fluffy.
Make sure you make a cornstarch slurry before adding it to your batter. Mix the cornstarch and water together well until no lumps remain, then add it to the wet ingredients. This will ensure there are no lumps of cornstarch in the final batter.
Ground Flax seeds
How to substitute: 1 tablespoon ground flax seeds + 3 tablespoons boiling water = 1 egg
Flaxseeds are similar to chia seeds in that they are a very common egg replacer and used in a lot of vegan baking. it’s known as the flax egg! Make sure that you are using ground flax seeds as the whole flax seed won’t work as well.
Use hot water to mix the flaxseeds and set them aside for about 5 minutes to get gelatinous in texture.
As with chia seeds, they can be a bit earthy in flavor. Not to mention they will show up in your regular pancakes, but should disappear in things like pumpkin pancakes.
Nut butter
How to substitute: 2 tablespoons nut butter = 1 egg
Nut butters of any kind, be it peanut butter, almond butter, cashew butter, or even nut free types like soy butter and sunflower seed butter, all work great as an egg replacer. As they are a nut butter, they will impart a little color and nutty flavor into your pancakes. For things like pumpkin pancakes and whole wheat pancakes, it tastes great!
The pancakes may not be as fluffy due to the heavy nature of nut butters. You can add a ½ teaspoon extra baking powder to help counter this.
Silken tofu
How to substitute: ¼ cup blended silken tofu = 1 egg
Silken tofu has a creamy texture that when blended turns into almost a pudding-like texture. When used as an egg replacer, silken tofu is one of the more neutral flavored options. It can make the pancakes more dense.
Sour cream
How to substitute: ¼ cup sour cream = 1 egg
For fluffy and decadent pancakes, sour cream is it! Add this to the wet ingredient mixture you use when making pancakes for really fluffy results. It adds a bit of fat, moisture, and a bit of flavor to the finished pancakes.
Note, pancakes made with sour cream may not have as crispy of a finish as other pancakes.
Tapioca Flour
How to substitute: 1 tablespoon tapioca flour + 2 tablespoon warm water = 1 egg
Tapioca flour, also known as tapioca starch, is the starch of a tuber and really works like cornstarch to help thicken batters and sauces. It should make for a nice flavored pancake with no real aftertaste.
Make sure you make a tapioca starch slurry before adding it to your batter. Mix the tapioca starch and water together well until no lumps remain, then add it to the wet ingredients. This will ensure there are no lumps of tapioca starch in the final batter.
Yogurt
How to substitute: ¼ cup yogurt = 1 egg
Similar to sour cream, plain yogurt makes for delicious pancakes! Add the yogurt when mixing up the wet ingredients for very fluffy pancakes. You can use a dairy free yogurt if you need something dairy free! Both traditional yogurt and greek yogurt work for this egg replacement. Try to use unflavored or plain yogurt for the most neutral of flavors. However, if you are making blueberry pancakes or other fruit filled pancakes, you can try adding a fruit flavored yogurt!
Pancake Tips!
For the best results when making homemade pancakes, follow these tips.
For the best fluffy texture, don’t over mix your pancake batter. A bit of flour clumps is okay. The batter consistency should be thick but still run off a spoon with little resistance.
Cook them over medium heat after the pan has gotten hot. A cold pan will make flat pancakes.
Don’t constantly flip the pancakes. A single flip will give you the best pancakes with a golden brown color. Flip when the tiny bubbles have appeared and mostly popped. For me, this is about 4 minutes on the first side.
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