This omelet is made from beans! That's right — it's totally vegan! Chickpea flour whips up to make the batter for this vegan omelet, but the real magic is black salt, which gives it a surprising and amazingly realistic eggy flavor.
Chickpea flour is kind of amazing stuff. It's the only flour I know of that not only works in baked goods, but also does a pretty darn good job of replicating eggs.
Not only that, but it's really nutritious stuff, and incredibly filling. I'd say notably filling, because every time I eat a chickpea flour "egg" breakfast I feel the need to note how full I am after I finish, and how full I still am every hour thereafter. 11AM: "I finished that omelet two hours ago, and I'm still full!" 12PM: "I'm not even ready for lunch yet!"
So if you haven't started yet, it's time to get cooking with some chickpea flour. This vegan omelet is a great place to start!
But there's more to this omelet than that. The eggy flavor comes from black salt, also know as kala namak. Open a jar of this stuff and your house will smell like eggs cooking. No kidding. Read more about kala namak in the ingredients notes below.
This egg-free omelet is also super easy to make. It's basically like a savory pancake, but then again, conventional omlets are kind of like egg pancakes, right?
So grab some ingredients and get cooking. You'll want to make this one for breakfast, lunch and dinner on a regular basis!
Jump to:
Ingredients You'll Need
- Chickpea flour. Also known as garbanzo bean flour. Look for this in the baked goods or natural foods aisle of your supermarket. You might also find it in the international aisle, labelled as besan flour or gram flour, as it's often used in Indian cooking.
- Nutritional yeast flakes. These will add savory, cheesy flavor to your omelet. Look for them in the natural foods aisle.
- Cornstarch.
- Kala namak. Kala namak is a type of salt that's high in sulfur, so it tastes and smells eggy. It's totally optional, but will definitely make for a more realistic vegan omelet. Swap it out with regular table salt if you don't feel like using it. You can find kala nama in Indian markets or online.
- Turmeric. This is just for giving our omelet a yellow tint. Leave it out if this isn't important to you. It'll already be a bit yellow from the chickpea flour.
- Baking powder. Just a little bit of this will help give our omelet some rise.
- Cold water.
- Vegan butter.
- Black pepper.
- Fillings. Stuff your omelet with your favorite veggies and sauces. I used sautéed mushrooms and spinach in the one shown in the photos, but just about any vegetables will do. Vegan cheese is also a great addition, and I particularly love slathering mine in homemade vegan cream cheese. Ketchup, hot sauce, and salsa are excellent sauces for this one.
Tip: This recipe is for a basic vegan omelet, but feel free to play with the seasonings and make it your own. Try adding a dash of spices like ground cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, or paprika.
How It's Made
The following is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make this dish. Scroll all the way down if you'd like to skip right to the recipe!
Make sure to have your fillings prepared and ready to go before you start cooking your omelet.
Whisk the dry ingredients together in a medium bowl: chickpea flour, nutritional yeast, cornstarch, kala namak (or table salt), turmeric and baking powder.
Add cold water to the dry ingredients and whisk the batter together until it's smooth. Let the batter rest for a few minutes while you prepare your skillet.
Melt some vegan butter in a skillet over medium heat. Swirl it around well to coat the bottom of the skillet, then pour in the batter.
Cook the batter for a few minutes, until the edges feel set and you can see bubbles forming in the middle. Then carefully flip it. Cook it for a few minutes more on the opposite side.
Tip: Use a good nonstick pan to make this omelet. It'll be much easier to flip this way. A chickpea flour omelet is a bit more delicate than an egg-based omelet, so flipping it in one piece is the trickiest part.
Once your vegan omelet is about fully cooked, arrange the toppings over half of it.
Carefully fold the omelet over the toppings. Cook it for a few more minutes you've got something like vegan cheese in there that you'd like to melt. Otherwise it's done!
Sprinkle your vegan omelet with some black pepper. It's ready to enjoy!
Leftovers & Storage
This omelet is best served immediately, but leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for about 3 days.
The easiest way to reheat it is in the microwave, but you could also place it back into a skillet over medium heat for a few minutes.
More Vegan Eggy Recipes
Like this recipe? If so, please stop back and leave me a review and rating below if you try it! Also be sure to follow me on Facebook, Pinterest or Instagram, or subscribe to my newsletter for more recipes like this one!
Easy Vegan Omelet
This omelet is made from beans! That's right — it's totally vegan! Chickpea flour whips up to make the batter for this vegan omelet, but the real magic is black salt, which gives it a surprising and amazingly realistic eggy flavor.
Ingredients
For the Vegan Omelet
- ¾ cup chickpea flour
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- ¼ teaspoon kala namak, or use regular table salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground turmeric (optional, for color)
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ cup cold water
- 1 tablespoon vegan butter
- Black pepper, to taste
- Fillings of choice (Note 1)
Instructions
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In a medium bowl, whisk together the chickpea flour, nutritional yeast, cornstarch, kala namak, turmeric, and baking powder.
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Whisk in the water until the batter is smooth.
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Let the batter sit for 10 minutes.
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Place a medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add half of the butter. Swirl the butter as it melts to evenly coat the bottom of the skillet.
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Once the butter is lightly sizzling, pour half of the batter into the skillet.
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Cook the omelet for about 4 minutes, until it feels set around the edges and bubbles appear in the center.
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Carefully flip the omlet (Note 2). Cook it for about 2 minutes on the opposite side, until set.
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Arrange half of the toppings over half of the omelet. Fold the omelet over the toppings, and optionally let it cook for a few more minutes to heat the toppings.
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Transfer the omelet to a plate and sprinkle it with black pepper.
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Repeat the cooking process using the other half of the vegan butter, batter, and toppings.
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Serve.
Recipe Notes
- Use what you like! Try shredded vegan cheese, homemade cashew cream cheese, sautéed vegetables such as spinach, mushrooms, asparagus, onions, and peppers, salsa, hot sauce, or ketchup.
- It's a good idea to test the omelet to ensure it's ready to be flipped. Try to gently lift half of it with a spatula before going all in and flipping the whole thing.
I tried it two time and both times it got stuck :( What am I doing wrong?
It could be a few things. First, make sure you've got a nice coating of oil in the skillet, and re-oil between omelets if it dries up. If you still have trouble, try a different skillet - nonstick or some very well seasoned cast iron. Also, make sure it's fully cooked before flipping. If it feels like it's not quite sturdy, give it another minutes or two. I hope that helps!
I want to try this! Oh, what about some vegan Italian sausage and marinara~ a pizza omelette!!
Did you use flax seeds or flax meal?
Ground flax seeds, also known as flax meal. There's a link in the recipe to the exact ingredient I used. :)
Can you make this without the yeast flakes?
You can leave them out - the flavor will just be a bit different.
Delicious! What I tried a couple of times before is making a batter as yours, or with some different spices, just as you like. Then add my leftover veggies and bake them like that is small portions. Tasts great with some chili sauce!
I'm so glad you like it!!
Will the pancake (Omelet) component stand up to freezing and then thawing for future use?
I think so, but I haven't tried. This became lunch and got eaten pretty quick! Let me know how it turns out if you try! Enjoy!
I have Bobs Red Mill Garbonza and Fava flour is ‘‘tis the same?
That one is a mix. I used all garbanzo flour. I'm not sure if that will work. Let me know if you try it! Thanks for the comment!
I'm thinking this might work to make my favorite Asian dish from my pre-vegan days: egg foo yung. I'll have to get right on that. Thanks for the inspiration.
Yes! I've done egg foo yung with this 'egg.' I'll have to make it again and post it this time! Enjoy!
WOW! This was a pleasant yummy surprise, I added mushrooms, red and white onions, and a slice of dairy free cheddar cheese. The first one stuck to pan (fail) but with more oil the second one was perfect! I am a low salt vegan and never heard of black salt before, had to go out and find it and I'm so glad I did! Thanks!
I'm so glad that you liked it! The black salt is great for those that miss the authentic eggy flavor. Thanks for the comment!
Yum, I bet you could use the Vegan egg yolk/toast dipping sauce over the top on under the omelet if you are one who is missing the "runny egg" thing. Absolutely on my list of recipes to try. Thank you!
OMG YES!! I've had that dipping sauce bookmarked for a while. I might try it out on my family for brunch this weekend. :)
It's my favorite recipe. Especially the Veggie Filling, for Broccoli Florets. Thanks for sharing!
I'm so happy to hear that! Thanks so much Ronald!
I made this tonight for myself and my husband. We loved it! I want to eat it everyday. It's great that You showed them! :)
Yay!! I'm so glad you enjoyed it!! Thanks Izabela!
Loved this recipe...used vegan butter instead of the oil and it worked great. Also switched out the broccoli for some mushrooms and spinach...delicious!!
That sounds delicious! Im' so glad you enjoyed it!
Hi, Great recipe, love it. Make it often without the black salt. This is a common recipe in parts of northern India. Its called 'Chilla". In India, chickpea flour is termed 'besan' and black salt, also called rock salt, is translated as kala namak. It can easily be found in Indian grocery stores, if you have one in your town or city. I usually make this with red onions, small Thai chili peppers or paprika and cilantro. Its good to beat the batter.Ground cumin and tomato is optional, cilantro is a must. Yum.,
A friend of mine was actually just telling me this was very similar to an Indian recipe. I had no idea! I'll have to find a restaurant that has Chilla (or make one myself). Your version sounds delicious!
PS. Griddle needs to be very hot. The oil should splutter.
My family omelet maker reliable, I'll try your recipe
Thanks! I hope you enjoy!
This will change Sunday brunch forever lol.
Glad to hear it! :)
This was so good-i added lots of veggies and some chao pepper jack cheese ! I definitely think adding the tofu added to flavor and protein and doubling the flax wass necessary for me to get it to hold together . Be sure and let it sit for full 10 minutes.
I'm so glad you enjoyed it!! Thanks Lisa!
This is delicious! My spouse wants me to prepare it more often. I had a terrible time with the omelet sticking to the pan. I tried cast iron and stainless steel, and had sticking issues in both. I ended up using way more oil that I would have liked to keep the omelet from sticking. I will have to experiment with ways to minimize oil. Thanks for the recipe. It was delicious!
Yay!! I'm glad you enjoyed it! Try turning down the heat a smidge when you cook it - that might help with the sticking. :)
Hi! This looks AMAZING — is it possible to store leftover batter in an airtight container in the fridge? My morning s are busy and it would help to have it ready.
I think that will work! I'd stir it a bit just before cooking to incorporate some air into the batter. I'd love to hear how it works out!
It worked out beautifully! It took a couple of extra minutes because the batter was cold from the fridge. Other than that, texture and flavor were on point! Thanks for the recipe, we LOVE it.
Yay!! Thanks so much for letting me know!
This was so delicious! I had some trouble flipping the first one (I need to work on my flipping skills!), so that will be eaten as a scramble. I used mushrooms, onions, red bell pepper, and spinach. My taste buds thank you and I will definitely make this again.
I'm so glad you enjoyed it! And yes! It works great as a scramble - nice save! Thanks so much Donna!
I’ve tried this twice now and all I get is a sticky pile of goop☹️ It tastes great though!
My favorite kind of recipe, it feels fancy and decadent but it's actually easy and healthy! Love how versatile it is too, can just add any sauteed veggies we have in the fridge. For an extra treat, I add Miyoko's cream cheese or pub cheese inside.
This was absolutely delicious. I used my own veg combo but the omlette was so good. I will be making this a lot! thank you