Nutrition Nugget: Aquafaba

[00:00:26] Have you heard of this one? So in this week's episode, when I mentioned it, I gave the hint that an example of aquafaba is the liquid in the can of chickpeas. And I said, you may not wanna just dump it down the drain. So what is aquafaba? What's so special about it? What do we do with it? And why are some people not fans of it?

[00:01:12] Either way, his name was Joel Rosell. I might be saying that wrong, but anyway, he figured out that the liquid from a can of beans could be used to create foams like egg whites. Then a couple years later, I think it was around 2018, there was another guy, goose Walt. Again, I might be pushing his last name.

[00:02:10] So for those with high levels of phenyl alanine in their blood and you have to, you know, watch your protein intake or eggs in particular, this might be really interesting. You could get aquafaba from basically any pulse, any like, it could be canned chickpeas or white beans. But think honestly, any beans, even lentils can make aquafaba.

[00:03:01] The water then gets thick because of the proteins and starches in it. Now the proteins act kind of like egg whites because they can trap air when you whip them. Therefore, you're getting things like meringue and. You know, egg whites and foams, right? The starches help make it sticky and creamy, which is great for baking and cooking.

[00:03:47] I mean, as we say all the time, there isn't money in studying a lot of these specific foods and you know, certainly this, but we'll do what we can if we think about it logically. Protein and [00:04:00] fiber aren't transferring in any significant way to the water. You may get some vitamins and minerals, like if we think about beans and lentils, we're thinking like calcium and iron, some B vitamins, maybe phosphorus, right?

[00:04:45] Now, in addition to using aquafaba to make meringue, you could do marshmallow, fluff, frosting, mousse, marzipan ice cream. You can use it instead of egg or oil in making mayonnaise or salad [00:05:00] dressings, and then baking muffins, cookies, cakes, right? All the things. Now taste wise is always people's question. So the liquid smells like beans, you know, when it comes out of a can or after you make it.

[00:05:31] Right. If you need the liquid to be thicker, you just heat it, right? Cook it to reduce it down. But before you use it in any recipe, just make sure it's cool and that replacement thing. So one large egg, you would use three tablespoons of the aquafaba. If you're replacing one large egg white, you do two tablespoons of the aquafaba.

[00:06:27] It's that chemical that can be an endocrine disruptor, and why everyone's in the camp of ditching all the plastic these days. So to me, this is also easily addressed, right? Either get more information on the cans used by the bean company, right? Or the company that you're buying your canned beans from. Or make your own aquafaba with dry beans and water so you get the beans you can use for meals, and then the aquafaba you can keep instead of [00:07:00] tossing it out.

[00:07:19] And you could certainly Google or chat GPT or you know, find directions online for how to make it and you know, boil your beans. Okay. Another point that makes people anti aquafaba is antinutrients. Now, whenever we talk about antinutrients, we discuss that many are diminished or even removed when the plant or food is cooked.

[00:08:13] Right. And then the sodium thing comes up again when we talk about canned foods and why people don't like aquafaba. We already talked about the sodium piece, right? So we're gonna look for no salt or minimal salt if we're using the canned version. Again, if you make your own, this is not an issue. And then the one anti aquafaba argument that I can't fully rationalize.

[00:09:02] There are a couple polysaccharides in these beans now. It's possible that in the cooking process, the polysaccharides become oligosaccharides and therefore create gas, or even in the digestive process, right? So this is where you do you, as I often say, right? I think it's a simple sign to also indicate if we're having maybe too much or having aquafaba too often, right?

[00:09:57] But nevertheless, [00:10:00] aquafaba I think is pretty interesting. It maybe makes the argument for buying dry beans and cooking them yourself instead of buying canned. But either way, aquafaba is a new fun food fact for you. So the next time you have canned beans, maybe don't throw that liquid out. There might be something really valuable in there.

[00:10:44] This is the easiest way to learn more about working with me as your health coach. And friends. If you are not already a member, I invite you to the Happy Healthy Hub. You'll go to a salad with the side of fries.com/membership. This shows your support for this podcast, this [00:11:00] community, and most importantly, it supports your health.

[00:11:21] Congratulations for making yourself and your health a priority. Thanks so much for joining us. Be sure to click subscribe or follow on your favorite podcast platform. Share us with a friend and we'll be back next week. Always remember you deserve it and you are worth it. Happy, healthy.