This is a simple, kidney friendly, plant based Eggless Veggie Omelette (or omelet) recipe 🙂 With so much versatility, it can fit a renal diet for pretty much anyone with Chronic Kidney Disease!

What is an eggless omelette?

An eggless omelette is simply an omelette made without eggs. It is not made out of ultra processed vegan ingredients either! It is made with chickpea or garbanzo bean flour (also known as besan or gram flour). This keeps it whole food, plant based, and minimally processed.

You basically whisk the chickpea flour with water, add spices/seasonings (like turmeric for a yellow egg color), and cook it in a pan. Then add sauteed veggies, and that’s it!

Why choose and eggless omelette?

You don’t have to avoid eggs if you have kidney disease….this is just an alternative that has a few benefits over a standard egg omelette.

1. It is made with plant protein (chickpea flour) over animal protein. This makes it a lower potential renal acid load (PRAL). One egg is +4.5 PRAL. While this is much less than other animal protein (meat, poultry, cheese, etc) it is still not as low as plant protein. This recipe uses 1/4 cup of chickpea flour which is neutral PRAL (0).
2. It is higher in fiber. Eggs do not contain fiber. The chickpea flour provides 2.5 grams of fiber for this 1/4 cup portion used. Most people with kidney disease (and most of the general population) don’t get enough fiber in their diet.
3. Chickpea flour is a little lower in protein than eggs. One large egg is ~ 6-7 grams of protein while 1/4 cup of chickpea flour is 5 grams of protein. Most people need to use 2 eggs to make an omelette (12-14 grams of protein). With the chickpea flour, you only need to use the 1/4 cup portion. Since people with CKD Stage 1-5 (not on dialysis) need to avoid excess protein in their diet, this makes it a little easier!

How to make it

Follow these simple steps!

1. Sauté your veggies in a pan over medium heat while you prepare your chickpea omelette batter in a mixing cup or bowl. You can choose whatever veggies you want, but will use ~3/4-1 cup of raw veggies. I use onion and zucchini in this recipe. Other great options are: leafy greens (like kale, collard greens or spinach), bell pepper, mushrooms, or tomato (higher in potassium).
2. Add the chickpea flour and seasonings to a small mixing bowl and combine.
3. Slowly add the water to the chickpea flour mixture and whisk as you add it. You will want to whisk it (with a whisk or fork) until the clumps are gone. Pouring the water in slowly helps prevent a lot of clumping.
4. When the veggies are cooked, remove them from the pan and place on a plate to use later. Spray the pan with cooking oil (I recommend avocado oil) and keep the temp on medium heat. Pour the chickpea batter into the pan (Caraway Frying Pans are my favorite). Cook for ~ 5-6 minutes until the batter looks fully cooked through.
5. Pour your veggies onto one side of your omelette and flip one side over the other. You can add cheese on top of the veggies if you want. I leave cheese out and top the omelette with a little avocado instead (1/4 avocado is 175 mg potassium and totally acceptable for people with CKD)!
6. Plate your omelette and add any toppings you like! I usually do chopped basil or cilantro, avocado and hot sauce 🙂

Tips when making your omelette

Have you ever gone to flip your omelette and suddenly you’re having scrambled eggs?! This has happened to me with both eggs and chickpea batter. Here are a few tips to prevent that from happening in this recipe.

1. Sauté your veggies and remove them from the pan before you cook your omelette. You will add your veggies after the chickpea batter has fully cooked.
2. Use a 10 inch frying pan. A 12 inch frying pan will be too big and the batter will spread too thin. You can use a smaller 8 inch frying pan, but will need to cook the chickpea batter longer (and may need to cover it with a lid) so that it cooks all the way through before adding your veggies.
3. Make sure the batter is fully cooked before you try to flip it over. You can lift the edges with a spatula to check and see how the bottom looks before you make the flip.
4. If you end up having scrambled eggless eggs, that’s okay too! It still tastes delicious 🙂 I’ve learned that making any type of omelette takes practice. And still sometimes doesn’t work out!

A kidney friendly breakfast option

This eggless veggie omelette is a great kidney friendly breakfast. If you prefer eggs, try this for lunch instead 🙂 There are many benefits to plant based meals for people with Chronic Kidney Disease. Start by adding a few to your diet each week!

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