Vegan Chickpea Flour Omelette

Want to learn a magic trick? With a little chickpea flour, a few pantry spices, and one not-so-secret ingredient called kala namak, you can make a vegan omelette that’s surprisingly close to the real thing. It’s tender enough to fold, hearty enough to keep you full, and one of my favorite ways to make breakfast feel a little more exciting.

I filled mine with sautéed mushrooms, shallots, spinach, and plenty of melty vegan cheese, but that’s just the beginning. This omelette is made for cleaning out the vegetable drawer, whether you’re craving roasted peppers, tomatoes, herbs, or leftover breakfast potatoes. It comes together in about 30 minutes, making it just as doable on a busy weekday as it is for a slow weekend breakfast. This vegan chickpea omelette might be the closest thing to a traditional omelette without using a single egg.

Notes on Ingredients

You might already have many of the ingredients you need for this vegan omelet in your kitchen. Here they are (see the recipe card below for precise measurements):

Omelette Batter

• Chickpea flour – A truly magical ingredient. See the section below “What Is Chickpea Flour?” for more information. By the way, don’t try to substitute a different kind of flour. It won’t work.
• Nutritional yeast – To add a savoury, almost cheesy depth to the omelette.
• Seasonings – Kala namak (Indian black salt), ground turmeric (for that gorgeous yellow color), and onion powder. Kala namak (found in most Indian and Asian markets as well as some specialty grocery stores) is a kind of salt that has a distinct sulfurous flavour and aroma.
• Apple cider vinegar – White wine vinegar or rice vinegar would also work.
• Water – I would opt for filtered water, as tap water can have a funky taste that will transfer to the omelette.
• Olive oil – Avocado oil or melted vegan butter would be fine. A small amount of olive oil in the batter helps create a more tender texture and helps keep the omelette from cracking when folded.

Filling

• Olive oil – Or vegan butter to sauté the veggies.
• Veggies – Finely diced shallot (or red onion), thinly sliced mushrooms, and baby spinach.
• Shredded vegan cheese – You can usually find it near the tofu at your local grocery store. I also have a vegan feta and a vegan parmesan you could try.
• Olive oil – Or vegan butter for the pan.

What Is Chickpea Flour?

Chickpea flour is exactly what it sounds like! Flour made from finely ground chickpeas (also known as garbanzo beans). It’s kind of a miracle ingredient because it’s naturally gluten-free AND it’s high in protein, fiber, iron, and folate. It’s got this lovely earthy, nutty flavour I love, too.

The cool thing about chickpea flour (in my opinion) is that it thickens when mixed with water. Then, if you cook that mixture, it firms up into a sort of savoury crepe, ideal for omelette-making. Neat, right?

You can find chickpea flour in most grocery stores near all of the other flours, though it’s sometimes called chickpea powder, gram flour, or besan (the Indian name).

How to Make a Vegan Omelette

Once you have your ingredients, whip out the mixing bowls and a skillet and dive in. Here’s a quick look at how it’s done (for more detailed instructions, see the recipe card below):

• Whisk. Whisk together the chickpea flour, nutritional yeast, and seasonings. Whisk in the apple cider vinegar, then the water until smooth. Stir in the olive oil.
• Rest. Let the batter rest for 10–15 minutes.

• Cook the omelette. Heat a non-stick skillet over medium-low heat and add some olive oil. Whisk the batter, pour it into the pan, and give the pan a swirl to spread the batter. Cook for 3–5 minutes until mostly set.
• Flip. Carefully flip the omelette and cook for 1 minute.

• Fill. Spoon the mushroom mixture onto one half of the omelette, sprinkle with vegan cheese, and fold the empty side over the filling. Cook for 1–2 minutes to melt the cheese.
• Serve. Serve immediately with avocado, breakfast potatoes, fresh herbs, hot sauce, or a simple green salad.

Quick Tips for the Best Omelette

This chickpea flour omelette is pretty straightforward, but there are a few tricks to getting it right:

• Rest. It’s important to rest the batter for 5-10 minutes before cooking. This allows the chickpea flour to fully absorb the liquid, creating a more tender omelette that’s easier to flip.
• Be gentle. When swirling the pan to spread the batter and then when flipping the omelette and folding it over the filling, be gentle. Otherwise, it’ll break.
• A note on doubling the recipe. If you decide to double this recipe, double the batter in the same bowl and cook the filling in the same pan. But when cooking, flipping, and filling the omelette, I’d do so in two batches. Trying to add more batter to a larger pan can make the omelette unwieldy.

Optional Add-ins

This omelette is highly versatile. You can fill it with pretty much anything you can think of. Here are a few ideas:

• Vegan meats. Want to add a little extra oomph to your omelette? Fold some Tofu Bacon or Vegan Bacon Crumbles in with the veggies. Chopped Soy Curl Chicken would also work well if you’re aiming for a lunch or dinner omelette.
• Other veggies. I like the shallot, mushroom, spinach combo, but you can add any veggie/s you’d like. Tomatoes or diced sautéed bell pepper would be awesome. So would my Lemon Garlic Grilled Zucchini or Garlic Roasted Asparagus.
• Greek-style. If you want to take your taste buds on a trip to the Mediterranean, try filling your omelette with sautéed baby spinach, sun-dried tomatoes, and crumbled vegan feta.

Make Ahead, Storage, and Reheating

• Refrigerator: Once cool, seal any leftover omelette in an airtight container. It’ll keep in the fridge for up to 3 days.
• Freezer: Seal the fully cooled leftovers in a freezer-safe airtight container and store it in the freezer for up to 2 months. Thaw in the fridge before reheating.
• To reheat: You can reheat this omelette on the stovetop over low heat until warm or in the microwave in 30-second intervals until heated through. Honestly, the leftovers are good cold, too.

Make ahead option: If you’d like, you can prep the batter up to 24 hours ahead of time. Just whisk together all of the ingredients for the batter, then seal it in an airtight container and store it in the fridge. You can also sauté the veggies ahead of time and store them in the fridge in a separate airtight container. The next day, thin the batter out (if needed) with a splash of water and continue on with the recipe.

More Vegan Breakfast Recipes

Love waking up excited about breakfast? Here are a few more recipes to get you there:

• Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls
• Vegan Breakfast Crunch Wrap
• Vegan German Pancakes
• Overnight Breakfast Strata Recipe
• Breakfast Hash With Veggies & Black Beans

Enjoy friends! If you make this chickpea omelette, please snap a photo and tag #jessicainthekitchen on Instagram! We’d also love it if you would leave a comment below and give the recipe a rating! Thanks so much!