What should you do when you don’t like chia pudding?
As versatile as it is, not everyone is going to like the texture of chia pudding. This popular snack/dessert/breakfast is made when chia seeds are hydrated with various flavored liquids and stored in the refrigerator. Due to the super high soluble fiber content of the seed, they can absorb 9 times their weight in liquid and hold it on the outside of the seed shell in a drop of gel. Gather enough of this gel and you have a thick pudding. It can be flavored with just about anything, from your favorite fruits to chocolate, peanut butter, coconut, cashew, and much more. Of course, many of the types of pudding are attractive to look at in food photography, so you’ll see them all over the web and on blogs and pin sites as well.
But what if the texture is not for you?
Of course, since chia is a seed, the pudding, when made normally, will have a ‘pebbly’ texture. Not everyone is going to like that. So soluble fiber can have a “jello” feel to it, as it is always wet and a bit slippery. So if you try the pudding and just can’t get past the texture because it’s too reminiscent of tapioca dots, can you still enjoy the health benefits of chia seeds?
Of course!
Many photo blogs would have you think that pudding is the only way to combine chia, but once you see what else it can do, you’ll never need to see that texture again. There are several basic non-pudding uses for chia, each of which you can get a brief overview of in this article.
First: Replacing butter or oil in baked recipes
In many baked recipes like cookies, cakes, flatbreads (eg, banana bread), bars, brownies, and more, you can replace about half of the butter or oil with chia gel and the recipe will bake just the same. , they will look the same and taste the same, but they have half the fat. Because the seeds are evenly distributed in baked goods, you won’t even notice they’re there.
Second: Replacing an egg in some baked recipes
Does your recipe call for 1 egg? You can usually replace one egg in baked recipes (that don’t rely on beaten egg whites or the like) with an equal amount of chia seed gel. Because an egg is generally a binding ingredient, and chia gel is a fiber product, it can bind as well. It’s a good way to make some vegan/vegetarian recipes and tends to work better than a “flax egg” since chia produces more gel than flax. (Again, you won’t notice the seeds)
Third: Flavor Mixer / Seasoning Helper
When chia produces gel, it can mix flavors, sometimes concentrating them. This is a great solution for making healthier homemade dressings. Make salad appealing, fun, and preservative-free when you mix up a myriad of your own chia dressing flavors. Citrus and spice with some fruit among the greens or honey and lime for picnic fruit salad. Most dressings mix up in minutes in a simple measuring cup, so you won’t miss a thing if you skip the store-bought bottle.
Fourth: Smoothie Helper
Smoothies are great because, unlike juices, they keep all the fiber in the fruit where it belongs—in the drink. However, they can be a caloric catastrophe if you don’t replace a meal but add it, or if you just mix fruit together.
When you put chia seeds in a smoothie, you’ll feel full longer because the fiber helps slow down the conversion of carbs into sugars. Insoluble fiber also takes up space in the digestive system (while helping food move smoothly through it), which also contributes to feeling full. The other benefit here is that the healthy omega-3 oils in chia unlock several vitamins in fruits and vegetables (fat-soluble vitamins) that are commonly found in smoothie ingredients. Again, because you’re drinking a thick, smooth drink, there’s also no seedy texture.
Fifth: Hamburger Folder
Bored of plain old burgers? You can add a variety of great toppings and seasonings to meat when you combine it with some dried chia. Chia absorbs moisture and helps burgers stick while you customize the flavor. It also adds fiber where there would normally be none. Since there aren’t a lot of seeds mixed in, you won’t know they’re there.
Are these all the things you can do with chia that don’t involve pudding?
Certainly not! There are many more ways to use it and many more benefits it has for you. There are many more ideas and recipes than can fit in one article. Eggs are a good protein in the morning; but they are a fiber free food. How to get protein and fiber at the same time? A pinch of chia in scrambled eggs or tortillas will work quite well. Let your taste be your guide as you search for recipes that involve chia. The internet is an endless resource of creative non-pudding examples to try for free, and they’re usually just a search away. There’s no reason to let the pudding proliferation discourage you from these super seeds when you know all the fun, healthy, and easy alternative uses.