Aquafaba Whipped Cream – The Best Vegan Whipped Cream
Aquafaba whipped cream is light and fluffy vegan whipped cream that is gluten-free, soy-free, and nut-free too! You will be shocked by how amazingly delicious it tastes! Made without coconut milk, this whipped cream is light and fluffy and stays creamy for days in the fridge or months in the freezer as a vegan cool whip.
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❤️ You will love this recipe because it’s
- easy to make.
- free of soy, gluten, dairy, and nuts, plus it can be made fat-free too!
- light and fluffy and won’t deflate easily.
🧾 Ingredients and substitutions
- Aquafaba – the liquid from a can of garbanzo beans or white beans. See my post about everything you need to know about aquafaba if you have never used it before.
- Cream of Tartar – for acidity to help the protein whip into a sturdy foam. You can also use lemon juice instead if you wish.
- Vanilla Extract – for flavor.
- Powdered Sugar – to make it sweet. You can also use granulated sugar, but I have found that powdered sugar makes it lighter and creamier.
- Oil – for richness. you can use any neutral-flavored oil to make the whipped cream richer and creamier. (Optional)
🔪 Helpful tools
- A stand mixer works best for making this whipped cream since it has to blend for nearly 10 minutes. You can also use a hand mixer, but your arm will get a little tired of holding it.
❔ What is aquafaba?
Aquafaba translates from Latin as bean water. Yes, that stuff in the can of beans that you usually wash down the drain and rinse off the beans. Bean water doesn’t sound very appetizing, so they call it something a little fancier – aquafaba! I usually use the liquid from chickpeas, but any bean liquid will work. Chickpeas and white beans will have the most neutral flavor and whip up the whitest, so most people choose one of those 2 beans.
😋 Does aquafaba taste good?
Although it has a pretty name, you may still be turned off by the idea of bean juice. I was hesitant to try anything with aquafaba. Actually, it took me a few years before I worked up the nerve to try it. Wow! I was missing out! I wish I had gotten over it years ago. It doesn’t have much flavor itself but is delicious when sugar and vanilla are added.
Tip: Most people prefer to use unsalted beans for sweets made with aquafaba. I have used both and I don’t notice a big difference if you can’t find unsalted beans. I have also noticed that different brands of beans have slightly different flavors.
🥫 Do I have to use canned beans?
No, you don’t need to use canned beans. If you make your own beans from scratch, simply save the cooking water from your beans to make the whipped cream.
*This cooking liquid can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or frozen for up to 3 months.
🥄 Instructions
Step 1 – Simply drain the liquid from a can of chickpeas or white beans into a mixing bowl. There is usually about a ¾ cup of liquid in the standard can.
Step 2 – Use a mixer to beat the liquid until it gets foamy.
Step 3 – Add a ¼ teaspoon of cream of tartar to help it to hold its shape. Then continue to beat the liquid for 5 more minutes on high until it forms stiff peaks.
Step 4 – Add 1 tbsp of vanilla extract. This will turn your whip cream slightly brown. Don’t worry, beat it for another minute or 2 and it will turn white again.
Step 5 – After you have whipped it for about 7 minutes, slowly add 2/3 cup of powdered sugar while continuing to beat the mixture for a total of 9-10 minutes.
Note: (I’ve seen some recipes that call for granulated sugar and I have tested it out, but I have found that it stays lighter and fluffier with powdered sugar).
Step 6 – (Optional) Turn off the mixer and add 2 tbsp of neutral oil like refined coconut or canola oil. Mix on low for about 5-10 seconds. Just enough to get the oil distributed through the whipped cream. (optional for a richer flavor).
Note: If you over-mix once the oil has been added, it will lose its fluffiness. The oil gives it a rich flavor and mouth feel similar to real whipped cream.
✨ Troubleshooting
If your whipped cream is not holding its form
- Keep whipping it! It can take up to 10 minutes to get really fluffy stiff whipped cream.
- It will look like whipped cream after about 5 minutes of whipping, but it will not hold its form very long after just 5 minutes, so you need to continue whipping for a full 9-10 minutes to get the best results.
- Be sure to add cream of tartar or lemon juice. These acids help the protein bind and keep your aquafaba fluffy.
- Reduce your aquafaba. Some brands of chickpeas have a thinner light-colored, watery liquid. If this is the case, you will have better results if you simmer the liquid for a little while to get a more concentrated aquafaba. You read more about how to reduce aquafaba here.
😋 How to make aquafaba taste better?
Some people don’t like the taste of the chickpea liquid. If it tastes too salty to you, look for a low or no-salt variety. I have also noticed that different brands have different tastes, so you may just want to try another brand until you find one that you like. You may also try using the liquid from white beans or cannellini beans instead.
🧈 Make it fat-free
You can easily make this whipped cream without adding any oil to it, and it will still taste great. It is a little lighter and fluffier without the oil, but it’s a little less creamy too. So, if you don’t want the fat and extra calories, leave it out!
🥡 How to store the aquafaba whipped cream
Serve immediately on berries, ice cream, vegan chocolate cream pie, or your favorite smoothie, or keep it in the fridge for about 24 hours.
❄️ How to make vegan cool whip
Freezing – If you are not going to use it the first day, store it in a sealed container in the freezer and use it like you would any frozen whipped topping like Cool Whip. (Just take it out of the freezer and let it warm up for about 10 minutes before using it). If kept airtight, it will keep up to a month in the freezer.
🍰 How to use this whipped cream
🌟 More recipes using aquafaba
- Vegan Grasshopper Pie
- Vegan Chocolate Mousse
- Aquafaba Ice Cream
- Vegan S’mores Pie – with Aquafaba marshmallow topping!
- Vegan Marshmallows
- Candied Pecans
🍲 Chickpea recipes
Now that you have opened a can of chickpeas and used the liquid, you need to make something with it. Make this easy vegan chickpea salad, a citrus salad with chickpeas, or a chickpea salad sandwich.
📌 Be sure to follow me on Pinterest for new vegan recipes!
Aquafaba Whipped Cream – Vegan Whipped Cream
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup aquafaba , (liquid from canned unsalted chickpeas or white beans).
- 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar, or lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2/3 cup vegan powdered sugar, (most organic varieties are vegan)
- 2 tablespoons neutral-flavored oil , like canola or refined melted coconut oil
Equipment
Instructions
- Drain and save the liquid from a can of chickpeas or white beans.
- Pour 3/4 cup of the liquid in a medium-sized mixing bowl.
- Use a mixer and beat the liquid until it starts to get foamy.
- Add 1/4 tsp cream of tartar and continue to mix for 5 minutes on high until it becomes very fluffy and forms stiff peaks.
- Add 1 tbsp vanilla and continue to beat for another minute. (It will turn light brown for a minute, but then turn white again as it beats in).
- Slowly add 2/3 cup powdered sugar while continuing to mix on high until all vanilla and sugar are mixed in and the mixture if very fluffy. Mix for a total of 9-10 minutes for whipped cream that will hold it's fluffiness the longest.
- Turn off mixer and add 2 tbsps of your choice of neutral oil. (Melted if using coconut oil).
- Turn on mixer to low and beat for 5 -10 seconds to get the oil distributed. (Do NOT over mix once the oil has been added or you will lose the fluffiness)!
Notes
- Make sure to beat the aquafaba for the suggested time or longer before adding the oil or your whipped cream will separate and lose its form.
- You can leave out the oil and make this whipped cream fat-free!
- Any white bean liquid can be used.
- Use unsalted or low-salt beans for the best flavor.
Did you make this recipe?Please leave a star rating and review below!*This was originally posted on 2/9/2018. It was updated on 2/17/20 to include new images and an instructional video showing how to make the aquafaba whipped cream.
The texture and consistency of this recipe is heavenly! The canned chickpeas juice had a very gross taste. I even tried to make it again with double the sugar and vanilla, but it did not taste good. What canned beans do you recommend?
It might be the brand that you used. I like some brands better than others. Some people also like to use salt free beans. You may want to try it again with the liquid from cannellini beans.
This recipe is awesome, have been meaning to try it for ages . Did it today and it came out perfectly. Thanks Monica for your recipe .
You’re welcome! Glad that you enjoyed it!
Like you, I was sceptical that bean’s might make a deli out cream – but it does! And makes such a lot too; next time I’ll only use about half the bean water.
Thank you for taking the trouble to write and illustrate the instructions. I have a few milk intolerant family members and look forward to delighting them at Christmas.
You’re welcome! Enjoy!
Suggestions to get both the taste & “mouth-feel” of real cream, without it, and without oil:
Add a half tsp of butter flavoring &
Add about 3/4 to 1 tsp of 50-50 xanthan & guar gums. Individually, these gums are just thickeners. But, together they synergize to form a strong gel than from agar, and they don’t need a hot liquid to dissolve. Carefully sprinkle in while whipping, to avoid clumping.
I like your recipes. Thank you
I’m so happy that you like them! Your welcome!
I’m going to try this soon. Just wondering if it’s stable enough to use instead of buttercream?
No, you can’t use it instead of buttercream, it will deflate after a few hours unless it is kept in the freezer. If you want a super fluffy buttercream try my vegan whipped cream frosting… https://thehiddenveggies.com/vegan-whipped-cream-frosting/
Whips up really well, but it’s very bland. Can I add more sugar or more vanilla extract?
Yes, add more if you would like it will still work.
Hi, what brand brands did you do on the video? I’ve tried this three times and it’s not working. First with dry beans water, then with cooked down water, then with a 3/4 c of the liquid of a can of Walmart navy beans (super thick liquid that doesn’t look like yours). Thanks!
I made that video a few years ago so I don’t remember which brand it was. If the liquid is thick out of the can, you should be fine. If it looks like water when you dump the liquid out of the can, then you will need to reduce it down by simmering it on the stovetop until it reduces by 1/4 or so and the liquid is thicker.
Trying this recipe now. Made my bean juice from dry white beans. In the step with just bean juice and cream of tartar, is it ok to use the bean juice that is hot? And after I beat it in my electric mixer for 5 min, should all of the liquid be gone with just peaks of foam? Or should there still be a good amount of liquid at the bottom? I’m wondering if the liquid needs to be cooked down bc of seeing so much liquid at the bottom. Thx!!
Allow the liquid to come to room temperature before beating it. It should not have liquid at the bottom after 5 minutes of beating it. It should be foamy, but with larger bubbles that will easily deflate after 5 minutes after 7-9 minutes you will have stiff peaks that won’t deflate as easily.
Omg, this rocks. Like many people, I’ve always wanted to try this, but just couldn’t imagine that it tastes good. It’s fantastic!! Next, I’m going to try making powdered sugar out of monk fruit sweetener to see if I can get rid of all the sugar. So delicious! Thanks so much.
I’m so happy that you liked it, Birit! 🙂
Monica, can one add a bit of your Vegan Heavy Cream to whipped aquafaba? If so, how much do you recommend?
No, unfortunately, the heavy cream will make the aquafaba deflate.
Hi! I followed the instruction but it didn’t get the fluffy consistency, just foamy. I used aquafaba from cooking my chickpeas for about 1 hour. Any suggestions as of why I didn’t achieve the desired fluffy texture? Thank you =)
The liquid from cooking your own chickpeas probably wasn’t concentrated enough. You need enough protein in the bean liquid to form strong bonds when whipped. You can simmer down this water until it becomes slightly thick like the liquid in canned beans and it will work much better. See this guide for more details… https://thehiddenveggies.com/how-to-make-aquafaba/
Thank you! I will simmer it down for the next batch
Getting ready for a holiday dinner. Trying to take care of everyone’s nutritional needs. Gluten-free, dairy free, Vegan, diabetic, hates the taste of coconut. Oh my goodness! So I’m making a vegan pasta using white beans for the sauce. I saw your recipe and decided to give it a try. I substituted confectioners swerve for the sugar. I substituted an amazing mild olive oil from Portugal for the coconut oil and it turned out beyond AMAZING! I made a triple batch and half divided it into thirds. I’m putting two in the freezer for Christmas and New Year’s. This recipe is a lifesaver!
I’m so happy that you liked it. I have one of those families too, so I know how exciting it is to find something that everyone can eat!
Have not tried recipe yet. Do you think aquafaba powder would work.?
I’m not sure, I have never tested it using aquafaba powder.
Gorgeous! Apple fluff! I made the fluff quite simply with the cream of tartar, just 1tblsp Maple syrup and 1tblsp Truvia to keep the calories down. It was stiff enough (because I couldn’t wait any longer) and folded in about a cupful of fluff into 3tblsp unsweetened Bramley apple sauce from a jar. OMG! OMG! OMG! Delish… Can’t leave it alone! My new go-to pudd.
I’m so happy that you liked it!
Can I use ACV if I don’t have either lemon juice or Cream of Tartar? I know it’s the acidity that fluffs it up.
Yes, you need an acid to make the protein bind together better. You can use apple cider vinegar, but it has a stronger flavor than the cream of tartar or lemon juice.
I was very surprised at how great this turned out! Bean water?? Lol. There is a small beanie taste but when pùt with strawberries or whatever dessert it’s just like real whipped cream!!!.
Sounds good to me, but can one just put it in the mixer and leave the machine run for 10 min. on its own and checking it now and then?
Pretty much, I would stop it once or twice to scrape the edges and get it all incorporated well. You also need it to fluff up before you add the sugar and vanilla.
Will the recipe work if the liquid is cold? My kids like the flavor of the finished product but did say it would be better cold. Thanks for easy to follow recipe!
Yes, it will work with cold Aquafaba. You can toss it in the fridge for about 1/2 hour before serving too. Enjoy! 🙂
Came out great! Thanks!
We had extra so we dolloped and baked to make meringue cookies. Held up in the oven (200 degrees for 45 minutes, then 30 minutes to cool in the oven). Nice and crispy, melts in your mouth. Has anyone tried to make this into a Pavlova?
Glad that you liked it, Jeremy! Glad the meringue cookies came out well for you, I’ve never tried Pavlova with it, but I herd that it can be done.
Can you make meringues with this?
Yes you can, enjoy! 🙂
Would this work for layering cakes?
It doesn’t hold its fluff long enough to use on cakes unless you are going to serve it immediately. It starts to separate and deflate after about 8 hours. You can use my vegan buttercream recipe and use up to 1/2 cup of aquafaba instead of plant-based milk. It will make the buttercream super fluffy and kind of a cross between frosting and whipped cream.
Ok, I tried this recipe and it was nice and fluffy and thick after adding melted coconut oil. I tasted it and it was perfect. Then I put it in the fridge to bring it out for desert. An hour later, when I took it out, I was very disappointed : it had started « melting », had lost all thickness and was consistency of softly beat egg whites. In fact my children (I had not told them what was in there fearing they would turn their nose up) were convinced it was egg whites. I didn’t tell them it was supposed to be whipped cream as they would have thought that was fishy and start asking more questions… anyway, do you have any idea how to prevent that ? How do you keep it thick and fluffy ?
You need to use it within an hour or two of making it or it will start to go flat unless you store it in the freezer. It shouldn’t have gone that flat that soon though. You may want to try beating it longer. It seems fluffy enough after 5 minutes or so, but it really needs to be beaten for 9-10 to keep its form.
Hello! I’ve had this issue making aquafaba before, the key is to reduce (simmer) your chickpea brine down by 1/3 before whipping it and then let it cool in the fridge. Basically, if you have 1 cup of aquafaba, simmer it until it’s 2/3 of a cup and let it cool in the fridge. Then follow the recipe, I promise it won’t go flat! 🙂
Dear Monica, this sounds great, though one question: you add 1 tablespoon vanilla extract, maybe that is a bit much? I’m guessing it might be 1 teaspoon?? So I winder if the same for the canola? Is it teaspoons or tablespoons?
The amounts are correct. I use a lot of vanilla to cover up any aquafaba taste. This also makes a very large amount of whipped cream, so 1 tablespoon is not too much one you see how much it fluffs up. You are welcome to add less. Enjoy! 🙂
Thank you very much for your clear answer
You might add some crushed fennel seed to overrule the taste of chickpea (works also for millet taste)
Some fennel, like 1-2 teaspoons, won’t do the trick. To overrule the taste of chickpeas maybe several tablespoons of fennel (that I didn’t try) or another flavor to mix in. Success with experimenting.
This is otherwise a great and fun recipe.
So I messed this up, 🤣. My hand mixer broke so I tried making this using both my ninja blender and with the blender cup. No bueno! Smh It did not help it fluff at all! So my advice, don’t take any short cuts when making this. It still tasted delicious though before I poured it into an old cool whip container to freeze. Maybe it’ll surprise me 🤷🏾 until then I’ll be searching for a new hand mixer, 🤣
Oh no! You definitely need a mixer for this recipe, a blender just won’t get enough air into it. I hope you are able to use it for something. Try it again with a new mixer! 🙂
How much whipped cream does this recipe make? I need to make about 2.5 cups of whipped cream for topping for a recipe.
Hi Misty, this makes a lot (about 8-10 cups) that’s wy I give instructions for freezing. You will have plenty for your recipe. Enjoy! 🙂
Hi, when you freeze it, do you have to “fluff it up” once it’s thawed and before you use it? Thank you.
Just let it thaw competly again after you freeze it, then use it as you would if it was just out of the can. Enjoy!
I haven”t tried it yet, but this will be brilliant for my daughter in law, she has a food allergy and requires both gluten-free and dairy-free. As we are hosting at Christmas, I did”t want her to be left without a topping for her gluten-free Christmas pudding, this will be brilliant. Is it p[possible to add alcohol or would this make it too runny?
Thanks.
I’m glad that this recipe will work for your daughter in law. I would not put alcohol in it. Just using vanilla extract with a little alcohol makes it deflate a tiny bit. You could try adding a little, but too much of anything added to aquafaba makes it deflate. Enjoy! 🙂
Is there a way to make this less sweet and still drown out the chickpea flavor? I’m not that into things that are that sweet, but i still need an alternative to whipped cream or creme fraise.
Do we have to add oil? Will it work without? Thanks!
No, you don’t have to use oil. Enjoy! 🙂
May I know, do we have to boil the water, or should we use it directly from the cooked ones.
Cause many recipes tend to reduce the water by boiling the water from cooked beans.
Hi Richa, There is no need to boil the liquid, you can use it directly out of the can. Enjoy! 🙂
Tried this for vegan strawberry shortcake. Wow! Hubby loved it. Could not believe the volume it made!!!
It does make a ton! That’s why I started freezing it. I’m so happy that you and your husband liked it! 🙂
Thank you so much!
Glad to hear we can freeze it. But what to do when we get it out of the freezer?
If you let it sit out of the freezer for about 15 minutes it will thaw back into a whipped cream texture. Enjoy! 🙂
This recipe is a good use for leftover Chickpea liquid. I had liquid from two cans which ended up being exactly double called for, so I doubled the recipe. Boy, did I underestimate how much this would make and ended up with about ten cups… Luckily it freezes well! The flavor is pretty good but mine has a bit of chalkiness I am assuming is from the cream of tartar. I measured it so I’m not sure what happened. Otherwise, it’s sweet and fluffy and will work as a whipped cream replacer!
I’m not sure why it would be chalky, that has never happened to me. You can also use lemon juice instead of the cream of tartar if you don’t like the taste of the cream of tartar. It does fluff up a ton! 🙂
hello, Monica,
Made this tonight to top homemade chocolate pudding w/ sour cherry sauce. The fluffy meringue texture was a perfect contrast to the rich base and tangy cherries.
After reading the other comments abt sugar, I noticed that you direct the reader to add the sugar slowly. That did allow me to taste as I went along to get the right sweetness. I was also out of vanilla, and the almond extract was great. Thank you so much for your work to make this recipe go so well!
Thanks, Shani, I’m glad that you liked it!
Can I fill a SWISS Roll with this cream?
I don’t think it would work great for that. I don’t think that it is dense enough.
Can I substitute the sugar for honey ?
I have not tried it, but I think that it would work.
I made this (substituted lemon juice for cream of tarter) and it totally worked. My son said it was different and wanted to know why but he ate it and didn’t complain. He’s my picky eater so that’s huge. My daughter and I thought it was too sweet. One receipt makes a ton! I don’t know how one would need that much. I froze it to see how that works but next time I’ll make less and freeze the Aquafaba instead as I suspect that’d be better. Thanks for the recipe.
Just made this but accidentally used chickpeas with salt added because I didn’t have anything else. Not recommended! 🙈 It wasn’t TERRIBLE, I could just taste it. The kids liked it, and I didn’t realize how much volume would come from just one can! Really fun! I am freezing the rest, and I look forward to seeing how that turns out. Thank you!
I find that different brands of chickpeas taste better than others. Try to find chickpeas that have nothing but chickpeas and water for the best taste. You may also want to try white beans if you don’t like the chickpea flavor. When I add enough vanilla and sugar, I don’t taste any bean flavor.
This was good and the instructions were clear. I found that it is much more like meringue than whipped cream. Because of that I had the idea to use the leftovers to make chocolate mousse. It worked pretty good, but I over estimated the amount of chocolate, so it was very stiff.
Hi Monika
Thank you for explaining this recipe so clearly, and also mentioning about salted versus unsalted bean water, I was wondering about the salted water.
I’m wondering if you have experimented with LESS sugar?
We’ve been working on reducing our dependence on sweet tastes, and the plan has really worked! Over a couple of years, we find our taste buds are completely satisfied with approximately one quarter of the quantity of dates, rice syrup, maple syrup or coconut sugar in a recipe.
If we eat something with cane sugar, our mouths sting and burn, and we get a little “rocket zoom high” in energy – just as people used to when sugar was first brought to Europe, and was as expensive as gold. Rich people would take a tiny quantity of sugar (less than a teaspoon) in a little tin to parties of the day, where a taste of the precious sugar was used to get “high.”
So I’m pretty sure 2/3 of a cup would be far too sweet for my family, and pretty sure this would be out for me, as I cannot eat legumes without skin and energy issues. We are not perfect though, and we have found that if if we do eat something really sweet, say a serving of coconut ice cream from the store, our taste buds take 5-7 days to readjust to the lower levels of sweetness, and to taste the delicate sweetness and flavours in vegetables and so on. Thanks Monica!
Hi Fiona! I feel like my family (me included) are sooo super sugar and sweet dependent – any advice on how to make it less? I tried to slowly reduce the sugar when I make something but then they complain they dont like it…
made this tonight! i had seen it on pinterest over and over again and yesterday i made a great buddha bowl with chickpeas and remembered NOT to toss out the liquid!….googled an aquafaba whip cream recipe and yours came up!…so easy to make, great tasting…will be doing this from now on! can’t wait for berry season! thanks, eva
I’m so happy that you liked it! I’s delicious on berries! 🙂
Wow this is so amazing! Definately going to make the aqua cream to enjoy with my apple crumble. Tell me if you freeze it does it stay stiff? What about if you take it out and let it stand for 10min, does it keep its fluffiness? Thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe.
Thanks Shirley, Yes, it will stay fluffy if your freeze it. It holds it’s fluff much longer in the freezer and it will stay fluffy for a while after if thaws out. If you keep it in the fridge instead of the freezer, it will start to separate after about 12 hours or so. (Make sure you whip it according to the directions though, under whipped aquafaba will deflate faster). Enjoy! 🙂
Saw this aquafaba whipped cream on Dr. Oz.
I see why he loved it so much!
This is amazing…like a delicious magic trick!
Hi, this recipe (and some others of yours) sound so delicious and absolutely great.
However, I’m from Austria and here is no cream of tartar to be bought. How can I replace it in this recipe (and also the others)? And how can I replace what’s called “baking soda”? Is this the same as “Natron” in German?
Thanks in advance!
Hi Alex, If you don’t have cream of tartar, you can use lemon juice instead. Swap it for equal amounts. Cream of tartar is an acid, so other acids will work as well. Hope that you enjoy it! I’m making some right now to top my vegan angel food cake which I will be adding to the blog later this week! 🙂
Thanks, I will try to do it with lemon juice then! 🙂
Cream of tartar is called Weinsteinpulver.or Kaliumbitartrat: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weinstein
Yes, Natron (Natriumbicarbonat) is baking soda (sodium bicarbonate).
This is delicious! Definitely a new go-to recipe for dessert topping.
Thanks Gina! So glad you like it!
Delicious and I love that you can freeze it so you always have some whipped cream on hand!
Thanks Margo! I love that too. I always have some ready in my freezer to put on berries or smoothies for an added treat! 🙂
Delicious!
Thank you this is an amazing discovery!
Your welcome Lori! It is truly amazing stuff! I’m finding new ways to use aquafaba all of the time!