When cooking or baking, it’s not uncommon to come across a recipe that calls for a specific number of egg whites or egg yolks. In order to know how many egg whites to use to replace a whole egg, it’s important to know how much of the egg is made up of the white versus the yolk.
A large egg typically weighs about 50 grams, with the white making up about two-thirds of the weight and the yolk making up the remaining one-third. This means that the average large egg contains about 33 grams of egg white and about 17 grams of yolk.
If a recipe calls for a certain number of large eggs but you want to use only the egg whites, you can use the following conversion to determine how many egg whites you need:
- 1 large egg = 2 egg whites
Therefore, if a recipe calls for 3 large eggs, you would need 6 egg whites to replace the whole eggs.
It’s worth noting that the amount of egg white can vary slightly depending on the size of the egg. For example, a medium egg may have slightly less egg white than a large egg, while an extra-large egg may have slightly more. However, the difference is generally not significant enough to greatly impact most recipes.
If you’re looking to use just the egg yolks instead of the whole egg, the conversion is:
- 1 large egg = 2 egg yolks
Therefore, if a recipe calls for 3 large eggs and you want to use only the yolks, you would need 6 egg yolks.
Keep in mind that when separating eggs, it’s important to avoid getting any yolk in the egg whites, as this can prevent the whites from whipping up properly. To prevent this, it’s recommended to separate eggs one at a time into a separate bowl before adding the whites to your mixing bowl.
In summary, one large egg contains about 33 grams of egg white and about 17 grams of yolk. To replace a whole egg with egg whites, use 2 egg whites per 1 large egg. To replace a whole egg with egg yolks, use 2 egg yolks per 1 large egg.