Ground flax seed rewards a little know-how: how to choose it, cook it, store it, and substitute in a pinch. Browse 41 recipes to cook with it.

What is ground flax seed?

Ground flax seed is exactly what it sounds like: whole flax seeds milled to a coarse, nutty meal. You'll also see it sold as flaxmeal or flaxseed meal, and the two names mean the same thing.

The grinding is the whole point. A whole flax seed has a hard hull that passes through you intact, so your body gets little from it. Once milled, the meal releases its oils and nutrients, and it gains a useful trick: it turns gummy in water.

That gel is why flax shows up far beyond the health-food aisle. It binds and adds moisture while carrying a mild, toasty flavor into bread, muffins, and pancakes.

Cooking With Ground Flax

The headline use is the flax egg, a vegan binder for baking. Stir 1 tablespoon ground flax into 3 tablespoons water, let it sit 5 to 10 minutes until it thickens to a gloopy gel, then use it in place of one egg.

It won't leaven or aerate the way a real egg does, so it works best in dense, forgiving bakes rather than anything that needs to rise tall and airy.

That's why you see it stirred into cookies like Dried Fruits, Chocolate Chips & Flaxseed Cookies and into quick breads like Richards Banana Flax Bread, where a little extra moisture and bind is all you need.

Beyond the egg trick, flax meal just goes in. Spoon a tablespoon or two into pancake or waffle batter, as in Wholegrain Waffles with Flaxseeds, or work it into yeasted loaves and crackers like the German rye Dreikernebrot and Whole Grain 5 Seed Crackers.

A handful stirred into oatmeal or a smoothie is the no-recipe way to use it.

Nutrition and Pairing

Ground flax is one of the richest plant sources of omega-3 fat, in the form of ALA, and it carries a heavy load of soluble and insoluble fiber. It also supplies lignans, plant compounds that the seed holds in unusually high amounts.

According to USDA FoodData Central, two tablespoons of ground flax run about 75 calories with 4 grams of fiber and 3 grams of protein. That fiber is the reason a heaped scoop in a smoothie keeps you full.

Flavor-wise it's mild and nutty, which is why it disappears into anything brown and grainy: whole-wheat and rye doughs, oats, bananas, dates, cinnamon, maple, and peanut butter. It plays well with other seeds too, sitting happily alongside chia, sesame, sunflower, and pumpkin.

The one mistake worth avoiding is dumping a big dose into a dish dry. Flax is thirsty, and too much un-hydrated meal can leave a baked good gummy or dry depending on how the rest of the recipe balances liquid. Treat it as an add-in measured in tablespoons, not cups.

Substitutes

For a flax egg, ground chia seed is the closest swap and works at the same ratio: 1 tablespoon chia to 3 tablespoons water. Chia gels a touch firmer and leaves tiny visible specks.

For flax meal as a general add-in, almond meal and wheat germ bring a similar soft, nutty body to a batter, though neither gels, so they can't stand in for the binding job.

And if a recipe calls for ground flax but you only have whole seeds, just grind them. A clean coffee or spice grinder does it in seconds, and freshly ground is better than any package anyway.

Buying and Storing Ground Flax

You can buy it pre-ground or grind whole seeds yourself. Pre-ground is convenient; grinding your own is fresher and cheaper, since whole seeds keep far longer than meal.

Here's the catch. Those omega-3 oils that make flax worth eating also go rancid quickly once the seed is broken, and the meal has a lot of surface exposed to air.

Keep ground flax in an airtight container in the refrigerator, where it holds for a few months, or in the freezer for up to a year. Stored warm in the pantry it can turn bitter and fishy-smelling in a matter of weeks.

Give it a sniff before you bake. Fresh flax meal smells faintly nutty and sweet; if it smells sharp or like old fish, it has gone off and will carry that taste straight into your food.

Quick facts

Where to find ground flax seed: Ground flax seed is usually found in the baking supplies section or aisle of the grocery store or supermarket.

In Chinese

地面亚麻籽

British (UK) term

Ground flax seed

en français

graines de lin moulues

en español

semillas de linaza

Recipes using ground flax seed

There are 41 recipes that contain this ingredient.

All 41 recipes