I’m a vegetarian, and not a vegan, though I find myself starting to lean in that direction.

Primarily, I am concerned about my cholesterol. I have been using soy milk instead of moo juice for at least a decade now. Later, during the pandemic, I couldn’t find my cholesterol-free egg substitute at the grocery, so I started buying a vegan egg substitute.

This vegan option was shocking similar to real egg. Unfortunately, it is also a bit pricey.

One day, I bothered to look at the ingredients and realized it is largely mung beans. I didn’t know anything about mung beans or how to prepare them, but an Indian co-worker passed along some great information.

The DIY egg substitute I have been gradually perfecting has one significant difference from how I cook, as it requires the beans to soak in water for at least four hours before using them. Often I just leave them soaking overnight.

First, you’ll need to get mung beans, preferably the yellow split version. You may need to go to an Indian or International grocery to find these, but you’ll discover a medium-sized bag goes a long way. These may be labelled as “moong dal” beans, which are the same thing.

Pour a cup of beans into a large bowl, followed by 2 1/2 cups of water. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and wait four hours (or, preferably overnight).

Do not drain the water when soaking is complete. Pour the beans and water into a blender, along with a tsp each of olive oil, onion powder, garlic powder and turmeric. Blend until smooth. Really, you can’t blend it too much.

The mixture will keep in a fridge for about a week. It can be used as a substitute for anyway you might use egg: scrambling, omelets, baking, egging cars. It has a texture a bit closer to potato pancake than ordinary eggs. Remember to shake the mixture thoroughly before each use.

I keep making small adjustments each time I make a batch of this, trying to get as close as possible to the name-brand vegan egg substitute I’m used to. But I’m pleased by how it has turned out so far. It saves a lot of money, it is fairly easy to prepare, its healthy and it has zero cholesterol.