Make the best falafel at home using this recipe. Crispy from outside, moist from inside, and bursting with flavors, these are perfect for Mezze, Wraps, or Salads. Here is how to make it.
Here are some more Middle Eastern Recipes, that you can make for your weekend brunch – Mutabal, Basbousa, Pita Bread, Lavash, Baba Ganoush, Black Bean Hummus, Muhammara Dip, and Mediterranean Quinoa Salad.
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About This Recipe
Falafel is a popular Middle Eastern dish, which is made of chickpeas and is flavored with fresh herbs such as parsley and cilantro.
To make this recipe, chickpeas are soaked overnight or for a few hours and then ground to a coarse paste along with garlic and fresh herbs such as cilantro and coriander. A few basic spices are also added in this mixture such as cumin, coriander, black pepper, cayenne pepper which gives it a lovely earthy flavor, that is very hard to resist.
Traditionally, these Chickpea balls are deep-fried, but nowadays you can make it in various ways to make it healthy.
You can either bake falafel in an oven, which will give it a different texture but it tastes delicious too. You can also make it in Paniyaram pans, which uses very little oil and also makes these crispy. Air Fryer is also great to cook these.
Originally, Falafel Recipe was made with Fava beans and it is still made in this way in Egypt and other Arab countries, but Israeli falafel is usually made from chickpeas only.
It is a great option for vegans because it contains no meat and dairy. Therefore, it is also very popular among vegetarians and vegans.
This dish is,
- Vegan
- Perfectly crispy
- Gluten-Free
- High in Protein
- Delicious
- Perfect for healthy meals
Ingredients
Chickpeas – Chickpeas are the main ingredient used to make Falafel. They are a great source of protein, therefore including them in your everyday meal is very important.
They are soaked overnight and then ground along with other ingredients.
Onion and Garlic – Both garlic and onions are finely chopped and added along with overnight soaked chickpeas while grinding. These two ingredients add a nice traditional flavor.
Other Ingredients – For added taste, you will need parsley, cilantro, salt, cumin, coriander, pepper, cayenne, baking soda, and lemon juice.
The addition of baking soda makes these fluffy and soft from inside, which is a key to perfectly made Falafel.
Chickpea Flour or Besan – This flour is added to bind the chickpea patty.
Oil – To deep fry the Falafel. You can also pan-fry them, but it won’t be as crispy as the deep-fried ones.
Step By Step Recipe
Wash the chickpeas well and soak them in 4-5 cups of water for 5-6 hours. Drain the water well from the chickpeas.
Add the soaked chickpeas in a food processor along with onion, parsley, cilantro, garlic, salt, cumin, coriander, pepper, cayenne, baking soda, lemon juice, and chickpea flour.
Pulse until a coarse mixture is formed. Transfer this mixture into a bowl. Cover the bowl and refrigerate for 2 hours.
Use a cookie scoop and make small balls from the mixture.
Fry the falafel on medium-high heat (350 Degrees F or 180 Degrees C) until browned from all the sides.
Remove on a plate lined with kitchen tissue. Serve hot.
Frequently Asked Question
You can use an oil such as grape seed, sunflower, avocado, canola, and Peanut oil. All this works well for Falafel.
If you don’t have a food processor, worry not, The idea is to pulse the ingredients to a coarse paste. You can do that in a chopper or even use the pulse mode of your mixer and grinder.
To make baked falafel, preheat the oven to 375 Degrees F (180 Degrees C). Brush a baking tray generously with oil. Line them on the baking tray and bake for 25-30 minutes. Make sure to flip them halfway of baking.
You can also air fry these in an air fryer. Line the falafel in the tray of a preheated air fryer. Spray with oil. Air fry for 10 minutes. Then flip and air fry for another 10 minutes.
I won’t suggest you use Canned Chickpeas, as the canned ones are cooked and we need dry chickpeas for the perfect texture. Also, if you use canned chickpeas, there is a chance that they will disintegrate in the hot oil.
I have soaked the Chickpeas for a maximum of 5 to 6 hours, but you can go ahead and soak them for upto 24 hours. Make sure you add enough water to soak the chickpeas.
Paniyaram Pan is a great way to make Falafel, that are pan-fried and a bit healthy than the deep-fried ones.
To make these in Paniyaram Pan, Add a little oil in each cavity of the Paniyaram pan. Once it is hot, add in the falafel in the cavities and let it cook. Once the bottoms are crisp and cooked, turn them and add a little more oil on top.
Cook from all the sides in this way, until the Falafel gets cooked properly and turns crisp from outside.
Serving Suggestions
It is a very versatile dish, that can be served in various ways. You can serve it as an appetizer with a middle eastern dip such as Hummus or Tahini dip.
You can add Falafel in Pita pocket along with some tomato slices, greens, onions, and hummus to make a lip-smacking sandwich.
Add these to make a Mezze platter that includes Hummus, Tzatziki, Baba Ganoush, toasted Pita Bread, and pickled cucumbers.
You can make small Falafel and add them to your Green Salad. Just add lettuce, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, falafel in a bowl, and flavor it with a tahini sauce. Your falafel salad bowl is ready.
You can also stuff these into your wraps and rolls to make a fusion dish. Make them in the shape of a patty and use them to make falafel burgers.
Storage Suggestions
You can store cooked Falafel or the falafel mixture in an airtight container stored in the fridge for about 3 to 4 days.
Falafel freezes very well. You can make these, bake them for 15 minutes at 180 degrees C. Cool them completely and once they are ready, you can freeze them in a ziplock bag or an airtight container for about 2 to 3 months.
When you want to use them again, take them out of the freezer and keep them out to reach room temperature. Once they are ready to use, you can deep fry them.
Variations
With Beet – Add some beet puree in the mixture and make beet falafel.
With Spinach – Add spinach puree in the mixture and make spinach falafel.
Pro Tips By Neha
Do not use cooked chickpeas or canned chickpeas to make Falafel, this recipe demands for dry and soaked chickpeas.
Once you make the falafel mixture, refrigerate it for 30 minutes, so that it holds the shape together while frying and also results in crispy falafel.
Do not crowd the pan with lots of falafel. Fry them in batches, otherwise, they can soak the oil and will not be crispy.
Make sure the oil is hot enough, before dropping the Falafel. If dropped in cold oil, they will soak oil.
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Recipe Card
Falafel Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup Dried Chickpeas
- ½ cup Onion (Chopped)
- 2 tbsp Fresh Parsley (Chopped)
- 2 tbsp Fresh Cilantro (Chopped)
- 1 tbsp Garlic (Chopped)
- Salt to taste
- 1 tsp Ground Cumin
- 1 tsp Ground Coriander
- ½ tsp Ground Pepper
- ¼ tsp Cayenne Pepper
- ½ tsp Baking Soda
- 1 tbsp Lemon Juice
- 2 tbsp Chickpea Flour
- Oil for frying
Instructions
- Wash the chickpeas well and soak them in 4-5 cups of water for 5-6 hours.
- Drain the water well from the chickpeas.
- Add the soaked chickpeas in a food processor along with onion, parsley, cilantro, garlic, salt, cumin, coriander, pepper, cayenne, baking soda, lemon juice and chickpea flour.
- Pulse until a coarse mixture is formed.
- Transfer this mixture in a bowl.
- Cover the bowl and refrigerate for 2 hours.
- Heat oil for frying the falafel in a pan.
- Use a cookie scoop and make small balls from the mixture.
- Fry the falafel on medium high heat (350 Degrees F or 180 Degrees C) until browned from all the sides.
- Remove on a plate lined with kitchen tissue.
- Serve hot.
Indu
Wow, love the pics, especially the last one.
indugetscooking
Neha
Thnx Indu 🙂
Sireesha pupala
Falafels are my favourite but I would compromise on the taste to go for a baked version.will try this recipe.
msnehamathur
Thnx a lot Sireesha 🙂
jaya
Hi Neha……! Awesome recipes……..u know it I am yr fan…….!
I make Falafel………with chickpeas and fava beans., and after making the dough….add some seasame seeds…….! Take care.
msnehamathur
Thnx a lot Jaya. Sesame seed sounds like a nice addition. Will try next time.
Parul
WHAT IF I DO NOT HAVE A FOOD PROCESSOR ??
Neha Mathur
You can use a chopper or use mixer grinder in pulse mode.
Prad
Love the recipe. But aren’t cilantro and coriander the same thing?
Neha Mathur
Thanks. Yes, they are.