Falafel, originally from the Middle East, has become a prominent dish all over the world. Many vegetarians and vegans resort to falafel as a great source of protein. Traditionally, people make falafel out of chickpeas or fava beans and spices. The mixture is further rolled out into small balls or patties. Then deep-fried and served alongside hummus or tahini sauce in salads, pita wraps, or in appetizers like a mezze platter. However, I wanted to try out the baked version to make it more health-friendly by keeping it low-fat. Hence I bring you my falafel recipe baked and fried both. Go for one that appeals to you!
See my similar recipe, Vegetarian Galouti Kebab, that I make using red kidney beans. You can these too in wraps and salads just like falafels. It gives a bit of change!
Falafel can be a little tricky to make. My initial trial was a fail. My mixture was too wet, and because of that there were issues while deep frying the balls. Everything started to fall apart the moment I dropped falafel dough balls into the hot oil. Even the baked ones didn’t hold on to their shape and were full of cracks. The mixture wet mainly due to the use of canned chickpeas. So I would highly recommend soaking your chickpeas in hot water overnight or at least 8-10 hours. And use these instead of the canned variety.
If you have a food processor, making the falafel mixture will be more comfortable. However, if you don’t have one, then use small batches of soaked chickpeas in a regular mixing jar to prepare falafel mixture. Add spices as per your taste, but cumin powder and garlic are a must. My falafel recipe baked or deep-fried will drastically taste better if you also add fresh parsley and cilantro leaves to the raw mixture though it is optional. Also, if you want to give it an extra nutritional boost and crispy texture, then consider rolling the dough ball over white sesame seeds and then bake or deep-fry.
I would also like to tell you that falafels can be part of your easy and quick meal preps. The raw dough ball mixture freezes well. All you need to do is thaw it for a bit on a paper towel or a kitchen cloth and then bake or deep fry. Alternatively, you can also store leftover falafels in the fridge for up to 4-5 days. This way, you can use falafel in recipes like salads and wraps for a quick and wholesome meal. Team it up with Hummus and lots of veggies for more elaborate Mediterranean flavors. See my Mediterranean Salad if looking for a refreshing meal idea. I hope you enjoy my falafel recipe baked or deep-fried both. Happy Cooking!
Ingredients
- 1 lb dry chickpeas/garbanzo beans - you must start with dry, DO NOT substitute with canned chickpeas, they will not work!
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro or coriander leaves
- 3-5 cloves garlic (I prefer roasted garlic cloves)
- 1 1/2 tbsp flour or chickpea flour
- 1 3/4 tsp sea salt
- 2 tsp cumin powder
- 1/4 tsp black pepper powder
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- Pinch of ground cardamom
- 1-2 tbsp white sesame seeds
- Vegetable oil for brushing over dough balls or patties while baking or frying - preferably avocado or pomace olive oil
Instructions
- Pour the chickpeas into a large bowl and cover them by about 3 inches of cold water. Let them soak overnight. They will double in size as they soak – you will have between 4 - 5 cups of beans after soaking.
- Drain and rinse the beans thoroughly. Pour them into your food processor along with the chopped parsley and cilantro leaves along with garlic cloves, chickpea flour or regular wheat flour, salt, cumin powder, ground coriander, black pepper powder, cayenne pepper, and cardamom powder. NOTE: Use chickpea flour to make it gluten-free. If you have a smaller food processor, you will want to divide the ingredients in half and process the mixture one batch at a time.
- Pulse all ingredients together until a rough, coarse mixture forms. Scrape the sides of the processor periodically and push the mixture down the sides. Process till the mixture is somewhere between the texture of couscous and a paste. You want the mixture to hold together but don't overprocess. You don't want it turning into Hummus!
- Once the mixture reaches the desired consistency, pour it out into a bowl, and use a fork to stir; this will make the texture more even throughout. Remove any large chickpea chunks that the processor missed.
- Cover the bowl with a lid and refrigerate for 1-2 hours.
- Optional: Add baking soda to the mix to lighten up the texture inside of the falafel balls. I don’t usually add it since the falafel is generally pretty fluffy on its own. If you would like to add it, add 2 tsp of baking soda into the falafel mixture after it has been refrigerated.
- Make falafel mixture into round balls or patties using greased hands or a falafel scoop. I usually use about 2 tbsp of mixture per falafel. You can make them smaller or larger, depending on your personal choice. The balls will stick together loosely at first but will bind nicely together once they begin to bake or fry.
- Keep in mind that the balls will be delicate at first, and if the mixture is too wet, then they might just fall apart if frying. If they still don't hold together, you can try adding 2-3 tbsp of flour or chickpea flour to the mixture and adjust consistency.
- After making the raw falafel balls or patties, roll them over in sesame seeds before frying. It will make the falafel coating crunchier and give it a slightly nutty flavor.
- Place the rolled out dough balls on to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake them in a preheated oven for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown at 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Alternatively, in a deep pan, heat the oil slowly over medium heat. The ideal temperature to fry falafel is between 360 and 375 degrees F; the best way to monitor the temperature is to use a deep-fry or candy thermometer. Or test the temperature by dropping a tiny amount of raw falafel mixture and see if it floats back up or not. If it sinks, then the oil has still not reached the ideal frying temperature.
- If the oil is at the right temperature, it will take 2-3 minutes per side to brown (5-6 minutes total). If it browns faster than that, your oil is too hot, and your falafels will not cook fully and would remain raw from inside. Cool the oil down slightly and try again.
- When oil is at the right temperature, fry the falafels in batches of 5-6 at a time till golden brown on both sides. After the falafels cook, remove them from the oil.
- Let them drain on paper towels. Serve the falafels fresh and hot; they go best with a plate of Hummus and topped with creamy tahini sauce. You can also stuff them into a pita.
- Troubleshooting: If your falafel is too hard/too crunchy on the outside, there are two possible reasons-- 1) you didn't process the mixture enough-- return the chickpea mixture to the processor to make it more paste-like. 2) the chickpeas you used were old. Try buying a fresher batch of dried chickpeas next time.
- TURMERIC FALAFEL (YELLOW FALAFEL): Add ¾ tsp turmeric to the food processor before blending.
Notes
- You will also need: food processor, skillet
- Makes 30-34 falafel balls: Serving size is roughly 5 falafels each. Nutrition has been calculated with the assumption that each falafel ball absorbs 1/2 tsp of oil. It is my best estimate; when they are fried at the proper temperature, the falafel absorbs very little of the cooking oil. The nutritional information provided here is calculated using myfitnesspal.com's database.
- Troubleshooting: If your falafel is too hard/too crunchy on the outside, there are two possible reasons-- 1) you didn't process the mixture enough-- return the chickpea mixture to the processor to make it more paste-like. 2) the chickpeas you used were old. Try buying a fresher batch of dried chickpeas next time.
- Substitute: If there are certain ingredients that you don't have, then consider substituting with what you have. For example, if you don't have garlic pods, then garlic powder will work fairly well.
