Falafel is a Mediterranean dish made by deep frying balls or patties made of ground chickpeas and spices. Usually served with hummus, it can also be stuffed in a pita bread with veggies to go in for a delicious sandwich!
I have been wanting to make Falafel since long. However, I couldn’t. This time though I knew I had to give it a try for it is really simple and easy to make. So, I soaked a cup of chickpeas overnight and coarsely ground along with other ingredients. I used an ice cream scooper to get even shaped balls and deep fried them.
Falafel is crunchy on the outside and light and crumbly on the inside. It is said that you can use cooked or canned chickpeas as well. However, the chances are that you will end up in a mushy paste like that of a hummus than a coarsely ground mix which is desirable. It may also result in disintegrating the balls when fried.
You can also flatten the balls into patties to be stuffed in a pita pocket. Easier to deep fry as well. For a healthier version, bake it!
This recipe makes about 20 falafels. Unless you are having a get-together or a party, I know you wouldn’t be needing these many. So, form the falafel balls, freeze it on a baking sheet, transfer to a zip lock packet and refrigerate for later use! Put them straight into hot oil and Tada! There you have it! Perfect golden falafel for unexpected guests!
Recipe for Falafel:
Ingredients
- 2 cups of dry chickpeas
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 1/4 cup parsley, chopped
- 1/4 cup coriander/cilantro, chopped
- 7 cloves of garlic
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon red chilli powder
- 1/2 teaspoon roasted cumin powder
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 tablespoon all purpose flour
- Salt, to taste
- Oil for deep frying
Instructions
- Wash and soak chickpeas for at least 12 hours.
- Drain the water and pat dry.
- Pulse together all the ingredients except oil at regular intervals to get a coarse paste.
- Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate for an hour.
- Use ice cream scooper to make even shaped round balls.
- Heat oil in a pan and deep fry the falafel balls, few at a time.
- Cook till you get a deep golden colour.
- Remove and drain on a plate lined with paper towels.
- Serve with hummus/tahini sauce/yogurt sauce, or on a pita bread with veggies of your choice.
It makes me feel kinda stupid for not trying to cook this simple and delicious dish! I served it with a yogurt sauce to balance the heaviness of the falafel.
Yogurt Sauce for Falafel:
Whip a cup of yogurt with very little water, say 3 tablespoons. Add mince of one garlic clove, two tablespoons of lemon juice and a pinch of paprika or red chili powder. Add salt and pepper to taste. Whisk again. The yogurt sauce is ready. Serve as a dip or else, add it to the Pita bread.
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Mansi Laus Deo says
September 30, 2017 at 3:37 pmThis sounds easy and fun. Next time, my brother asks me to fry some pakoras for him (while he catches on Football matches), I’m gonna make some falafels for myself too!
Nayantara Hegde says
September 30, 2017 at 2:07 amMy baby boy loves falafel. I am going to try making them with your recipe. They are so incredibly healthy too
Rohan Kachalia says
September 20, 2017 at 10:21 pmI had tried falafel with hummus when I visited Dubai, didn’t like it that much, but after reading this post, I think I should give it a try.
keerthi vydyula says
September 19, 2017 at 12:06 amI love falafel especially in my wraps. I am going to try this recipe at home. Recipe seems simple and easy to follow. Thanks for sharing!
Brinda Rana says
September 18, 2017 at 11:49 pmOne of my fav summertime foods. I have also tried baking the falafel and they turn out quite delish. will try ur yogurt dip recipe. Thanks
SoulMom says
September 18, 2017 at 7:19 pmHave been looking for a good recipe for Falafel. Surely going to try this one. Thanks for sharing. Good luck for your cooking love. 🙂
Nupur says
September 18, 2017 at 7:15 pmYum. Am hungry. I like making exotic things so will try this out sometime.
Neha gupta says
September 18, 2017 at 5:58 pmWow I love falafel and always wondered how to make them. Thanks a lot for this recipe. I am definitely going to try it..
Varsh says
September 18, 2017 at 5:06 pmThe recipe is simple enough. Now I’m wondering why I haven’t tried it till now. Thanks for sharing.
Disha says
September 18, 2017 at 2:05 pmI eat Falafel so often, now I can cook them at home. Thanks for the recipe!
Vasantha Vivek says
September 18, 2017 at 1:12 pmYummy and my favorite dish. Beautiful food photos. Thanks for sharing. happy to connect with for #MyFriendAlexa !!!
Cheryl Sterling says
September 18, 2017 at 12:20 pmThese look awesome. I’m going to start my chickpeas soaking right now.
upasna says
September 18, 2017 at 11:53 amYogurt Sauce seems yummy. Its so simple to give it a try. Falafel is made of chickpeas..I never knew. Thanks for sharing the easy recipe Shalini.
Avinash says
September 18, 2017 at 10:54 amFalafels are my favorites- will love to try this recipe at home 🙂
Atulmaharaj says
September 11, 2017 at 8:49 pmThanks for the recipe Shalini, I love falafel wraps but haven’t made it at home yet. Will surely try this.
Eli says
September 9, 2017 at 6:40 pmMmmmmm, I love falafels- this looks like a great recipe:-) chickpeas are so tasty and healthy too
Soumya says
September 8, 2017 at 6:13 pmThis is so simple! I cannot wait to make it now. I recently made hummus and it turned out brilliant. It will be awesome to have some falafel with it next time. Thanks Shalini, for the recipe 🙂
Shilpa Gupte says
September 8, 2017 at 1:47 pmI think I will try it out for the evenings when I don’t want to cook a proper dinner but like something that doesn’t remind me of the dinner menus at all!
Thank you for the easy recipes, Shalini! <3
Roma Gupta Sinha says
September 8, 2017 at 11:35 ammy mouth’s already watering by the time I finish this post. you always wake up the cook in the foodie me Shalini <3
Obsessivemom says
September 8, 2017 at 10:10 amWhat I look for most in a recipe is how doable it is with my limited skills – this one seems fine except the fear of the patty disintegrating in the oil. I used to add bread crumbs but that changes the flavour. Will try to do it your way now. That yogurt dip sounds fab too.
Alana says
September 7, 2017 at 9:54 pmI never realized that uncooked farafel could be frozen. I love chickpeas. This is a delight.
Anni S says
September 7, 2017 at 6:56 pmThat looks so good and actually easy to make! I will definitely give it a try!
Thanks for sharing!
Alpana Deo says
September 7, 2017 at 6:14 pmI love falafel and I often is it as filling do Frankie’s, wraps.
I like them as it is so versatile. We can have it as snack, as Patti, as filling.
Thanks for sharing your recipe. The picture looks tempting:-)
Kala Ravi says
September 7, 2017 at 4:09 pmWow Shalini, this is just what I needed. Wracking my brains on what to make for the kids lunch everyday. This should be quite filling too. Love the yoghurt dip. Best part is all ingredients are easily available. Also liked the idea of freezing the falafel balls and deep frying as needed.
Sheethal Susan Jacob says
September 7, 2017 at 11:50 amLiving in Middle East this is one snack we munch all the time. Falafel and hummus. The epic combination.
Bellybytes says
September 7, 2017 at 10:59 amHey Shalini ! Today you are on my reading list but I always read you every day!!! Thanks for the tip on using an ice cream scooper to make perfectly rounded balls. This will be handy in making dahi wadas too I suppose. I personally don’t like falafel – too much channa and too much gas…..so I won’t be trying this recipe unless I have some vegetarian guests I have to impress.
Shalini says
September 7, 2017 at 11:16 amThank you, Sunita! I’m so happy to know that I’m on your reading list. Just made my day! <3
And about the gas! I know that now 😛
SHALINI BAISIWALA says
September 7, 2017 at 10:00 amI was cleaning out my kitchen shelf and saw a handful of chickpeas in the contianer and soaked them; largely to clean the container 😉 Now I know what to make out of it – YAY!!!! I dont have parsley and will make do with coriander only. Love the tip about freezing them – that is super.
I used to boil the chickpeas to make them and always ended up with a mushy paste that disintegrated in hot oil – thank you so much for this recipe. Now I know what I was doing wrong.
Great tip on the yoghurt sauce too!!! Making this tomorrow for lunch and will share some pics with you on Insta!!
Shalini says
September 7, 2017 at 11:17 amEureka! That’s awesome! I will wait for your Insta pic, Shalzy 🙂