Fantastic Homemade Falafel That's Packed with Flavor

Falafel

If you’re not using one of your PantryChic SmartCanisters to store and dispense dried chickpeas (garbanzo beans), now is a GREAT time to start!

Falafel originated in the Middle East but is now enjoyed all over the world. Perfect for vegans, vegetarians, and meat-eaters alike, chickpeas supply plenty of protein in this naturally plant-based dish. Plenty of fresh parsley and fresh cilantro blended into the chickpeas provide the falafel with its signature green hue, while ground cumin gives it an earthy and complex flavor.

There are so many ways to enjoy falafel! The most popular option is to stuff it into a pita pocket with fresh veggies like cucumbers, tomatoes, lettuce, and/or red onions. You can also try serving it over a mixed green salad or as part of a platter with vegetables, pitas, dips (such as hummus or baba ganoush), and sauces.

Often you will see falafel in two different shapes, either round balls (similar to a hushpuppy) or flattened patties. This recipe makes them into patties as they are the easiest to evenly brown using less oil. These can be made in a spherical shape, however they will need to be deep fried at a consistent temperature to properly brown the entire way around. For me, the patties are just SO much easier to cook and the flavor is identical! Plus, they fit perfectly into a pita pocket.

SmartCanister Lineup

This recipe is made easiest if you are using PantryChic SmartCanisters to store dried chickpeas, all-purpose flour, ground cumin, salt, pepper, and baking soda.

If you are not already storing all of these ingredients in their own SmartCanister, you can always use the PantryChic's scale function to manually add an ingredient.

Soak the Chickpeas

You will want to start this recipe the night before, or at the least, early morning if preparing later that evening as once you’ve dispensed the dried chickpeas with the PantryChic you will need to soak them in water to rehydrate. There are quicker methods to rehydrate, however, a water soak is recommended to achieve the correct texture in the final falafel.

Blend Them Up

Once the chickpeas have about tripled in size, drain all excess water and transfer to a food processor. Add in 1/2 of a yellow onion, 2 handfuls of fresh parsley, a handful of fresh cilantro, and 2 cloves of garlic.

Use the PantryChic System to dispense the main flavor of the falafel, ground cumin. Then dispense salt, pepper, and baking soda for a lighter and fluffier texture.

Pulse all of these ingredients together in the food processor until the chickpeas are ground into a sand-like consistency and the fresh herbs are almost entirely dispersed throughout, turning the mixture a light green color. For the best texture, refrigerate this mixture 30 minutes before proceeding.

Form Them and Fry

Use a small ice cream scoop or large and rounded spoon to scoop balls of the falafel mixture onto a sheet of parchment paper. Cover with another sheet of parchment paper and press down into patties. To make the patties easier to transfer to a skillet, freeze for 15 minutes. Otherwise, you will want to grease a spatula to help you remove the patties from the parchment paper to fry.

The easiest way to cook these is to shallow fry them. With this method you will only need to fill a skillet with 1/4-inch of oil. Once heated, simply fry the patties for about 4 minutes on each side, or until well browned. Transfer to paper towels to drain and lightly season with additional salt, if desired. Even with a large skillet, you will likely need to fry these in two batches.  

Sauce Them Up

These can be served alongside a store-bought tzatziki sauce, hummus, tahini sauce, or simply plain Greek yogurt.

For a quick and easy homemade yogurt sauce, mix 1 cup plain Greek yogurt, 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill, 2 teaspoons minced garlic, zest of 1/2 lemon, 1/2 teaspoon honey, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. This sauce has much of the same flavors as tzatziki, without all of the work of removing the moisture from cucumbers. When serving the falafel alongside fresh cucumbers you won’t miss the cucumber in the sauce!

Recipe: Falafel

Active Prep Time: 30 mins ∙ Cook Time: 10 mins ∙ Serves: 4

SmartCanister Ingredients

1 cup (200g) dried chickpeas

2 tablespoons (15.5g) all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons (4g) ground cumin

1 teaspoon (6g) salt

1/2 teaspoon (1.4g) pepper

1/2 teaspoon (2.5g) baking soda

Other Ingredients

1/2 small yellow onion, chopped

1 packed cup fresh parsley

1/2 packed cup fresh cilantro

2 garlic cloves

Vegetable oil, for frying

Pitas and salad vegetables, to serve, if desired

DIRECTIONS

1. Place a bowl on the PantryChic scale and dispense 1 cup chickpeas. Cover the chickpeas with at least 3 cups of water. Soak overnight, until they’ve about tripled in size.
2. Drain the chickpeas well and transfer to a food processor. Add onion, parsley, cilantro, and garlic.
3. Place the bowl of the food processor on the PantryChic scale and dispense 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, 2 teaspoons cumin, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and 1/2 teaspoon baking soda.
4. Pulse the chickpea mixture in the food processor until everything begins to come together into a grainy dough with a greenish hue. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
5. Scoop out 1 1/2 to 2-tablespoon balls of the falafel dough and transfer to a sheet of parchment paper. Place another sheet of parchment paper over top and press down to flatten into patties no thicker than 1/2 inch. To make the patties easier to transfer into a skillet, freeze for 15 minutes. Otherwise, transfer using a greased spatula.
6. Fill a nonstick skillet with 1/4-inch of vegetable oil and place over medium-high heat.
7. Once the oil is hot, use a greased spatula to transfer 1/2 of the falafel patties into the hot oil to shallow fry. Fry around 4 minutes on each side, or until well browned. If they begin to brown too quickly, reduce the temperature of the heat to maintain an even oil temperature.
8. Remove the browned falafel to a plate of paper towels and lightly season with additional salt, if desired. Continue on to shallow fry the remaining 1/2 of the falafel patties in a second batch.
9. Serve the falafel warm over top salad greens, or alongside warmed pitas and cut vegetables such as cucumber and tomato. See blog post above for sauce ideas.