Falafel
For those who love Lebanese food and want to make it at home.
Be reminded that the chickpeas will need to soak overnight!
Buy or find
Dried Chickpeas, 2 cups
Baking powder, 1/2 tsp, plus 1 tbs additional
Fresh parsley leaves, 1 cup, thoroughly washed and stems removed
Fresh coriander, 1 1/4 cup, thoroughly washed
Fresh dill leaves, 1/2 cup, washed and stems removed
Brown onion, 1, peeled and quartered
Garlic cloves, 3-4, peeled
Salt to taste, I use 1 tsp
Ground black pepper, 1 tsp
Cinnamon, 1 tsp
Cloves, 3, crushed (not garlic, the spice)
Cayenne pepper, 1 tsp cayenne pepper or a pinch or none
Sesame seeds, 2 tbs
Oil for frying
Do
Be reminded that the chickpeas will need to soak overnight!
Soak the chickpeas
Soaking the chickpeas
Place the dried chickpeas and 1/2 tsp baking soda in a large bowl filled with water to cover the chickpeas by at least 10 cm.
Allow them to soak for 20 hours.
Drain the chickpeas and dry with a clean tea towel.
Make the falafel mixture
Making the falafel mixture
Add the chickpeas, herbs, onion, garlic and spices to the bowl of a food processor.
Process the mixture for 40 seconds at a time until the mixture is well combined. (You may need to do this in batches.)
Transfer the mixture to a container and cover tightly.
Refrigerate for a least 1 hour or even overnight.
Add the baking powder and sesame seeds to the felafel mixture just before frying, and stir with a spoon.
Cook the falafel
Deep frying the falafel
Add enough oil to a small saucepan to fill it 2/3 from the top.
Release the falafel into the hot oil and deep fry. (The falafel can sputter a bit when you add them, I sometimes remove the saucepan from the heat after adding one felafel before adding any more to avoid the oil overflowing the saucepan.)
Turn the falafel halfway through cooking to evenly brown each falafel ball.
Remove the falafel from the oil and place on paper towels to drain as soon as they are crisp and cooked through (about 4 minutes).
Repeat until all of the falafel mixture has been cooked. (I fry 3 or 4 falafel at a time to avoid overcrowding the saucepan.)
Serve on Lebanese bread with any or all of the following fillings
Hummus
Tabbouli
Pumpkin rocket halloumi salad (make sure you use a lot of macerated onion!)
Green goddess dressing is a great addition
Shredded iceberg lettuce is critically important.
Mejdara is also a lovely addition to serve this with as a side.
I have tried adding avocado which is great for texture but is dilutes the flavour.
Thinly sliced red cabbage with dill dijonaise dressing
If not making the pumpkin haloumi rocket salad, you can always throw in thin wedges of macerated red onion.
The tabbouli is important because the lemon juice and parsley cut through some of the other complex flavours.
For low salt eaters, remove some of the mixture before adding salt.
You can alternativelybake these in the oven. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celsius (fan-forced). Spray a baking tray with olive oil spray and release the falafel (using the falafel scoop) onto the tray. Spray the falafel with olive oil spray. Bake for 20 minutes and turn halfway through cooking. I have mixed success with baking the falafel.