Every chickpea dreams of being transformed into a falafel! Ultra crispy on the outside, moist and fluffy on the inside, everybody loves them but few know how easy they are to make. This is an easy to follow falafel recipe with step photos AND a recipe video!
The best part is breaking open the golden brown balls to reveal the dazzling green insides. Dip them in tahini sauce and pop them straight in your mouth, or make wraps!
Falafel recipe
There are many things I do not know, but I do know this: Falafels are the highest and best use of chickpeas.
Perhaps not the most common use – hard to beat a batch of creamy hummus whipped up in mere minutes using a can of chickpeas. But if you’re after the best use of chickpeas, falafels win every time.
And if you’re a falafel fiend like me, you’re going to be blown away how easy it is to make falafels at home!
This falafel recipe takes me back to my travels through the Middle East, where I enjoyed freshly made falafels almost every day!
Canned chickpeas don’t work!
In the falafel world, canned chickpeas are not only illegal, they flat out don’t work. Reason: falafels are made with dried chickpeas that are soaked but not cooked before forming the falafel balls.
Other than the dried chickpeas rule, there’s nothing unusual that goes into falafels. Baking powder is the only point of contention – you won’t see it in all recipes and it’s not endorsed by Kenji over at Serious Eats, one of our references for this recipe.
But it’s a trade secret we managed to extract from Hijazi’s Falafel in Earlwood, one the best falafel joints in Sydney. So we tried it with and without, side by side, and the baking powder version was noticeably more fluffy – and moist.
So it’s in. Fluffy insides to the max!!!
Falafels MUST be made with soaked dried chickpeas that are NOT cooked. Canned chickpeas don’t work!
Frying is not optional!
It’s rare that I say frying is mandatory, but for falafels, it is. It’s the only way to get the signature super crispy dark crust and keep the inside moist.
For this falafel recipe, I deep-deep fry them in the video, using enough oil so they’re mostly submerged. But you don’t need to – you can use far less oil than I did and they can be shaped like discs rather than balls which will mean even less oil required for frying.
Speaking of discs – you can unleash your wild side when it comes to shaping falafels. I chose balls because for me, that’s the shape that first comes to mind. But other common shapes include: disc shape (slightly flattened ball), dome (ball with underside flattened) and torpedoes (evil looking shape, like a football).
How to make falafels
I promise you this falafel recipe is straightforward, and I did not exaggerate! Here’s how to make falafels:
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Soak dried chickpeas overnight (seriously, remembering to do this is the hardest part!)
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Blitz with herbs, spices, garlic, flour and a touch of water
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Form balls, refrigerate to firm up
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Fry until deep golden brown and super crispy
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Devour as fast as humanly possible. Falafels are at their absolute peak straight out of the fryer!
How to serve Falafels
The thought of having a whole bowl of freshly cooked falafels to dunk into sauce and pop straight into my mouth is certainly appealing – though not the most nutritious meal option!!
So to serve Falafels as a meal, I like to either make falafel plates or wraps using pita bread, or falafel rolls using Lebanese or other large flatbreads (like the Falafel rolls sold at Kebab shops in Australia).
In all 3 of these options, I use: tabbouleh and/or shredded iceberg lettuce, tomato and onion slices and drizzle the Falafels with Tahini Sauce. Hummus also makes an appearance 99% of the time – a very big dollop of it!
Falafels also make a terrific gluten free meal by making falafel plates using a flavoured rice instead of bread – such as Mejadra (Middle Eastern Lentil Rice).
Falafel sauce options
A sauce is a must for falafels – you need the wetness. Tahini Sauce is the standard, but it’s also terrific with a simple yoghurt-lemon sauce or even a thinned down hummus. Recipes for all these options are in the recipe below.
Making ahead
Falafels are one of those foods that are truly at their best fresh out of the fryer, when they’re super crispy on the outside and the inside is piping hot and moist.
Once refrigerated, the crust softens and the inside loses moisture. But! The good news is that they can be resurrected to a near freshly-cooked state using a combination of a microwave (gets the insides moist again) and a hot oven to recrisp the surface.
They’re good for 5 days in the fridge – probably longer.
Imagine that! Getting your falafel fix day after day after day….. – Nagi x
PS Couple more things homemade falafels has going for them: they’re super economical compared to store bought (dried chickpeas are the main ingredient and they’re super cheap!) and you can control the saltiness – I find that even the best falafel stores are often too salty.
Falafel recipe
Watch how to make it
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Falafel
Ingredients
Falafels:
- 225 g / 8 oz dried chick peas (Note 1)
- 1 cup parsley leaves , roughly chopped
- 1 cup coriander/cilantro leaves , roughly chopped
- 6 scallions/shallots , white and light green part only finely chopped (Note 2)
- 2 cloves of garlic , minced
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp coriander
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp baking powder (Note 3)
- 4 tsp flour (plain/all purpose) OR chickpea flour
- 5 tbsp water
For frying:
- 500 ml / 2 cups+ vegetable oil (Note 4)
Tahini Sauce (Other Sauces Note 5):
- 4 tbsp tahini
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 4 tbsp water
- 1/4 tsp salt (adjust to taste)
Serving (Note 6):
- Pita bread or other flatbreads
- Tabbouleh (recipe below)
- Hummus (optional extra)
- Shredded lettuce, tomato slices, sliced red or white onion
Instructions
Falafel:
- Place chickpeas in a large bowl and pour over plenty of cold water. Leave to soak 12 + hours (even 2 days is fine).
- Drain chickpeas well. Place in food processor, add remaining Falafel ingredients.
- Blitz for 2 to 3 minutes on high, scraping down sides as necessary, until the chickpeas are very small grains. Mixture should look like smooth guacamole from the outside (see video).
- Scoop up heaped tablespoons and shape into balls (or dome, disc or torpedo), place on a tray. Should make around 20, about 2.5cm / 1" wide.
- Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Pour oil in a skillet or large pot - at least 1.7 cm / 2/3" depth (Note 4). Heat on medium high to 180 - 190C / 355F (or drop a bit in, should sizzle energetically).
- Place a ball in a large spoon (or tongs) and slide ball in. Cook in batches for around 4 minutes, using 2 forks to roll, until deep golden and super crusty on the outside.
- Drain on paper towels. Repeat with remaining falafel.
- Serve fresh out of the fryer with Sauce of choice! Make falafel wraps or plates with tabbouleh, tomato, onion, and Sauces of choice. See Notes 5 and 6.
Tahini Sauce:
- Combine tahini and lemon juice, and mix well. The mixture will stiffen.
- Stir in the water 1 tbsp at a time and it will loosen again. The final consistency should be like a thick drizzle sauce (see video). Season to taste with salt.
Recipe Notes:
* Falafel wraps / rolls - Use large or small flatbreads. Smear a good dollop of hummus or yoghurt (or Yoghurt Lemon Sauce, below) down the middle. Top with tabbouleh and/or lettuce, tomato, onion and falafels broken in half. Drizzle with Tahini Sauce or other sauce of choice (I love adding hot sauce). Either roll or fold and devour!
* Falafel plates - with tabbouleh and/or shredded iceberg lettuce with tomato slices, onion (red or white), Tahini Sauce with optional hummus with pita breads on the side. I love hot sauce too! A spiced pilaf like Mejadra (Middle Eastern Lentil Rice) is a terrific addition as well (and GF option). Tabbouleh: 2 tbsp Bulgur soaked in 3 tbsp boiling water then fluffed. 2 cups roughly chopped parsley, 1/2 cup roughly chopped mint, 1/2 red onion finely chopped, 2 large red tomatoes, deseeded & chopped. Dress with lemon juice and sprinkle of salt - adjust to taste depending on what you're serving it with. For falafel, I use very little salt and lots of lemon juice. Serving size: 2 - 3 halved falafels in pita pockets, 3 - 4 halved for a large roll, 4 to 5 for a plate. 7. Reheating: Falafel is one of those foods that's truly best served fresh out of the fryer. But the best way to store / reheat cooked falafel is in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days (really!). Microwave to reheat (really!) THEN spray with plenty of oil and bake at 200C/390F for 5 minutes just until the surface is crispy again. Make Ahead: Balls can be rolled then kept uncooked in the fridge for 24 hours OR frozen. If frozen, fry from frozen - just add another 1 or 2 minutes to the frying time. 8. Nutrition per falafel:
Nutrition Information:
LIFE OF DOZER
He really thought there was something tasty buried in that prickly bush – he was snuffling around in there for ages!!
Cécile says
Hi Nagi, thanks for this recipe. Love it ! In Egypt they do falafel (called tameya there) out of faba beans instead of chick peas. Any insights on a good recipe ? Have a great day !
Nagi says
Sounds great Cecile, something I’ll have to add to my list to try! N X
Stephanie says
Nagi! I made this recipe a few times now and I absolutely love it! It tastes delightful! I’ve been using the air fryer and it works really well, nice and crunchy outside but super moist inside! Last night I also sprinkled some sesame seeds before frying and OMG, sooo yum! Thank you! Whenever I’m looking for a recipe, I jump into your page, you are unreal! 😁
Lisa says
These look great! Do you think you could cook these in the oven similar to your salmon patties..?
Nagi says
Hi Lisa, I actually talk about this in the recipe post – frying is not optional here! N x
Mieks says
Hi Nagi.
Best recipe, we make over and over!
I’m wondering if you can use red onion or chives? Is there any good substitutes for the shallots?
Nagi says
Hi Mieks, green onion or chives would be the closest here. N x
Rachel says
Devine! They were so delicious. Crunchy on the outside and fluffy on the inside and such a gorgeous green colour. Great instructions on how to make them – and they were quite easy to make. Never going back to the store bought ones!
Kathy says
Hi Nagi! Ali just made these and they were great but after reading the reviews I saw that in Australia green onions are actually shallots? I used scallions (green onions in US). Should I have used shallots instead? Also, do you use two large garlic cloves? Some are really small. Thank you for all of your wonderful recipes!! 🙏
Nagi says
Hi Kathy, yes I used what are also called scallions in this recipe (known to many Australians as shallots too) same thing. I use standard size garlic – if yours are small you can always thrown another one in 🙂 N x
Thalia says
Very good ! I use canned chickpeas that I roasted for 20 minutes at 450F to dry them out. I also omitted the 5 tbsp of water and it turned out perfect. Not mushy at all with a nice fluffy interior! The second time I made this, I tried baking it (425f for 30 minutes) instead of frying and it turned out better than expected. I was surprised that a nice crunchy exterior still formed. Thank you for the recipe!
Emily Hess says
Good tips! I’m excited to try this.
Hannah says
Perfecto, so easy!
Lidia M says
I did it!!! Thank you for this recipe it was perfect. Even my kids and husband that usually don’t like trying anything new loved them with pita bread and your tahini sauce. 😋
Liz says
Hi Nagi, this recipe is amazing!!! Truly not dry and absolutely delicious. I would love to know if you can make them in bulk and then freeze for a later date?
Thank you,
Liz
Nagi says
Hi Liz, yes freeze before cooking – I’ve done this successfully before 🙂 N x
Patsy says
Hi, I’d love to try this. Can I make the balls and freeze them (before frying)? I’d love to have a batch of these in the freezer.
Darcy Dann says
Hi Nagi! Thank you so much for this recipe! Love love LOVED it! xx
Kris says
Nagi, you are an absolute legend. I have been trying to find a decent falafel recipe since 1986! You have absolutely nailed it with this one. The recipes I have tried previously have always been so dry and horrid, although must admit, store purchased ones can also be terribly dry.
This one is so crunchy on the outside and soft and moist inside, it is a keeper.
Thank you so, so much.
Elizabeth Hayward says
Ho Nagi, I’m sure it’s not traditional, but sprinkled some sesame seeds on mine before I fried then.
Next level!
lucilla Sinanian says
Hi Nagi. Falafel is a staple in our house my husband is Armenian.
I don’t put flour in the mix. I do put a little cayenne. Also I blitz the chickpeas to a paste. Blitz herbs separately including a white onion keeps it moist.
Tahini equal lemon white vinegar equals acidity. Egyptian way. Paprika cumin garlic . Already sorted for tonight!
Marianne says
Nagi, You’re a STAR! Another fantastic recipe. My mixture was wetter than yours but it still held together, cooked perfectly and tasted Delicious! The second attempt was still wet (I’m useless at measuring) so I reduced the water and it worked out well – crunchy outside, soft and fluffy inside. Thanks again x
Katrina Ficheroux says
Hi Nagi, I have made these at least 6 times now. My 14 yr old son begs for them in a wrap for his lunch. Only change is I swap the coriander for extra parsley and mint as hubby doesn’t like it. They seem like they will fall apart but once the bottom is sealed and golden you can turn them over easily. Thanks for another tasty recipe.
Nagi says
I’m so glad they are a hit Katrina – homemade is seriously the BEST! N x
Jennifer Lobo says
Looks good and I want to make these tomorrow…I have cilantro but not parsley…can I use all cilantro or will that be too much?
DANI Hamilton says
Hi Nagi, you have done it again. I have been searching for a falafel recipe and your recipes have never failed so gave it a go today. Yummo!! it’s the best I’ve ever had. And it feels so healthy(minus the frying in oil)😉, exactly as your recipe stated, nice and fluffy in the inside and crunchy on the outside. I added some fresh green chilli and fennel seeds and it was soo good. Hit with the family…can’t wait to show off this recipe to my friends, once this lockdown in Melbourne is over. Thanks Nagi, you never disappoint. 🙌
Aleece says
Amazing!!! Better then 90% of restaurants i have eaten them in and scarily easy!!!