Falafel From Scratch

Much easier than you might think! I think people might see homemade falafel as a daunting task but truly, if you own a food processor, or a blender (just need smaller batches) you can make them with ease. And after you bite into the crunchy golden balls, you will see that it’s a whole ‘nother thing than the falafel packets or using canned chickpeas. The reason it’s not a big deal is that all you must do is remember to soak the chickpeas overnight, drain ’em and you are good to go. You do not WANT to use pre-cooked or canned chickpeas since they won’t come out properly. You need the uncooked yet soaked kind for the texture to be correct.

So, if you are already gonna make them, it’s worth making a nice amount. You never have to worry that they won’t be gobbled up. I’ve made many versions of falafel but have to say, this is the best I’ve made. I found this recipe by Leah Schapira in the Jerusalem Post Magazine from many many years ago, which I pulled out, lurking on my cookbook shelf and it’s a keeper. Definitely what you want in a falafel. Naturally, I fiddled with it a bit.

Take a pound/500 grams of chickpeas and put them in a big bowl or pot and pour at least double their volume in water over them. Cover with a lid or plastic wrap and let sit overnight. You can leave them to sit on the counter as long as it’s not too hot in your kitchen, you don’t want them to ferment. If very hot, just bung them in the fridge. The next day, they should be trebled in size. You can leave them alone till you are ready to prepare them that day. If you want, at this point, you can freeze the chickpeas (drained) to make the falafel in the future. They will keep for a few months.

As you can see, the beans swell up enormously.

Take your peeled garlic and onion and plunk into the food processor. Give them a whirl till medium chopped.

You will continue to chop it with the chickpeas. Add the chickpeas, spices, baking soda, and chop again.

You can see the thick chopped consistency then add the breadcrumbs and eggs and water.

Whirl till you achieve a smooth consistency. Refrigerate for about half an hour. I confess, when I’ve done this while shorter on time, I skipped the refrigeration part and they were just fine, but do let them stand at least ten minutes to absorb the crumbs.

Take out your Oxo scooper or two teaspoons

Fill a medium saucepan halfway with oil and heat. Scoop a ball’s worth of falafel and when oil is hot, gently drop one in to test if it’s going to hold together. If it bubbles nicely and maintains a ball, you don’t need to add any more breadcrumbs, if it starts to fall apart, add a quarter cup more breadcrumbs to the mixture in the processor, whirl briefly, and try again. When good to go, put in about eight at a time, don’t overcrowd or oil won’t stay hot enough, and turn over once till both sides are golden brown about 4 minutes on each side.

Remove when done from oil and drain either on paper towels or on wire racks.

Serve with techina and chopped Israeli salad and in a pita or not, as you like! Scrumptious!

500 grams, approximately a pound of chickpeas
4 cloves garlic, peeled
1 medium onion, peeled and quartered
3 large eggs
Pinch of black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking soda
1 tablespoon cumin
2 tablespoons dried parsley flakes
2 tablespoons flour
1 2/3 cups water
1 ½ cups breadcrumbs

Oil for frying

Directions:

Soak chickpeas overnight in double the amount of water to cover them.

Drain. Take out your food processor and chop the garlic and onion and when medium chopped, add the chickpeas and the spices, baking soda, flour and chop till thick, then add eggs, water and bread crumbs. Pulse till combined and fairly smooth.

Refrigerate for about half an hour, when in a hurry, I’ve just let them stand in the processor and given them about 10-15 minutes to absorb the crumbs. Take a medium sized saucepan, fill halfway with vegetable oil and heat. Make balls of the batter with a cookie scooper or ice cream scooper and when oil is hot, fry one ball to see if it holds together. If loose and falling apart, add more breadcrumbs to the mixture in the processor and whirl briefly, about a quarter of a cup and try again. They should be fine and make balls, put in about eight or so at a time and fry until golden on both sides, flipping once gently. It should be about 3-4 minutes on each side.

Drain on either paper towels or wire racks. I find there’s no time to drain on the racks since they are snatched up so fast, they have no time to drain! These are succulent and that perfect crispiness and not dry inside. Pair with techina and pita and Israeli salad. A fabulous indulgence. The techina dressing can be found in the below link!

https://kosherfromjerusalem.com/2018/06/04/my-darling-eggplant-with-lucious-tehina-dressing/