Theo cooks

Easy Falafel Recipe

Preparation time:

10 minutes

Cooking time:

8 minutes

Serves:

15-20 falafels

This delicious falafel recipe is great to make in advance and serve to friends. Traditionally, falafel is made with dried chickpeas that have been soaked overnight and cooked. I cheat in this recipe by using tinned chickpeas and a little flour to hold the falafel together as the tinned version tend to have a higher water content. If you prefer to go for a fully authentic version see my note at the bottom on how to cook dried chickpeas and omit the flour altogether for a gluten free recipe. And if you want a fully vegan version simply swap the Greek yoghurt for a vegan alternative!

Ingredients
- 2 tins Chickpeas (480g drained weight)
- 80g Plain flour
- 30g/1 bunch Fresh coriander (stalks & leaves)
- 1 Small white onion, chopped
- 2 cloves Garlic, chopped
- 1 tbsp Coriander seeds, lightly crushed
- 1 tbsp Cumin seeds, lightly crushed
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1 tbsp Baking powder
- Vegetable oil for deep frying
- 250g Greek yogurt
- Small bunch mint leaves
- 1 tbsp Olive oil
- 1 tbsp Harissa paste
- Kenwood food processor
- Frying pan/saucepan
- Chopping board
- Mixing bowl
- Knife
Method
- Excluding the vegetable oil and half the flour add all the falafel ingredients to the Kenwood food processor (you may have to do this in batches) and pulse till you have a course paste. You want an almost dough like consistency so add the remaining flour bit by bit until it starts to pull away from the sides of the processor.
- Roll egg size pieces of the mixture into a ball and then flatten slightly in the palm of your hand. When you are ready, heat the vegetable oil in the pan (at least an inch deep) and hot enough that a piece of the falafel mixture immediately sizzles but doesn’t burn.
- Fry the falafel pieces for a few minutes each side until golden and then remove onto a paper towel.
- For the harissa tzatziki, finely chop the mint leaves and mix thoroughly into the yogurt along with the olive oil and pour onto a serving platter. Gently swirl the harissa paste through the yoghurt leaving lots of streaks and dot the cooked falafel over the top garnishing with any leftover herbs or spices.
- NOTE: To cook dried chickpeas, first soak 1 cup/250ml dried chickpeas in 1 litre of water overnight (at least 12 hours), drain the water then place the hydrated chickpeas into a saucepan with a lid and enough water to cover them and simmer, partly covered with the lid, for 1.5-2hours until tender then drain.