Falafel is a deep-fried ball or patty made from ground chickpeas and/or Fava beans. Falafel is a traditional Middle Eastern food commonly served in a pita, which acts as a pocket, or wrapped in a flatbread. Falafel balls may also be eaten alone as a snack or served as part of a meze platter. Also see the recipe for Hummus (Chickpea Pate).
10 ml olive oil
30 ml spring onion, thinly sliced
5 ml crushed garlic
1 x 400 g tin chickpeas, drained
10 ml ground cumin
30 ml parsley, finely chopped
10 ml lemon zest, finely chopped
1 large egg, beaten
fresh breadcrumbs (optional)
- Heat the oil in a small pan.
- Fry the onion over a medium heat for 3 to 4 minutes until softened.
- Add the garlic and fry for a further two minutes and remove from the heat.
- Drain and rinse the chickpeas and process it in a processor with the pulse action. It should still be a little chunky. Transfer the mashed chickpeas to a mixing bowl.
- Add the sautéed onion and garlic and mix well with a wooden spoon.
- Add the cumin, parsley and lemon zest and mix well.
- Taste and season with salt and pepper. Add the egg and mix together.
- Add some breadcrumbs if the mixture is too wet to roll into balls.
- Preheat the oven to 200 °C.
- Divide the mixture into golf ball sized balls and place them on a baking tray greased with non-stick cooking spray.
- Place the baking tray in the fridge for 20 to 30 minutes.
- Remove the falafel from the fridge, brush with a little oil and bake for 25 minutes, or until crisp and golden-brown. Turn the falafel occasionally to ensure even cooking.
- Serve the falafel by itself, or with pita bread and tahini or hummus.
Makes 15 to 20 depending on size.
Variation
The falafel can also be deep-fried in sunflower oil.
