Falafel that holds together: chickpeas, moisture and shaping

COOK IT AT HOME

Crisp chickpea and herb falafel

Good falafel begins before the fryer is switched on. Dried chickpeas absorb water without becoming soft and starchy like canned beans, allowing a finely chopped mixture to hold its shape while keeping a light center. This home version uses parsley, cilantro and cumin; it is a practical recipe for about twenty small falafel rather than a reproduction of a restaurant formula.

Makes

4 servings; about 20 falafel

Prep

30 minutes

Cook

20 minutes

Additional time

Soak chickpeas 18–24 hours; chill mixture 45 minutes

A home-kitchen recipe to accompany this guide. Ingredient brands and equipment can change cooking times; use the texture and doneness cues below.

Ingredients

• 200 g dried chickpeas, picked over
• 1.5 liters cold water, for soaking
• 80 g onion, roughly chopped
• 20 g parsley leaves
• 15 g cilantro leaves
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 3/4 teaspoon fine salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 tablespoon chickpea flour, plus up to 1 tablespoon if needed
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 750 ml neutral frying oil, or enough for 5 cm depth

Step-by-step method

1. Cover the chickpeas with the measured cold water in a large bowl. Refrigerate for 18–24 hours, adding more cold water if needed to keep them submerged. Drain thoroughly and pat dry. They should be swollen but still uncooked; do not substitute canned chickpeas.
2. Put onion, herbs and garlic in a food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Add chickpeas, cumin, coriander, salt and pepper. Process in short bursts, scraping the bowl, until the particles resemble coarse sand and a squeezed handful stays together. Stop before the mixture becomes a smooth paste.
3. Stir in 1 tablespoon chickpea flour. Cover and refrigerate for 45 minutes. Just before shaping, mix in baking powder. Form one 25–30 g patty; if it crumbles despite firm pressing, add the remaining tablespoon of flour and rest for 10 minutes.
4. Heat oil in a heavy saucepan to 350°F/175°C, keeping the pan no more than half full. Fry a test patty for 4–5 minutes, turning once, until deep golden and cooked through. Adjust the heat to maintain 340–355°F; a dark outside and raw center means the oil is too hot or the patty too thick.
5. Shape the remaining mixture into roughly twenty patties, each about 1.5 cm thick. Fry in small batches without crowding for 4–5 minutes. Lift onto a rack or paper-lined tray and serve promptly while the exterior is crisp.

Helpful tips & substitutions

• Use washed, thoroughly dried herbs; extra water makes the mixture fragile and causes oil to spit.
• An onion that releases a great deal of liquid can be lightly squeezed before processing. Grinding more finely is usually a better first fix for crumbling than adding large amounts of flour.
• For a cilantro-free version, replace the cilantro with the same weight of parsley; the flavor changes but the method stays the same.

Storage & make-ahead

Refrigerate cooked falafel within 2 hours in a shallow covered container for up to 3 days. Reheat at 375°F/190°C until the center reaches 165°F/74°C. Freeze cooked portions for up to 2 months. Keep refrigerated at 40°F/4°C or below; shorten the room-temperature limit to 1 hour when it exceeds 90°F/32°C.

How to serve it

Serve with warm pita, chopped tomatoes, pickled turnips and a lemon-tahini sauce. Keep sauce separate until assembling wraps.