Homemade Falafels. That’s it, scroll to the bottom, grab the recipe, make them. Goodbye; so long! Farewell! Just kidding. This isn’t really goodbye. But you don’t need me to say much more than homemade falafel! Tender on the inside and marked by that signature green color, while they’re crispy and golden brown on the outside. The key to making the best homemade falafel is to spice them just right. There’s a lot of debate whether sesame seeds have a place in falafels. Some countries (Egypt and others) use them, while others don’t. I love sesame seeds so you’ll definitely find some in my homemade batch however, they are optional. A falafel is essentially just a chickpea fritter loaded with so much flavor and it just so happens to be completely meatless. I’ve recipe tested them to the point where they’re absolutely perfect. But really, we all know it’s because I can’t get off the falafel train. All that’s left to do is wrap it up, toss it in a salad, or dunk them in homemade toum or tahini sauce. In my opinion, there’s no wrong way to eat a falafel!
Ingredients for homemade falafel:
Garbanzo beans: Also called chickpeas and are very commonly used in falafel recipes. Fava beans are also sometimes used in place of garbanzo beans. However, I’ve only ever used garbanzo beans. You’ll want to rinse and soak the dried chickpeas in roughly 6 cups of water 12-24 hours in advance. I’ve never tested this recipe with canned chickpeas and those are typically cooked before canning and would produce different results. Chickpeas are also used to make hummus and various other salads, I use them as a protein source in vegetarian sandwiches and for other dips.Fresh Parsley: Not only adds that signature green hue to falafel it also adds tons of fresh herb flavor. You can swap out some or all of of the parsley for fresh cilantro if you’d like. I typically use both.Onions: Use a white or yellow onion for this recipe. We’ll pulse is with everything else in the food processor.Garlic: I use a few garlic cloves to give the falafel patties a bit of garlicky flavor; feel free to skip this if you’d like.Spices and seasonings:Cumin, coriander, salt, and black pepper, and cayenne are some of the ingredients I use. Recently, I’ve also started tossing in a hulled out jalapeño or two for a little more flavor, though this is completely optional!Baking soda: Helps give the falafel just the littlest bit of lift when it reacts with the lemon juice in the mixture.Lemon Juice: reacts with the leavening agent (baking soda) when the two mix.Sesame Seeds: Adds nuttiness and texture. You can omit the sesame seeds for those with allergies or if you don’t want to use them.All-purpose Flour: Use for binding. The flour absorbs the excess moisture in the falafel mixture.Oil, for frying: You’ll need oil for deep frying or panfrying. The shape of the falafel will vary if you make patties or if you make falafel balls. I usually prefer these as falafel patties but this recipe works both ways.
How to make falafel:
If you like this recipe, you might also like:
Lebanese Meat Stuffed Pitas (Arayes)Lebanese Fattoush SaladShirazi SaladMost Delicious Shawarma SeasoningMoroccan Chickpea Quinoa Power Salad
Original recipe shared February 2016, updated with new post, images, and more clear directions May 2022.
BLEND: I actually really like cilantro so I did 50% parsley and 50% cilantro for my falafels. You can use all parsley or cilantro or a good combination of the two. This is totally up to you.HEAT: The cayenne powder is optional. If you don’t want any heat at all, feel free to leave it out completely! You can also add in 1-2 hollowed out jalapeños to give this a bit more kick!DEEP FRYING: You can deep fry the falafels if you wish, you’ll need a slotted spoon to aid in lowering the falafel patties (or balls) into the hot oil so the oil doesn’t splatter.
