I have to be honest. I have not always liked falafels. I think it had something to do with overgreasy, stale, bad quality of a falafel that ruined it all. Almost for life. Thankfully I went back to give it a stab yet again at a better Middle Eastern restaurant and wowwy wow wow, it was good! So that’s when I realized : falafels can be awesome!
So it’s been a great indulgence once in a while whenever the craving hit. I even got my husband to eventually like them. Now my daughter loves them too!
We’ve found our favourite spots with good falafels and I thought it was all good…. yet, it gets better! One day when the craving hit I thought to myself why don’t I just make them. Can’t be too difficult can it?
Nope, not at all. In fact it’s the easiest recipe I whip up in minutes! Fresh falafels are a pure delight! The hardest part really truly is to plan ahead and remember to soak your chickpeas. Simple enough for ya? Try my easy falafel recipe.
Homemade Falafel Recipy
vegan/ dairy free, egg free, gluten free/ wheat free
ingredients :
1 1/2 cups dried chickpeas
3 cloves garlic
1 small onion, roughly chopped
1/4 cup parsley, roughly chopped
1 tablespoon tapioca starch, or other starch will do
1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
fresh cracked black pepper to taste
grape seed oil for frying
needed : food processor + deep pan or pot for deep frying, ceramic is best. (deep fryers are great if you have one, I don’t and that’s ok – if you don’t have one also, just follow my directions below how to safely fry these babies!)
directions :
Pre-soak the dried chickpeas at least 6 hours. Overnight is best or start soaking in the morning for a dinner later that evening. Once the chickpeas are soaked the recipe comes together in less than 10 minutes.
Drain the pre-soaked chickpeas and place in a food processor. Add in all the remaining ingredients except for the grape seed oil. Process on high until everything is well blended. Turn off food processor and scrape down the sides a few times to incorporate all the ingredients. Turn off mixer and scoop the mixture onto a bowl so it’s easier to work from.
In a ceramic pot (that’s completely dry) drizzle in about 1/2 cup of grape seed oil and turn on temperature to medium.
Scoop a little of the mixture with a spoon onto your hand and shape into a round ball or egg shape. Prep all the mixture before deep frying.
To test the oil, simply drop a tiny little piece of the chickpea mixture into the pot, if the oil starts to gently bubble around it – you’re good to go. If it just sits there in the oil, the temperature is too low. If it starts to make cracking noise and the bubbles are too strong – it is too hot. On my stove, a setting a little to the low medium is best. Adjust your heat accordingly.
To drop the falafels, do not fear the oil – go fairly low to the oil and drop down gently, do not throw as that could cause splattering and you might get burned.
Gently drop down as many as can fit to cover the bottom so that there’s room to move them around and flip, they should never overlap.
Cook for about 3 minutes on the first side and 2 minutes on the other. Look for a golden yellow falafel colour! Do not walk away from the stove as these are being done. They could burn too quickly depending on your stove settings. Gently flip over with a long fork, continue cooking on the other side. Remove slowly with a holed spatula.
Place on a plate lined with a few sheets of paper towel to allow the excess oil to drip off.
Dairy free Tahini Falafel Sauce
Ingredients:
1/2 cup tahini (sesame seed paste)
3 gloves garlic, crushed
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
juice of 1/2 lemon juice, freshly squeezed
1 teaspoon parsley, chopped fine (optional)
Preparation:
If the sauce is too thick, add a teaspoon of warm water until the sauce is a little more runny. Serve fresh or refrigerate. Good for up to 5 days in a sealed container.
I like my falafels served in a variety of ways, in a wrap, with rice and salad or just in a salad for a healthy lighter lunch or dinner. This is a really lovely meal that comes together really quick. And you know what else – it’s so cheap! It’s amazing how inexpensive this meal gets yet so healthy and nutritious.
If you fear deep frying – do not. It’s very simple – biggest rule of thumb is to keep water away from oil. So as long as your pot, your hands, your spatula is completely dry you’re completely fine.
I know deep-frying isn’t the healthiest of cooking methods – but these really do not taste oily at all. They oil doesn’t really absorb much and then whatever stays on, drips off on the paper towel. I do not deep fry anything ever so I feel pretty good with just the occasional fried falafel. So worth it!
I will also be baking a batch and let you know how that goes. I only believe it will take a lot longer – about 30 minutes to bake them, rather than 5 minutes to fry them. I’ll do an official comparison and update you soon.
So do YOU like falafels? Have you made them yourself before? Did you try my easy falafle recipe ?
If you’re new to Pure Ella, please sign up for email updates and join me elsewhere:
Facebook // Pinterest // Twitter // Instagram @pure_ella
Blogger, Recipe Developer, Photographer and Author. Loves healthy food, photography, sunshine and dancing in the kitchen with her two daughters. 
Vegan and GF! I love falafel! <3 With any luck, I'll be trying this recipe this weekend!! It'll save me a lot from going to our favorite Greek restaurant. And I'll know for sure that it's GF!
Beautiful images! Thank you for all that you do!
Pinned,
K-
Tanks Kristin! ;)
That’s one of the reasons I went and whipped up my own at home – all the places seemed shady saying that yes it is gf! I have trust issues ;) lol
Thanks for the pin! xox
These look gorgeous! Fantastic photography :) I love falafel but have never tried making it on my own- you make it seem so easy!
Thanks Christy ;)
They are easy ;) lol
It’s so worth to try them out ~ let me know how it goes for you ;)
xo
This is exactly how I prepare my homemade falafel. Right down to the grapeseed oil and everything. So good! I normally soak my garbanzo beans for 24 hours though. That salad looks AMAZING!!
It’s pretty much staying with the classic recipe! Which is my fave anyway… although I have dabbled in changing up a thing or two. Simple is best though ;)
Have a great weekend!! xo
Woah, these look so good! I love falafel but have always been too scared to fry them. I’m sure they taste better that way though ;)
Thanks Emma ;)
I good with the occasional frying – it’s pretty much the only food I have ever fried in my life.
I don’t think you can cheat a falafel too much! ;) lol
But baking them is on my to do list for next time ;) xoxo
Have a great weekend!!
You really don’t have to cook the chickpeas beforehand? That saves a ton of time and hassle! I’ll try baking these, though, since I no longer cook with any oil and deep-frying scares me anyway ;)
I know, soaking them is enough! ;)
I loved knowing that piece of information too when I first wanted to make them ;)
Enjoy!! Let me know how you like them and how baking goes for you (I still have to try that) Thanks for visiting Pure Ella. xox
Oh goodness your falafel look amazing! can I come over and you make these for me?? because blogger soul-sister bonding time would only be complete with falafel right? ;)
Hey girl! Yes, let’s do a falfel party ;)
You’re like my little sister whenever I think of you – how about a picnic?? ;)
xox
Have a great weekend!!
Your blog is stunning Ella! I discovered you through Mind Body Green, and feel so lucky that I did : )
I am going to sprout the beans and make these in the dehydrator…I am thrilled! Thank you for this recipe, falafels are something I miss so much!
Peace & Raw Health,
Eizabeth
I’m gonna do it today!
Did you try baking them? What happened?? :-) Beautiful photography btw
Hi Lana,
Good question ;)
I did but forgot to update this. I baked them for 30 minutes, flipping over half way through and I found they were a bit dry. It is healthier though… and avoiding frying in general is great for your health. For me though, I hardly eat something fried, so if I can treat myself once a few weeks to a yummy moist crispy falafel, then I think I will ;)
The type of oil here and the temperature here makes a huge difference. I use grape seed oil and keep the temperature medium. High heat turns the oils into a toxic. Baking is of course best, and maybe I need to just get used to the baked version ;)
Do you think it would be possible to freeze these ?
Hi,
Huge apologies for not responding to your question. I have not seen this comment at all until now that a new comment was added – so so sorry!
Yes, to answer your question.
You can place them in an airtight container and place small sheets of parchment paper in between so they don’t get stuck.
Then defrost in the refrigerator or at room temperature (not necessarily fully) and reheat for about 15 minutes in an oven or toaster oven. Do not refry.
You can also freeze the raw dough then defrost completely and fry as instructed in the recipe.
Hope this helps – I think it’s a great time to make these again :)
Hugs, ella xo
Hi Ella ! I have to say that I’m French, so I apologize for my bad english ^_^
So ! I’ll try your recipe tommorow, for à party with some friends, and I would to know if I can make them at noon for the evening ? And how I can warm them ?
Thanks for the recipe !
Have a nice day :)
Hi,
So sorry I didn’t reply to this comment sooner. I honestly did not see it and just noticed it now….
I hope it worked out for your party :)
To still answer your question, you can keep them in the oven covered up with foil until serving time.
Hope you can make them again soon!
Hugs, ella
xoxo
These completely disintegrated in the oil, I followed this recipe exactly as instructed & looked in the pan to find no falafel. This was disappointing.
Hi Laura,
So sorry that I didn’t reply to your comment sooner.
I honestly did not see this until now….
Anyway, if it still helps I think what happened was that the chickpeas were not ground up long enough.
If you want to make them again, I would keep going for much longer 5-10 minutes until they resemble a paste.
This really also depends on the food processor you use, so it should work next time.
Let me know if it does – they are delicious and hopefully you will be excited to give them a go :)
All the best,
ella xoxo
These turned out so excellent! The flavor and texture were perfect. Yum!
That’s so great to hear Briana! :)
Thanks so much for stopping by and sharing!
Have a great day! xox