Falafel Croquettes Recipes

HOW TO MAKE FALAFEL

Steps:

• (One day in advance) Place the dried chickpeas and baking soda in a large bowl filled with water to cover the chickpeas by at least 2 inches. Soak overnight for 18 hours (longer if the chickpeas are still too hard). When ready, drain the chickpeas completely and pat them dry.
• Add the chickpeas, herbs, onions, garlic and spices to the large bowl of a food processor fitted with a blade. Run the food processor 40 seconds at a time until all is well combined forming a the falafel mixture.
• Transfer the falafel mixture to a container and cover tightly. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour or (up to one whole night) until ready to cook.
• Just before frying, add the baking powder and sesame seeds to the falafel mixture and stir with a spoon.
• Scoop tablespoonfuls of the falafel mixture and form into patties (1/2 inch in thickness each). It helps to have wet hands as you form the patties.
• Fill a medium saucepan 3 inches up with oil. Heat the oil on medium-high until it bubbles softly. Carefully drop the falafel patties in the oil, let them fry for about 3 to 5 minutes or so until crispy and medium brown on the outside. Avoid crowding the falafel in the saucepan, fry them in batches if necessary.
• Place the fried falafel patties in a colander or plate lined with paper towels to drain.
• Serve falafel hot next to other small plates; or assemble the falafel patties in pita bread with tahini or hummus, arugula, tomato and cucumbers. Enjoy!

FALAFEL BURGERS

Steps:

• Drain the chickpeas and pat dry with kitchen paper. Tip into a food processor along with the onion, garlic, parsley, cumin, coriander, harissa paste, flour and a little salt. Blend until fairly smooth, then shape into four patties with your hands.
• Heat the sunflower oil in a non-stick frying pan, and fry the burgers for 3 mins on each side until lightly golden. Serve with the toasted pitta bread, tomato salsa and green salad.

FALAFEL WITH CANNED CHICKPEAS

Steps:

• Mash chickpeas in a bowl using a masher. Combine mashed chickpeas, onions, parsley, and garlic in a blender and blend until smooth.
• Mix eggs, cumin, coriander, salt, lemon juice, baking powder, black pepper, and cayenne together in a bowl. Add chickpea mixture and mix together. Add bread crumbs slowly and combine using your hands until mixture isn't sticky, but will hold together when frying.
• Heat oil over medium-high heat in a skillet. Form mixture into about 12 patties about as wide as the palm of your hand. Fry patties in the hot oil until browned, 3 to 4 minutes per side.

BAKED FALAFEL

Steps:

• Wrap onion in cheese cloth and squeeze out as much moisture as possible. Set aside. Place garbanzo beans, parsley, garlic, cumin, coriander, salt, and baking soda in a food processor. Process until the mixture is coarsely pureed. Mix garbanzo bean mixture and onion together in a bowl. Stir in the flour and egg. Shape mixture into four large patties and let stand for 15 minutes.
• Preheat an oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Heat olive oil in a large, oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. Place the patties in the skillet; cook until golden brown, about 3 minutes on each side.
• Transfer skillet to the preheated oven and bake until heated through, about 10 minutes.

FALAFEL

Steps:

• In a food processor, combine first 11 ingredients. Process until smooth. If mixture is moist, add a few more bread crumbs. Using a 1/3 cup measure, shape mixture into patties. , In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high. Fry patties until golden brown on both sides. Meanwhile, combine sauce ingredients. Stuff pita halves with patties, tomato, onion and lettuce. Spoon sauce into pitas. Serve immediately.

FALAFEL

Steps:

• One day ahead: Pour the chickpeas into a large bowl and cover them by about 3 inches of cold water. Add 1/2 tsp of baking soda to the water and stir; this will help soften the chickpeas. Cover the bowl and let them soak overnight in a cool, dark place or in the refrigerator. The chickpeas should soak at least 12 hours and up to 24 hours, until tender (change soaking water for fresh water after 12 hours). They will double in size as they soak - you will have between 4 and 5 cups of beans after soaking.
• Drain and rinse the chickpeas well. Pour them into your food processor along with the chopped onion, garlic cloves, parsley, flour or chickpea flour (use chickpea flour to make gluten free), salt, cumin, ground coriander, black pepper, cayenne pepper, and cardamom. Note: if you have a smaller food processor, you will want to divide the ingredients in half and process the mixture one batch at a time.
• Pulse all ingredients together until a rough, coarse meal forms. Scrape the sides of the processor periodically and push the mixture down the sides. Process until the mixture is somewhere between the texture of couscous and a paste. You want the mixture to hold together, and a more paste-like consistency will help with that... but don't over-process, you don't want it turning into hummus!
• Once the mixture reaches the desired consistency, pour it out into a bowl and use a fork to stir; this will make the texture more even throughout. Remove any large chickpea chunks that the processor missed.Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1-2 hours.Fill a skillet with vegetable oil to a depth of 1 ½ inches. I prefer to use cooking oil with a high smoke point, like grapeseed. Heat the oil slowly over medium heat. The ideal temperature to fry falafel is between 360 and 375 degrees F; the best way to monitor the temperature is to use a deep fry or candy thermometer. After making these a few times, you will start to get a feel for when the oil temperature is "right."Meanwhile, form falafel mixture into round balls or slider-shaped patties using wet hands or a falafel scoop. I usually use about 2 tbsp of mixture per falafel. You can make them smaller or larger depending on your personal preference. The balls will stick together loosely at first, but will bind nicely once they begin to fry.
• If the balls won't hold together, place the mixture back in the processor again and continue processing to make it more paste-like. Keep in mind that the balls will be delicate at first; if you can get them into the hot oil, they will bind together and stick. If they still won't hold together, you can try adding 2-3 tbsp of flour or chickpea flour to the mixture. If they still won't hold, add 1-2 eggs to the mix. This should fix any issues you are having.Before frying my first batch of falafel, I like to fry a test one in the center of the pan. If the oil is at the right temperature, it will take 2-3 minutes per side to brown (5-6 minutes total). If it browns faster than that, your oil is too hot and your falafels will not be fully cooked in the center. Cool the oil down slightly and try again.
• When the oil is at the right temperature, fry the falafels in batches of 5-6 at a time until golden brown on both sides.
• Once the falafels are fried, remove them from the oil using a slotted spoon.
• Let them drain on paper towels. Serve the falafels fresh and hot; they go best with a plate of hummus and topped with creamy tahini sauce. You can also stuff them into a pita.
• SESAME FALAFEL VARIATION: After forming the balls or patties, dip them in sesame seeds prior to frying. This will make the falafel coating crunchier and give it a slightly nutty flavor.
• HERB FALAFEL VARIATION (GREEN FALAFEL): Add ½ cup additional chopped green parsley, or cilantro, or a mixture of the two prior to blending.
• TURMERIC FALAFEL (YELLOW FALAFEL): Add ¾ tsp turmeric to the food processor prior to blending.
• HOW TO MAKE A FALAFEL PITA: Making a falafel pita is actually really simple. The two main ingredients are pita bread and falafel. Cut the pita bread in half to form two "pockets." Each pocket is a serving size. Stuff the pocket with falafel, as well as any add-ons you fancy.Here are some traditional add-ons that can be added to your pita: tahini sauce, shredded lettuce, diced or sliced tomatoes, Israeli salad, onions, dill pickles, hummus, tabouli, french fries
• Here are some less traditional add-ons that are also tasty: sprouts, cucumber slices, roasted peppers, roasted eggplant slices, sunflower seeds, feta cheese, yogurt, tzatziki.

BAKED FALAFEL PATTIES

Steps:

• Combine garbanzo beans, parsley, cilantro, onion, garlic, eggs, jalapeno, flour, olive oil, cumin, coriander, baking soda, and salt in the bowl of a food processor; process until mixture is coarsely pureed. Transfer falafel mixture to the refrigerator for 30 minutes to 8 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Remove falafel mixture from the refrigerator. Add more flour if needed, 1 tablespoon at a time, and form into 20 small patties. Place patties on a baking sheet.
• Cook in the preheated oven until patties are golden brown and feel dry to the touch, but still give a little when you press the middle, about 25 minutes.

FALAFEL CROQUETTES

Steps:

• Place chickpeas, garlic, coriander, cumin, chives, and salt and pepper to taste in a blender or food processor, process until well blended, adding a little water if necessary.
• Divide and roll the chick pea mixture into small balls (croquettes). Fry the croquettes in hot oil, in batches, for about 2 to 3 minutes each, or until golden.
• Drain on paper towel.
• Serve hot.

FALAFEL: CHICKPEA PATTIES

Steps:

• Make the Falafel: Soak the chickpeas in cold water in the refrigerator overnight.
• Drain the chickpeas and place them with the onion in the bowl of a food processor. Add the rest of the ingredients, except the oil. Mix well. Process the mixture a second time. Form the mixture into walnut-sized balls and deep-fry or pan-fry in hot oil.
• Make the Sandwiches: Stuff the pitas with lettuce and nestle the falafel patties inside. Top with the rest of the ingredients and drizzle with the tahini sauce. Serve immediately.
• Mash the garlic and salt together. Add the tahini, mixing well. The sauce will thicken. Gradually add the water, blending thoroughly. Then add the lemon juice. Blend well.
• Note: This can be a thin or thick sauce, depending upon the use and preference. Simply adjust with lemon juice and water. This can be used with vegetables or in combination with other recipes.

FALAFEL CROQUETTES

Steps:

• 1. Saute onions in 1 t olive oil until soft. 2. Add garlic, cumin and carrot. Saute for 2 more minutes. Set aside. 2. Puree chickpeas in a food processor. Add onion mixture, tahini and parsley. Puree again. 3. Separately, combine chickpea flour, baking soda and salt. Add to chickpea puree. 4. With floured hands, form 8 round croquettes and lightly dust with remaining chickpea flour. 5. On an oiled griddle, over medium heat, cook croquettes for 1 minute or until they start to brown. Flip croquettes and cook for about 2 minutes before flipping again, Continue to flip every minute or so until they re a deep golden brown on both sides. 6. Squeeze fresh lemon juice over croquettes. Serve immediately with desired topping.