An easy falafel recipe that won’t fall apart! Honestly, I gave up on making falafel after quite a few tries that became falafel crumble. It seemed that every time I made them, I would end up with one or two crispy falafel that held together and the rest would break apart. It turns out… there’s a trick to it!
Soaked… not cooked chickpeas are the key. These falafel:
Won’t fall apart
Are crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside
Full of flavour
Simple to make
And thrifty too!
The Trick To Falafel That Won’t Fall Apart
It turns out, I just had to go to authentic falafel recipes to find out how these crispy balls of chickpeas are traditionally made. The recipes I previously followed called for canned chickpeas which is certainly a quicker way to make falafel. But… if they don’t stick together, it’s not really worth my time and effort (even if it is less time)!
The Mediterranean Dish has a great recipe and description of her family’s Egyptian falafel recipe. It was from Suzy and others with authentic recipes passed down in their families that I learned of the need to use soaked – not cooked chickpeas.
One of my most popular videos and blog posts is on How To Cook Chickpeas From Scratch. If you have never bought dried beans and cooked them from scratch, that post and video is a great place to start. Instead of buying canned beans which have already been cooked and are ready to eat, pick up a bag of dried beans.
The first step to cooking dried beans is to soak them. Then, you cook them. But for this easy falafel recipe… we are only soaking them!
How To Make This Easy Falafel Recipe
This falafel recipe is very simple to make but it does take some preparation time. For this reason, I usually like to make a double batch and freeze half the falafel for some quicker meals at a later date.
- To start, soak dried chickpeas in cold water in the fridge for 18 – 24 hours.
The recipe calls for using 1 ½ cups soaked chickpeas. Dried chickpeas swell in volume as they soak (similar to how rice swells as it cooks). So, you can place ¾ cup dried chickpeas in a pot, cover with cold water and make sure there is about 3 inches of water above the line of chickpeas so they stay submerged as they soak.
- Once the chickpeas have soaked, drain the soaking water and rinse the chickpeas in fresh water. Pat dry with a towel.
- Add the chickpeas to a food processor with some onion, garlic, parsley or spinach, and some spices.
- Blend until the chickpeas are broken down into a fine, crumbly mixture. You don’t want to over-process the mixture so the chickpeas turn into a paste. They should still have some texture. (I like to think of a couscous texture for reference).
- Chill this mixture for 1 hour for best results. Sometimes I leave this mixture to chill overnight in the fridge if needed. The chilling will help the flavours to strengthen and will make the falafel easier to form.
- Finally, add a bit of baking powder to the mixture to help fluff up the inside of the falafel. Adding toasted sesame seeds at this point will add a bit more texture as well.
- And cook the falafel by frying it for 3-5 minutes or baking at 350 degrees F for 15-20 minutes.
Ingredients
Besides the soaked dried chickpeas, only a few ingredients are needed for this easy falafel recipe.
Traditionally, falafel is made with a mixture of fresh herbs added to the chickpeas. Falafel is often green on the inside from the addition of these herbs and although fresh herbs are a delicious addition… I don’t always have them on hand.
For this reason I often deviate from the traditional recipe and use spinach for that bit of green colour. I tend to always have spinach on hand but I don’t always have fresh parsley, cilantro, dill etc.
Feel free to use a combination of fresh herbs if you have them OR use my little hack and get a bit of your favourite green veggie in there instead.
Onion, garlic, ground cumin, ground coriander (which comes from the cilantro plant), and a bit of paprika make up the rest of my flavour profile for this recipe.
Recipe Cost
This recipe will make 15 to 16 falafel and costs us under $3 Canadian!
Our cost is about $2.86 or roughly 20 cents per falafel. Another benefit to using dried chickpeas is their thrifty nature. This is why I switched from buying canned beans to dried beans during the pandemic and I haven’t gone back. Cooking big batches of dried beans does take a little bit of time but I find the savings worth it and I always have frozen beans in my freezer for really quick meals.
Let me know in the comments below if you try this soaked chickpea method for this easy falafel recipe. Make sure to stir up a quick batch of my Lemon Tahini Dressing to serve alongside these falafel or drizzle over pitas and bowls!
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Easy Falafel Recipe – That Won’t Fall Apart!
- Total Time: 25 minutes (plus 19 hours soaking/chilling time)
- Yield: 15–16 pieces 1x
- Diet: Vegan
Description
An easy falafel recipe that won’t crumble on you. These falafel don’t fall apart because the key is to use soaked – not cooked chickpeas!
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cup soaked chickpeas, drained
- ½ small white onion
- 2 – 3 garlic cloves
- 1 cup fresh packed spinach or parsley*
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 2 tsp ground coriander
- ¼ tsp smoked paprika
- ¾ tsp baking powder
- 1 ½ tbsp sesame seeds, toasted
*Fresh ingredients you need that are not part of our pantry and freezer tips.
Instructions
*The key to making falafel that doesn’t fall apart is to use soaked chickpeas, not cooked chickpeas and therefore not canned chickpeas. For best results, follow the instructions below for how to soak dried chickpeas.
- Soak ¾ cup (150g) dried chickpeas by covering in cold water (making sure the water is at least 3 inches above the chickpeas) and placing in the fridge for 18 – 24 hours. Adding ½ teaspoon baking soda will help to soften the chickpeas and they will swell to the 1 ½ cups you need for this recipe after the soaking time.
- After the chickpeas have soaked and swollen in size, drain them from the soaking water and rinse them with fresh water.
- Pat the chickpeas dry with a clean cloth and add them to a food processor with the additional ingredients up to the paprika. Pulse the mixture until the chickpeas are broken down to about the texture of couscous. You don’t want to blend the chickpeas so far that they become a paste. The mixture should still be a little crumbly but fine enough that the mixture will pack together without falling apart. See the photos in the blog post for reference!
- Refrigerate this mixture, covered, for at least 1 hour. This will help the flavours to strengthen and will make forming the falafel a little easier. (If you don’t have the time, it is possible to move straight to cooking the falafel).
- Remove the mixture from the fridge and stir in the baking powder and sesame seeds.
- Form the mixture into individual falafel balls or patties. I find that using a small cookie scoop makes uniform falafel. I scoop the dough into my hands and use my hands to form a compact ball or small circular patty.
- To fry the falafel, add 2 inches of frying oil to a dutch oven over medium heat. Test that the oil is hot enough by dipping the handle of a wooden spoon in the oil. If small bubbles form around the wood, the oil is hot enough. Carefully transfer a few falafel at a time into the hot oil. I usually fry only 6 or so at a time to ensure they have enough space between them. Fry for about 2 minutes on each side until the outside is nicely browned and crispy. Carefully remove fried falafel from the hot oil and place on a paper towel lined plate to soak up the excess oil.
- To bake the falafel, place the formed falafel balls or patties on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees F for 15 – 20 minutes. Carefully turn the falafel halfway through to ensure even baking.
- Serve with my Lemon Tahini Dressing as part of a mezze platter, my Falafel Pita, or use them as the protein in a Falafel Power Bowl!
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Cooked falafel can be frozen and reheated in the oven or on a frying pan. Uncooked patties can also be frozen and then baked. If frying patties from frozen, be aware that the oil will spray because of the water content in the frozen falafel. Allow to defrost before frying and/or take necessary precautions when frying.
Notes
Approximate Cost:$2.86 CAD about 20 cents per falafel.
If you have read my post or watched my video on how to cook chickpeas from scratch, you will know that I offer a method for “quick soaking” chickpeas. This is achieved by boiling the chickpeas for 5 minutes, turning the heat off, and letting them sit in the hot water for 1 hour. I did try using this quick soak method for this recipe but it is not as successful as soaking the dried chickpeas in cold water in the fridge. It was much harder to form the patties with the quick soak method and it was not possible to fry the falafel. Baking the falafel worked alright but the fried falafel fell apart entirely in the hot oil.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Main Dishes
- Method: Various
- Cuisine: Middle Eastern Inspired
Linda
These falafel worked! Mine always fall apart and never end up holding together but these finally worked! Thanks for the recipe 🙂
Kathryn Alexandre
Fantastic! I was so relieved when I finally made some that held together so I’m glad this recipe has you helped you too! Thank you so much for the lovely star rating!
Joyce Kreger
Can I used canned chickpeas?
Kathryn Alexandre
You certainly can, the only trouble is that there is a higher moisture content in canned chickpeas so they tend to cause the falafel to crumble. I would suggest baking the falafel if you use canned chickpeas because it will be gentler on them than frying. You can also try adding some chickpea flour (gram flour) to the mixture in order to soak up extra moisture and give you a better chance at making falafel that don’t crumble. I find that if I use canned chickpeas and I’m prepared for a bit more of a delicious falafel crumble then I don’t get as disappointed in the result!
Heather Hirschman
I left the chick peas soaking for 48 hours – something came up – then followed your recipe faithfully, leaving the mixture in my fridge overnight.
I can’t form balls because there is too much moisture! I’m stressed because i made 3x the quantity for a do tomorrow.
How can I save the mixture – please help
which smells delicious!
I have made it before btw!
Kathryn Alexandre
Oh dear, yes the chickpeas soaked for too long and got too mushy. If you have chickpea flour (garbanzo flour, gram flour) then add that little by little to the mixture until it comes together. Alternatively, you can use any flour really (even all purpose). If you don’t mind baking them then that will be gentler on them and minimize any crumbling (sometimes in the high heat of a fryer if the falafel are not very strong they will fall apart). If you choose to bake them and you do get some crumbling you can maybe just pretend that you intended to create a falafel crumble! I hope they can be saved for your event!
Heather Hirschman
Thank you so much for such a quick response. I’ll get the flour and then bake them. Won’t make that mistake again. The first time I made them no-one could get enough. Great recipe!
Kathryn Alexandre
Of course! I hope the flour helps to salvage them and everyone loves them just as much this time!
Haley
Great recipe and graet video really helpful to see you go through making them. Was helpful as this was my first time making falafel and they turned out great!
Kathryn Alexandre
I’m so glad you found the video helpful and that they turned out great for you! Thank you so much for letting me know and for your review! Enjoy your falafel!