Fresh Herb Falafel
Inspired by techniques from Bon Appétit.
Raw, soaked chickpeas are ground with a generous amount of cilantro and parsley, a little jalapeño and warm cardamom, then deep-fried into craggy, deep brown balls. Grinding the chickpeas from dried instead of starting with canned ones is what keeps the inside light and a little craggy rather than dense or pasty.
Based on the listed ingredients, none of the 14 major EU allergens. Always check product labels.
Method
- 1
Process the chickpeas. In a food processor, pulse the soaked, drained chickpeas, scraping down the sides as needed, until they look like finely chopped nuts with an uneven texture and a few larger pieces still visible, about 1 minute. Tip into a large bowl.
- 2
Chop the aromatics and mix. Without washing out the processor, pulse the onion, jalapeño, garlic, cilantro and parsley together, scraping down the sides, until coarsely chopped, about 1 minute. Stir this into the chickpeas, then mix in the chickpea flour, fine salt, baking powder, cardamom and cumin. Shape the mixture into balls about the size of ping-pong balls, roughly 4 cm across.
- 3
Fry. Pour the vegetable oil into a large, heavy pot to a depth of about 7.5 cm and fit it with a deep-fry thermometer. Heat over medium-high until the oil reaches 165°C. Working in batches, lower the falafel into the hot oil with a slotted spoon or spider and fry, turning occasionally, until deep brown and crisp, about 5 minutes. Lift onto paper towels and let sit 5 minutes before serving.
Storage
The mixture keeps covered in the fridge for up to 2 days. Cooked falafel keep in the fridge for up to 3 days or in the freezer for 6 months; thaw frozen falafel in the fridge for at least 6 hours and reheat in a 180 °C (160 °C fan) oven for about 10 minutes. Cool leftovers in a shallow container and refrigerate within 2 hours (within 1 hour on a day above 32°C).
EU nutrition claims
- Source of protein: 3.6 g protein per 100 kcal, about 14% of energy (needs ≥ 12%)
- Source of fibre: 2.3 g fibre per 100 kcal (needs ≥ 1.5 g)
Per 100 g of the finished dish, worked out from the nutrition per serving and the lowest likely cooked weight (about 56 g a serving), so the true values are, if anything, lower. Thresholds from the Annex to EU Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006. How we decide
Free sugars
0 g per serving
0 % of the 50 g daily maximum · 0 % of the ideal 25 g
Free sugars under 50 g a day, ideally about 25 g, based on WHO free-sugar guidance (not endorsed by WHO). The share shown is the share of one serving. WHO
Equipment
- food processor
- large bowl
- large heavy pot
- deep-fry thermometer
- slotted spoon or spider
- baking sheet lined with paper towels
Nutrition per serving (estimated values)
| Per serving | Amount |
|---|---|
| Energy | 247 kcal |
| Protein | 8.9 g |
| Carbohydrate | 28.2 g |
| of which sugars | 5.3 g |
| of which free sugars | 0 g |
| Fat | 11.8 g |
| of which saturates | 0.9 g |
| Fibre | 5.7 g |
| Salt | 1.43 g |
Protein per 100 kcal
3.6 g High Protein needs ≥ 5 g (20% of energy)
Calculated from USDA FoodData Central ingredient values
