Vegan Falafel
Vegan Chickpeas Falafel is a delicious and healthy snack. This vegan falafel recipe is quick, easy, and fun to make.
Ingredients
For the Falafel:
- 1 15 oz 425g Can Chickpeas (~1 and 1/2 cups Drained*)
- 1/2 Medium Onion White (Yellow or Brown, Chopped)
- 3 Cloves Garlic Crushed
- 1/3 cup Cilantro Finely Chopped
- 1/3 cup Parsley Finely Chopped
- 2 Tbsp White Sesame Seeds
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 1/2 tsp Ground Black Pepper
- 1/4 tsp Cayenne Pepper
- 1/4 tsp Coriander Powder
- 1 tsp Cumin
- 2 Tbsp All Purpose Flour*
- 4 Tbsp Olive Oil Divided (For Frying)
For Serving (Optional):
- Pita Breads
- Lettuce
- Cherry Tomatoes Sliced
- Pickles Sliced
- Hummus
- Tahini Sauce
Instructions
- Drain canned chickpeas and dry them on paper towels. Add the chickpeas to the food processor along with the chopped onion and crushed garlic and process until roughly chopped.
- Add the finely chopped cilantro and parsley, white sesame seeds, salt, ground black pepper, cayenne pepper, coriander powder and cumin and process again until roughly mixed.
- Add the all purpose flour and process briefly.
- Roll the mixture into balls and place them onto a parchment lined baking tray.
- Use a small square of parchment paper and the bottom of a glass to gently flatten the balls.
- Place into the freezer for 20 minutes to firm up.
- Add 2 Tbsp olive oil to a frying pan and when the oil is hot, add in 4 falafels (providing your pan is big enough to fit all 4). Fry until crispy and browned on each side, about 3 minutes each side.
- Place the falafels onto paper towels to absorb excess oil.
- Add the remaining 2 Tbsp olive oil to the pan and when hot, add in the remaining 4 falafels and cook until browned and crispy.
- Serve with pita breads, lettuce, cherry tomatoes, pickles, hummus and tahini sauce.
Notes
*Dry the chickpeas on a paper towel. It's important that you drain the canned chickpeas really well, and ideally also dry them off more using paper towels. We're not using a lot of flour in this recipe so making sure the canned chickpeas are well drained and dried off keeps your falafel from being wet inside.
*Make them gluten-free. You can easily make these falafels gluten-free by using a gluten-free all purpose flour blend that is meant to replace regular wheat flour.
*Bake them instead. You can also bake these falafel. Place them on a parchment lined baking tray and bake at 350°F for 15 minutes then flip them and bake on the other side for 10-15 mins.
*Storing: Leftover falafel keeps very well in the fridge for 4-5 days.
*Prep time includes the time spent chilling in the freezer.
*Nutritional information is for falafel only and excludes anything they're served with.