Homemade Falafel Recipe (Step-By-Step)

This homemade falafel recipe is easy to follow and makes delicious falafels that are crispy on the outside and soft and fluffy on the inside. Learn how to make crispy falafel at home and ditch the take out.

If you love Middle Eastern and Mediterranean recipes, you're going to love today's recipe. Falafel is a staple in Middle Eastern cuisine that complements such classic recipes as manakish zaatar, mujadara and shish tawook. This is a super easy falafel recipe that you can make at home and enjoy with some tasty sides!

Everything you need to know

Falafel, also called Felafel, is a delicious middle eastern patty that's made mainly with chickpeas. In some countries falafel is made with fava beans but the common falafel that you find in restaurants is made with chickpeas. A good falafel is crispy and crunchy on the outside and soft and fluffy on the inside. Falafels are vegan as they don't contain dairy, egg or meat. They're made with chickpeas, onion, garlic, and herbs.

Falafel most definitely originated in Egypt and was made with fava beans. These days, falafels can be found almost everywhere and are usually served as a sandwich with pita, pickles, hummus and tahini sauce.

In Iran, Falafel sandwiches are common in almost every city and are especially popular in the southern regions. You can easily find them in small stalls on the street and they're usually served with spicy mango pickles.

Ingredients

Traditional falafel is made from simple ingredients. Even though the process is a little bit time consuming, it's not complicated at all. To make homemade falafel recipe, you need the following ingredients:

• Chickpeas
• Parsley
• Cilantro
• Onion
• Garlic
• Spices: cumin, paprika, salt and pepper
• Chickpea flour

This is a chickpea flour falafel recipe which is crispy on the outside and soft on the inside thanks to chickpea flour. Falafel ingredients might vary from city to city and region to region as some might not use greens and some might use different spices. But this is a basic falafel recipe that you can count on to give you that delicious falafel that you buy from your favorite middle eastern place.

Can you cook chickpeas before making falafel recipe?

In order to make this easy falafel recipe, you only need to soak the chickpeas overnight and there is no need to cook them. If you cook the chickpeas, they will become too soft and will contain too much water which will result in them falling apart when fried. 

How to make falafel from scratch

Making homemade falafel is actually pretty simple and fun:

• Soak the chickpeas: Place the chickpeas in a large bowl and fill the bowl with water. Don't skip this step when you make falafels and don't use canned chickpeas. Let the garbanzo beans soak for 12 to 18 hours until they can easily be chopped. Once ready to make the falafel mixture, drain and wash the chickpeas and set the aside.

• Process the ingredients: Place the herbs and onion and garlic in a bowl of a food processor and process until they're finely chopped. Add in the chickpeas and spices and process until you have a coarse paste. Add in chickpea flour and baking powder, and process again until everything is well mixed.

• Refrigerate the falafel mixture: Cover the bowl with a plastic wrap and place the bowl in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. You can leave the falafel mixture in the fridge overnight if you choose.
• Shape and deep fry: Once you're ready to cook, heat some canola or vegetable oil in a sauce pan over medium heat. Once the oil is hot enough, scoop out the falafel mixture using an ice cream scoop and with your fingers form patties that are ½ inch thick. Carefully place the falafel patties in hot oil and cook them util they are golden brown and crispy. Place the cooked homemade falafels on a kitchen paper towel to absorb the extra oil.

A small tip: To shape the falafels you can either make falafel balls of falafel patties. I personally prefer falafel patties as they have a more traditional look and a better tasting center.

Can I use canned chickpeas?

Canned or cooked chickpeas don't work for homemade falafel recipe as they contain too much moisture and that will cause the falafels to fall apart when you try to fry them. Some would add all purpose flour or eggs to the chickpea mixture to prevent them from falling apart but that would affect the flavor and texture. Making homemade falafels might require a little bit of planning, but it's worth it, so please use dry chickpeas and not canned chickpeas when making this falafel recipe. 

What makes falafel green?

A good heap of cilantro and parsley make falafels green. You can reduce the amount of herbs if you don't like falafels to be too green. 

Don't like cilantro? You can leave it out or substitute it with more parsley. 

Can I bake falafels?

Even though falafels are traditionally deep fried, you can also bake them in the oven. For baked falafel recipe, prepare the mixture as instructed in the recipe and then proceed with these steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Place falafel patties on the baking sheet and brush the top with olive oil.
• Turn the patties and brush the other side with olive oil too.
• Bake the falafels in the oven for 25 minutes and flip them half way through.

Note: Please be aware that baked falafels won't be as fluffy and tender as deep fried falafels. 

Pan fried falafel 

It is possible to pan fry falafels. Place a non stick pan over medium heat and pour 3 tablespoons vegetable oil in the pan. Let the oil heat and once it's hot enough, form falafel patties and place them in the pan. Fry on one side for about 4 minutes and then flip and pan fry the other side until brown and cooked. While pan fried falafels definitely use less oil compared to deep fried falafels, they won't be as crispy on the outside. 

What to serve falafel with 

Falafels are a full meal on their own and you can serve them in different ways. If making a falafel sandwich, wrap them in a homemade pita bread with some greens such as lettuce or arugula, pickles and tzatziki sauce or tahini sauce.

You can also turn it into a falafel salad by pairing it with fattoush, tabbouleh or fresh Mediterranean salad and some tahini sauce.

IF you would like to serve falafel as an appetizer, serve them with different dips and spreads such as hummus or baba ganoush on a mezze platter with some delicious dolma. 

Can I freeze falafels?

You certainly can. I prefer to freeze raw falafels as they are the best when freshly fried. Scoop the falafels and shape the patties. Place them on a plate or a baking sheet and freeze for about an hour until they're hardened. Then place them in a ziploc bag and freeze.

Once ready to cook, take them out of the ziploc bag and place them on a baking sheet. Heat oil in a sauce pan and once the oil is hot enough, fry the frozen falafels. 

How long does cooked falafel keep?

My best advice to you is to serve and eat falafel as soon as it's cooked because that's when they are super crispy on the outside and warm and tender on the inside. However, if you have leftovers, simply store them in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 2 days. Reheat them in a pan with just a little bit of vegetable oil. They will taste great, however, the texture won't be exactly the same. 

Notes and tips on how to make the best falafel recipe

• I use chickpea flour to ensure a bold chickpea flavor. However, you can simply switch in all purpose flour in the this easy falafel recipe. Make sure not to add too much flour, one to two tablespoon is enough for this recipe.
• It's important to refrigerate the falafel mixture for at least thirty minutes as it gives the mixture the time it needs to come together and get ready to be fried.
• Make sure the oil is not too hot - otherwise the falafels will cook on the outside but remain raw on the inside. To know if the oil is hot enough, insert a toothpick or wooden skewer in the oil and if bubbles are appearing, the oil is ready. 
• Can I fry the falafels in an air fryer? I have not tried making falafels in air fryer so I cannot vouch for it. Once I give it a try, I will update you. 
• Using canned chickpeas might seem like an easy option, but because of the amount of water they have, the falafels are not going to have the perfect texture and flavor. Classic falafel is made with dry chickpeas soaked for at least 18 hours.