Did you know that Friday 12th June is International Falafal Day? 

It’s lovely and hot here and lots of people are organising barbeque parties.  Being a vegetarian, I get bored with just veggie burgers and salad so I decided to make Spicy Falafels for a change.  What are falafels made from?

Falafels  are made from fried chickpeas and are a very popular filling for pita bread.  Traditionally, it’s a Mediterranean dish but the recipe is very similar to the Dall bhajias I make but don’t tell that to my son.  His challenge was that they should taste like the ready made we can get from the chilled counter in the supermarket.  Falafels are healthy and really easy to make.

How would you serve falafels:

Falafels are great eaten hot or cold.

I serve f alafels  in a pitta or tortilla , with hummus, salsa and a salad.  They are just perfect for BBQ’s, as a  snacks or a light lunch. You can make a big batch of falafels and freeze them to use as you need them.

Ingredients for 20-25 falafels

• 3 cups of dried white chick peas (kabuli chana) or 4 cups of boiled chickpeas .  (you can also use canned chick peas)
• 2  medium potatoes
• 1 onion
• 3-4 cloves of garlic
• 3-4 green chillies
• 1-2 teaspoons of grated garlic
• 2 tablespoons plain flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1 litre cooking oil

• 6-8 pitta bread
• A variation of Salad – I tend to use white and red cabbage, carrots, red peppers, lettuce and tomatoes
• Plus a variety of condiments such as sour cream, tahini, chilly sauce etc

 Method

1. Soak the chickpeas overnight.

2. Once soaked, boil them with lots of water in a pressure cooker if possible. Boiling them in a saucepan could take longer.

3. At the same time, peel and boil the two potatoes.

4. Add the boiled chick peas, potatoes, onions,  garlic, green chillies into a food processor.

5. Add the spices – salt and pepper and  Blend the mixture.

6. Remove the mixture and add the plain flour as that helps to bind the mixture.

7. Divide the mixture into 20-25 small balls.

8. You can keep them on a round shape or flatten them slightly.

9. Heat the oil and fry the Spicy Falafels  in a medium heat, turning them occasionally to ensure that they are cooked thoroughly.

To serve:

10. Warm the tortillas in the grill or BBQ.

11. Cut them in half and fill them with the Spicy Falafels , salad and any condiments you like. This is the time to be adventurous and try out a variation.

My son loved them and had them for his lunch for two days.  His verdict was that they tasted better than the shop bought ones!! Now – that is a compliment indeed from my fussy eater.