Lebanese falafel often uses a combination of fava beans and chickpeas, while in Egypt, it is traditional to use just fava beans
Ingredients:
2 cups dried chickpeas. picked through and rinsed
1 small red onion, coarsely chopped
4 garlic cloves, smashed
1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh flat leafed parsley
1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh mint
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 tablespoons flour (I added this)
1 tablespoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
canola oil for frying
Tahini Sauce (recipe follows)
Method:
Place the chickpeas in a large bowl and cover with water by 3 inches. Soak overnight. They will double in size.
Drain and rinse thoroughly. (I think you should make certain the chickpeas are very dry at this point. It may have been one of my problems. See Bench Notes. Some of you who make falafel on a regular basis might have some other suggestions.)
Put the chickpeas in a food processor and pulse until the consistancy of cornmeal. Remove and set aside.
Add the onion, garlic, parsley, cilantro and mint to the processor along with a couple tablespoons of the chickpeas. Pulse until pureed. Add to the remaining chickpeas along with the cumin, coriander, baking powder, flour, salt and pepper. Mix thoroughly.
You may refrigerate, covered, at this point for up to 3 days.
Heat about 3 inches of the oil to 375 in an electric fryer or deep pot.
In the meantime, make golf-sized balls with the falafel mixture, squeezing tightly so they don’t fall apart while cooking. (See Bench Notes) Place a few falafels in the oil at a time, moving them around so brown evenly and don’t stick. Fry until crusty brown on all sides and cooked through, about 5 minutes; remove with slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Makes about 2 dozen falafels.
Tahini Sauce(makes 1 cup)Ingredients:1/2 cup tahini1 tablespoon soy saucejuice of 1 lemon2 garlic cloves, mincedpinch of Kosher saltMethod:Combine all the ingredients with 1/2 cup water in blender or processor. Process until smooth.
By Moveable Feasts.
Thanks for inspiring us!
You can see the recipe here: moveablefeastscookbook.blogspot.com
