Michael and I spent four nights in Dubai, UAE in 2012. While there we tried falafel at one of the many, many malls. (Dubai is the ONLY place in the world where malls can count as “sightseeing” and “travel” in my opinion!) This traditionally Arab dish is derived from chickpeas or garbanzo beans.
I was an instant fan of its crunchy exterior and soft, moist and flavorful inside. Since then, I’ve seen many recipes for falafel and have wanted to whip up a batch for us. I read through four or five different falafel recipes and took bits and pieces of each to create my recipe.
Ingredients:
- 1 can of chickpeas (or 16 oz of dried garbanzo beans soaked overnight)
- 2 cloves of minced garlic
- 1/2 tsp of salt
- 1/4 cumin
- a “dash of cayenne pepper powder (optional)
- 1/4 c of sesame seeds
- 1/4 tbsp of flax seeds
- 1 tbsp of cilantro
- 1 small lemon (or 2 tbsp of lemon juice)
- 1 egg
- 1/3 c of choice flour (I used whole wheat)
- 1/2 cup of choice oil for frying (vegetable, sunflower, canola seem to be the most favorite – I used simple veggie oil)
- Rinse and dry chick peas
- Place 1/2 of the chick peas in food processor (I used the magic bullet) to blend to a crumbly mixture. Dump into bowl.
- Blend the remaining half of chick peas with the garlic, salt, cumin, flax seeds, cayenne pepper & parsley in food processor. Add this mixture to bowl with other chick peas.
- Add egg, sesame seeds and flour. Stir all ingredients to form batter.
- Cover and chill for 20-30 minutes.
Then:
- Heat oil. When simmering place over sized tablespoon of batter into oil. Press batter down to form a patty.
- Allow each patty to “brown” and then flip.
Remove and place on paper towel to allow excess oil to drain.
Chicken and Stir-Fry Noodles (Thailand)
*Serve warm in a pita or wrap or over salad with store bought Greek, Tahini or balsamic dressing if you’d like.