Falafel With Fixings (Crisp Chickpea Balls, Crunchy Salad, & Tahini Sauce)

We love having fresh falafel! Making falafel from scratch can seem intimidating; but not if the stepwise directions are followed. When you have all the prep done ahead, all that remains on the day you want to eat is cooking the Falafels! Planning your prep really pays off when making Falafel.

Prepare Tahini Sauce and chop the Salad ingredients but keep them unseasoned and unsalted until ready to serve.

Falafel makes a great starter or snack in smaller quantities.

About 6-8 Servings

INGREDIENTS:

Falafel:

2 cups Dry Chick Peas, soaked 

2 Cloves fresh Garlic

2-3 Hot Green Chile (Serrano or Jalapeno), or to taste
1 small bunch Fresh Parsley, coarsely chopped

1 small bunch Fresh Cilantro, coarsely chopped

1 small Onion, finely chopped

1 tbsp ground Cumin seeds
1 tbsp ground Coriander seeds

1/4 tsp ground Cardamom seeds

1 1/2 tsp Kosher Salt

1 pinch Turmeric
1/2 tsp Baking Soda

3 T Besan (chickpea flour)
Oil for Deep-frying (neutral tasting oil)

6-8 Pita Bread to serve

Tahini Sauce:

1/2 cup Tahini

1/4 cup fresh Lime or Lemon Juice

3/4 cup Fresh Parsley

3/4 cup Fresh Cilantro

1-2 Cloves fresh Garlic

2-3 Hot Green Chiles, or to taste

2 tsp ground Cumin

1/2 tsp ground Fenugreek Seeds

2 tsp Kosher Salt

1 pinch Cayenne

Salad:

1 small or 1/2 Each Green and Purple Cabbage, finely shredded

1 small or 1/2 large Red Onion, thinly sliced

1/2 cup EACH Cilantro, Spear Mint, Flat Leaf Parsley, chopped

1 Persian Cucumber, thinly sliced

1 cup Cherry Tomatoes, halved Or 2 regular Tomatoes, diced

1/2 tsp Kosher Salt

1 pinch Sugar (optional)

METHOD:

Tahini Sauce:
Place all the ingredients in the carafe of a blender, and blitz until smooth. Add water as needed and to make a nice smooth pourable creamy sauce. The sauce thickens a bit upon standing; add water a teaspoon at a time to get desired consistency. Taste and adjust seasonings.

Salad:
Prep all the veggies and herbs; do not add the salt or sugar if making ahead. When ready, combine, toss to mix well and serve.

Falafel Dough:
Soak the chickpeas in plenty of water at least 8 hours or upto 24 hours; if the weather is hot, keep the chickpeas in the fridge. Discard the soaking water and rinse the chickpeas. Drain thoroughly and set aside. Place the galic and chiles in the bowl of a food processor and process until chopped; add the drained chickpeas and the herbs and process by pulsing until very coarsely ground. You want to retain some texture for crisp falafel. Add the remaining ingredients except the chickpea flour; pulse to mix and scoop into a large bowl. Add just enough of the chickpea flour and mix well; the mixture should hold together when you squeeze the dough into a ball. If needed, add a little more chickpea flour. Chill until ready for frying.

Frying Falafel:
Heat a oil for deep-frying 3-4 inches on medium heat. Form heaping soupspoons of dough into small round or oval balls or patties about  1" in diameter, not more. When a pinch of the dough sizzles upon dropping into the oil, it is ready. Slip the balls/patties carefully into the hot oil without crowding and cook until golden-brown turning as needed. It should take about 5-6 minutes total for the falafels to cook. Remove from oil and drian briefly on paper towels before serving. Continue with the rest of the dough. Serve hot.

Assembly:
Have the salad, tahini, and falafel ready and let everyone help themselves. Allow about 4-6 falafels per serving. Enjoy!!