Authentic Lebanese Falafels

5 from 5 votes

Savor every bite of these crispy Authentic Lebanese Falafels! This recipe uses chickpeas, parsley, and cilantro, making it a great nutritious substitute for vegetarians and vegans. Serve these mouth-watering falafels with salads, wraps, and sandwiches.

Prep Time1 10

Cook Time15

Course: Appetizer, Side Dish, Snack

Cuisine: Egypt, Mediterranean, Middle Eastern

Servings: people

Calories: 399kcal

Author: Jen Sim

Equipment

Food processor

Ingredients

3 cups of chickpeas
1.5 cups of fresh parsley
1.25 cup of cilantro
1 onion
6 garlic cloves
1.5 teaspoon cumin
0.25 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
Salt to taste
Black pepper to taste
1.25 teaspoon baking powder

Instructions

Start by soaking dried chickpeas in water in a large bowl overnight or for 12 hours. Make sure the water is covering the chickpeas by a couple of inches.
Once the chickpeas have absorbed the water leave them to dry or pat them down with a paper towel. Add dried chickpeas, parsley, cilantro, onion, garlic, cumin, cayenne, salt to taste, black pepper to taste to a food processor and pulse until the mixture becomes fine.
Then, leave the mixture to sit in the fridge for at least 1 hour before frying. The mixture can be refrigerated for up to a day.
Before frying add baking powder to the falafel mix and stir well. Then, shape falafels into equal-sized patties or balls.
Heat oil in a pan and cook falafels 4-6 minutes or until crispy and brown on the outside.
Leave falafels to drain on a paper towel. Serve in a wrap or with salad.

Notes

Water: When soaking the chickpeas overnight the water should be at least 2 inches above the chickpeas.

Falafels: Use wet hands as falafel mixtures tend to be sticky. Using wet hands will help prevent the mixture from sticking to your hands.

Baking powder: The baking powder allows the mixture to rise a bit so the balls/patties are not flat without some rise.

Nutrition