After dropping $6 for six balls of falafel at our local food co-op, I decided to try to attempt to make it at home, especially since it's vegan and tasty. I happened upon TasteSpotting and FoodGawker, which by the way I am newly addicted to, and found some beautiful pictures of falafel and a recipe from the blog Use Real Butter. So, I decided to use both his recipe and that of the New York Times to create my own recipe. It turned out delicious: classic falafel flavor with a crunchy outside revealing a soft interior. My talented husband created the Tahini sauce, which was perfect. The recipe does require a little bit of preparation as you must soak the dried chick peas for 24 hours. Once that's done, though, you just pop everything into the food processor, roll the balls, and start frying! Mmm. I hope that you enjoy!
Falafel
Note: You must soak the beans for 24 hours before starting the rest of this recipe.
Helpful tips from the New York Times before we start:
First, keep the amount of water you use when grinding the beans to an absolute minimum. More water makes grinding easier, but it also virtually guarantees that the batter will fall apart when it hits the hot oil. If this happens, bind the remaining mixture by stirring in a little flour.
The second essential step is to get the oil hot enough: 350 degrees or a little higher. If you don't have a thermometer, just wait until the oil shimmers and then add a pinch of the batter. When it sizzles immediately, sinks about halfway to the bottom, then rises to the top, the oil is ready. If it sinks and stays down, the oil is too cold; if it doesn't sink at all, the oil is too hot.
1 3/4 cups dried chickpeas (garbanzo beans)
4 cloves garlic
1 small onion
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1-2 Tablespoons corriander
1/2-1 teaspoon cayenne
3/4 cup parsley
1.5 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
6 Tablespoons flour
canola oil for frying
1.) Put the beans in a large bowl and cover with water until they are covered by 3-4 inches of water. Soak for 24 hours. Add more water if necessary. You may want to change the water after 12 hours, but that is optional.
2.) Drain the beans well and transfer them to the food processor. Add the rest of the ingredients (not the oil!) until all the ingredients are ground but not to the point where it's all a paste.
3.) Roll the mixture into balls - a little smaller than a golf ball.
4.) Put oil into a pan or wok so that there's 2-3 inches of oil in it (enough to cover the falafels 3/4 of the way at least). Turn the heat to medium. The New York Times article gives some good tips as to when the oil is ready. I generally just flick a little water off my fingers into the oil and when it sizzles, I call the oil ready, although this is quite an inexact science.
5.) Fry the balls in batches until they are golden in color - roughly 4 minutes. Place the falafel on paper towels or on wire racks to drain. You can stop the frying now if you'd like and dig in, but if you are looking for that crispy outside, re-fry all the falafel balls for about 2 minutes. They should not really change color. Again, place them on paper towels or wire racks to drain.
6.) Serve with tahini dressing and cucumbers, lettuce, tomatoes, or other veggies of your choice.
Tahini Dressing
4 cloves garlic
1/2 cup tahini
1/4 cup quality olive oil
1/4 cup water OR alternatively, 1/2 of a peeled cucumber
juice of 2 lemons
1/2 teaspoon salt
1.) Place all into the food processor and pulse until smooth.
No comments:
Post a Comment