I am a huge chickpea fan. Whether it’s in hummus, a salad or stew, I just can’t get enough of those protein packed little beauties.
I’ve been trying to make an easy falafel recipe for the blog for a few months. I really wanted something authentic, and everything I read said that in the Middle East, they don’t use egg. So my first falafel attempt was just the mashed seasoned chickpeas and a little flour.
The result was not too pretty:
Basically it all just fell apart.
For my second attempt, I used a mix. That turned out really well, but I really wanted to make my own, you know?
Finally after some tinkering, I came up with a recipe that’s easy. It DOES use an egg, but the result is worth it, in my opinion.
Easy Falafels
Ingredients:
1 can chickpeas (garbanzo beans) drained and mashed
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1 egg
2 Tbsp. flour
2 Tbsp. olive oil
Directions:
Mash chickpeas well (I used a potato masher). You want them to be pastey, but with a few small chunks.
Mix in spices, egg and flour. You may need a little extra flour so the dough won’t be too sticky.
Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat.
I used a cookie scoop to measure the fritters (about 1/8 cup each). Drop them in the hot oil and flatten them a bit.
Cook falafel for 3 min. on each side, until golden brown.
Serve warm or cold with tzatziki sauce (or ranch dressing works well in a pinch 😉