Falafel Pockets

Rate this recipe 

5

Average: 5 (3 votes)

Servings 

Makes approx 30

A middle-eastern street food consisting of deep-fried patties made from grinded chickpeas, served in home-made pitas with lots of salad, onions, tomatoes, cucumber, chutneys, tahini sauce and hot-sauce...makes it an extremely delicious and healthy meal (or snack!) as chickpeas are known for their numerous health benefits.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups

dried chickpeas

1/2 cup

chopped fresh coriander

(leaves and stems)

1/4 cup

fresh parsley

1

small onion, chopped into chunks

2

green chillies

1 tsp.

garlic paste

(or 3 fresh garlic cloves)

1 tsp.

salt

1/2 tsp.

black pepper powder

1 tsp.

cumin powder

1/2 tsp.

coriander powder

2 tbsp.

breadcrumbs

1/4 tsp.

baking soda

1/2 tsp.

baking powder

Instructions 

Soak the chickpeas overnight in water with 2 pinches baking soda (the soda helps soften the chickpeas). DO NOT BOIL THE CHICKPEAS!

Drain the water and rinse the chickpeas thoroughly, again drain the water.

Transfer the chickpeas, coriander, chillies, garlic and onion into a processor. Process until the mixture is crumbly and relatively smooth. Try not to use any water for this. You can process the ingredients in batches if necessary. If needed, you can add 1 tbsp. of water to help with the processing.

Put the mixture into a bowl, add the salt, pepper, cumin powder, coriander powder and breadcrumbs. Mix well to combine everything.

Just before frying, add the baking soda and baking powder. Mix very well. These help give nice and fluffy results.

Shape into balls then flatten them slightly. You can leave them round, but I prefer to flatten mine so they cook properly and get crispy, plus they sit better in the pita pockets when flat.

Fry on MEDIUM heat until crispy and golden/brown on both sides. If the heat is too high, the falafel will scatter in the oil or remain uncooked in the center, so make sure the heat is on medium.

Drain and serve with dips of your choice or in pita pockets with salad, tahini sauce, slices of onions, tomatoes, cucumber cubes, chutneys that you like...etc.

Enjoy! :)