One of the few dishes as popular with meat eaters, vegetarians and vegans, falafel tends to be something you buy rather than make, even though the ingredients are common. The problem is not that it requires exotica, but that, unless you use raw chickpeas to startwith, you are lost. And that, unfortunately, is the difficult bit.
Now you can find recipes in lots of books, but, judging from a cursory look at my sister's cookery books, few if any bite the the bullet. Put simply, any recipe that asks you to add flour, cook the chickpeas first, use tins of same or add any binding agent deserves the worst possible punishment: to be hidden behind books detailing the wit and wisdom of BJ or (shudder) DT. The secret is simple enough, the process is the difficult bit.
Oh, there's a caveat. Don't try them, whatever you do. Sure way your partners will have falafel free zones on their plates, because you've eaten the lot
Now you can find recipes in lots of books, but, judging from a cursory look at my sister's cookery books, few if any bite the the bullet. Put simply, any recipe that asks you to add flour, cook the chickpeas first, use tins of same or add any binding agent deserves the worst possible punishment: to be hidden behind books detailing the wit and wisdom of BJ or (shudder) DT. The secret is simple enough, the process is the difficult bit.
- Start with whole dried chickpeas. They should be soaked in water overnight, and you should change the water once or twice if possible
- Drain the chickpeas, and put them in a sieve or similar so they dry off for a while. you shouldn't see any drips if you shake them around a bit
- This is the important bit ! Put them in your best blender and grind them, little by little, into the smallest particles you possibly can. If your blender produces lumpy grinds, pat it politely on the head and demote it to things it can handle, like sitting quietly in the back of a cupboard. Seriously, you want a paste with a little texture, not lumpy bits which will disintegrate the moment you put them in the hot oil
- Add whatever spices and herbs you want, but nothing that will add water to a mix which already has enough. I tend to add parsley or coriander leaves, dried red pepper or chillies and salt, but that changes according to what sauce I'll use. Garlic, yes, onion, but not too much, and hand chopped small, not the semi-liquid blenders can produce with onions. Mix thoroughly
- Chuck on those non-latex sterile gloves COVID-19 has forced on many of us. I'd say make sure they're skin-tight, but I haven't found any that aren't, and I don't have large hands. I say gloves not for hygiene's sake, but because they make smoother, non-sticky falafels than you can otherwise
- Make the falafel, about 3 cms or so in diameter. I use a heaped dessert spoon of the mix, but, to be honest, you soon end up digging out roughly the right amound with fingers alone. You should squeeze the mix hard, and, if you want to mix it with the pros, gently roll the mix into smooth round balls of paste. That's easier said than done, by the way, and the first few tend to turn into rugby balls before they collapse in your hand
- Leave the apprentice falafel balls for 15-30 minutes. Not sure if this does much, by the way, buy my theory is they dry a bit on the outside so are less likely to disintegrate in the boiling oil
- Cook in hot oil. This should cover each falafel
- Stand back and feel really chuffed when you see your beloved balls are not only in one piece, but they don't look like splitting and spattering all over the pan, not to mention the kitchen floor
Oh, there's a caveat. Don't try them, whatever you do. Sure way your partners will have falafel free zones on their plates, because you've eaten the lot