Falafel Recipe

Authentic, crispy falafel that stays herb-green inside and golden outside no canned chickpeas here! In this easy falafel recipe I’ll show you three fool-proof methods: classic deep-fried, lighter baked falafel, and speedy air-fryer falafel.

Falafel are crispy Mediterranean, Middle Eastern fritters and famous Arabic street food. You can make falafel with chickpeas (Chana) or fava beans. Fresh herbs, onions, and dried spices are added for seasoning and flavour. Each bite is vegan, naturally gluten-free, and perfect for a wholesome Mediterranean-diet meal prep. Ready to crunch in under 30 minutes? Let’s dive in!

Having tried it at various places upscale, as well as streets in Dubai on various occasions, I feel I can make pretty decent homemade falafel. On my recent Dubai trip, I tasted these along with other Arabic delicacies, so I thought to share couple of dishes that I tried there.

There are many types of falafel recipes I am sharing a simple and most popular chickpeas falafel recipe. It is easy and even beginners can make delicious chickpeas falafel with this recipe.

These Falafel Are

1. Arabic/middle eastern street food.
2. Vegan, gluten-free, vegetarian snack. 
3. You can make baked falafel or authentic falafel which are deep fried.
4. You can meal prep them in advance and are freezer friendly.
5.  Serve them with hummus or pita bread both are perfect meal for vegetarians and vegans.

Falafel Ingredients

• Chickpeas: Use dried chickpeas which are soaked for 6 hours. A couple of tablespoons chickpeas flour/besan. Do not use canned chickpeas.
• Herbs & Seasonings: Salt, Coriander powder, Paprika, Cumin, Red chilli, Parsley, Jalapeno, Coriander
• Fresh: Onion, you can use either white onions, yellow onions or red onions. Garlic chopped (optional).
• Fresh Herbs: You can add fresh Parsley, mint leaves, cilantro, carrot tops or wild dill to make falafel mixture.This gives classic green colour & herby lift to the taste.
• Flour: Use gram flour or chickpeas flour for binding the mixture. All purpose flour tastes slightly pasty and raw. I suggest to avoid that.
• Baking powder: It helps in making fluffy falafels. Especially when you are making baked falafel using a big pinch makes them fluffy and soft inside.
• Oil: Use any high smoking point vegetable oil. I prefer to use rice bran oil or peanut oil for frying.

For Classic Egyptian twist and earthy depth replace Soaked chickpeas with fava beans.

Gluten-Free tip: Falafel is naturally GF no flour needed if your pulses are well-dried. For extra insurance, toss in 2–3 Tbsp chickpea flour.

Why Dried Chickpeas or Fava Beans over Canned Beans

Soaked dried chickpeas are only half-hydrated and still raw, which lets them grind into a coarse, starchy crumble that binds itself and crisps up in hot oil. Canned chickpeas are fully cooked, water-logged, and too soft, so they puree into a wet paste that falls apart or turns mealy and greasy when you fry or bake it.

Why dried chickpeas wins, point-by-point

Factor	Dried (soaked)	Canned
Texture after grinding	Coarse “wet sand” with tiny bits that lock together	Smooth mush that can’t hold shape
Starch integrity	Intact raw starch = natural glue & crunch	Starch already gelatinized → no binding power
Moisture level	~60 % water after soaking just enough	~90 % water inside → mixture too wet
Frying behavior	Surface dries and forms a crisp shell	Steam bursts, oil soaks in, falafel cracks
Add-in absorption	Herbs & spices cling to rough bits	Mix turns pasty, spices get lost
Flavor	Nutty, fresh, slightly earthy	Muted, sometimes metallic from canning liquid

Step-by-Step Falafel Recipe: From Soak to Crunch

Here’s my Best Homemade falafel recipe!

1 | Soak & Prep

• Rinse 1 cup dried chickpeas; cover with 3× water, add ½ tsp baking soda, soak 12–14 h.
• Drain, then pat bone-dry surface moisture = splatter & sogginess.

2 | Blend (but don’t puree)

In a food processor add:

• chickpeas, herbs, onion, , spices, 1 Tbsp water.
  Pulse 40–60 sec, scraping down, until mixture resembles coarse wet sand that clumps when squeezed.

Texture test: Press a tablespoon of mix if it holds without leaving water on your palm, you’re golden.

3 | Chill & Shape

Refrigerate 30 min (up to 24 h). Scoop heaped tablespoons and roll into 3 cm balls or flatten into discs for pita stuffing.

Making Falafel Mixture

• Soak dried chickpeas overnight. In case you forget to plan much ahead at-least minimum soaking of 4-5 hours in hot water works great too. (photo 1)
• In a Food processor, blitz drained soaked chickpeas with herbs, spices, chickpeas flour. (photo 2)

• The texture of the mixture after grinding should be coarse like this. (photo 3)

Shape Falafels

• Shape them into balls or patties if you like that. (photo 4)

Deep-Fry Method (classic)

• Heat oil to 180 °C / 355 °F.
• Fry 5–6 balls at a time, 3–4 min, turning once until deep chestnut brown.
• Using a slotted spoon take out falafel from oil and drain on wire rack, sprinkle salt while hot.

Baked Falafel (oil-light)

• Preheat oven 220 °C / 425 °F.
• Lightly spray or brush sheet pan with oil, arrange falafels in a single layer, mist tops with oil spray.
• Bake 13–15 min; flip; bake 10 minutes more till crisp edges form. 
• If you want to bake falafel without oil you can bake them on parchment paper or silicon mat.

Air-Fryer Falafel (weeknight hero)

• Preheat to 200 °C / 390 °F.
• Spray basket & tops; cook 12 min, shake halfway and and flip the side to cook from the other side until golden brown and crispy.

Variations to Keep Things Exciting

• Green herb falafel: Double the parsley & cilantro, add a handful of dill for an extra-vibrant interior.
• Beet falafel: Pulse in ½ cup grated raw beet for a ruby hue and sweet earthiness—great for vegan burgers!
• Chickpea-fava mix (above) for Egyptian-style ta’amiya.
• Falafel sandwich in pita bread is a heavenly combin

Pro Tips for Ultra-Crispy Falafel

• Spice bloom: Lightly toast cumin/coriander seeds before grinding for fragrant lift.
• Herb ratio: More herbs = greener interior but softens crust; aim 1½ cups total.
• Oil temperature: Below 170 °C → greasy; above 190 °C → burns outside, raw inside.
• No eggs, no flour: Binding comes from chickpea starch; moisture control is key.
• Batch size: Over-crowding crashes oil temp, work in small batches.

Serving Ideas & Sauce Pairings

Idea	Build
Classic Falafel pita pockets	Falafel + Israeli salad, pickles, tahini sauce
Falafel Salad Buddha bowl	simple salad with veggies like tomatoes, cucumbers and falafel
Middle-Eastern taco	Mini tortillas, lemon-garlic labneh, pickled onions served with tzatziki
Party mezze platter	Falafel bites, baba ganoush, tabbouleh, olives

Quick 2-Minute Tahini Sauce: Whisk ½ cup tahini, 2 Tbsp lemon juice, 1 grated garlic clove, ice-cold water to thin, salt.

FAQ

How to Make ahead and freeze To make ahead:

You can keep Prepared falafel mixture 1-2 days ahead of time and keep it in the fridge. When you are ready to fry shape the mixture into patties when you ready to fry falafels.

To freeze:

After shaping the falafel patties Place the uncooked falafel patties on a baking sheet that is lined with parchment paper and freeze in the freezer for 1 hour. Once all the falafels are frozen transfer them into a freezer bag. You can freeze them for up to 4-6 weeks. These frozen Falafel can be cooked by frying or baking.

If you are frying frozen falafels do not thaw, but add a minute or 2 extra cooking time.

How to Serve Falafel

More Such Recipes

• Tzatziki Sauce
• Eggplant Sandwich Recipe
• Lebanese Falafel Pita Sandwich
• Falafel salad recipe with Tahini
• Falafel Recipe
• Muhammara Recipe
• Baba Ganoush Recipe

Falafel Recipe Video

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