Falafel (chick pea burgers)

Falafel (chick pea burgers) are a tasty Middle Eastern food. They are packed with healthy ingredients, are cheap to make and are tasty too. Similar to quinoa nut roast and sweet potato burgers this falafel recipe is plant based making them perfect for vegetarians and vegans.

Some of the good reasons to make falafel include:

• They are easy to make
• This falafel recipe uses common storecupboard ingredients
• They have healthy ingredients
• Similar to spicy bean burgers, the ingredients are inexpensive making them perfect for anyone on a budget
• Falafel are versatile in that they can be served in a number of ways such as with pitta bread, rice, salad, etc, either as a snack of a main meal
• As all the ingredients are plant based they are suitable for vegetarians and vegans

And they are very, very tasty. What more could you want!

The quantities in this falafel recipe are sufficient for 2 servings but can easily be increased to make a larger amount if needed.

Ingredients for falafel (chick pea burgers)

• 1 medium sized onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 400g cooked chick peas (from a tin or jar)
• 2 handfuls fresh parsley
• 1¹/₂ teaspoons mild chilli powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 dessertspoon plain flour (plus a little extra for shaping the falafel)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• Salt and pepper
• Dash of cooking oil

How to prepare

Start by roughly chopping the onion and garlic and remove the stems from the parsley.

Next, drain the liquid from the tin of chick peas, rinse with fresh water and dry using kitchen paper.

Place the onion, garlic, parsley and chick peas in a food processor.

Chop the onion, garlic, parsley and chick peas leaving some solids to add texture to the falafel. The chopping time can be varied depending on how much you want the ingredients to chopped.

Place the mixture into a mixing bowl. Add 1 dessertspoon of flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, one and a half teaspoons mild chilli powder, 1 teaspoon of cumin and a little salt and pepper and mix thoroughly until evenly combined.

Next, form the mixture into either 4 or 6 burger shapes, depending what size you would like them to be. I usually find it helps to lightly flour my hands and the plate so that the mixture does not stick.

Cook the falafel in hot oil for a few minutes each side until starting to turn gold. They can also be deep fried if you wish. The cooked falafel can be kept warm for a short time in a low oven until needed.

What could be easier!

Tips

1. If you don't have parsley then other green leafy vegetables can be used instead, such as spinach or rocket. Frozen spinach is not suitable as it is too wet.
2. The uncooked falafel can be prepared ahead of time, and can be stored in the fridge for a couple of days or can be frozen.
3. The falafel are at their best when served immediately after cooking.
4. The cooked falafel are not suitable for reheating.
5. The quantities in this recipe can easily be increased to make a larger amount if needed.

Other vegetarian main meal ideas