Tiana Walters These Crispy Baked Falafels are so crunchy one would think they are fried. Not as heavy as other falafels and paired with a lovely tangy and refreshing Tzatziki. For those of you who don’t know what tzatziki is – its basically the Mediterranean’s answer to a healthy ranch. These crispy baked falafels are a sustainable source of protein. They freeze fantastically and are great to have on hand. They are fabulous on salads, in pita sandwiches, or on top of couscous and roasted veggies tossed in my Mediterranean Seasoning.
To warn you, falafels at home can be somewhat of a process. You have to soak dry chickpeas overnight; canned is not an option. There are no shortcuts to this! You will need a food processor for this recipe. Here’s the one I used for years until upgrading to a bigger one.
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These gluten-free, vegan fritters are hearty and healthy. Perfect for a meatless meal or a lighter lunch option. This recipe is for a large batch, which can be easily cut in half. But I say go ahead and make a full batch and freeze what you don’t need.
Crispy Baked Falafel with Tzatziki
Ingredients
Tzatziki
- 1 cup plain full-fat Greek yogurt
- 3 tbsp sour cream
- 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp red onion minced
- 2 large garlic cloves minced
- 1 tsp fresh oregano chopped
- 1 tbsp fresh dill chopped
- 3 tbsp cucumber hulled and grated
- black pepper to taste
- 1/4 tsp salt
Falafel
- 3 cups dried chickpeas soaked
- 2 medium potatoes peeled, chopped
- 6 large garlic cloves
- 6 green onions, white and green parts chopped
- 1 bunch cilantro chopped
- 4 tbsp lemon juice
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp ground cumin
- 3 tsp ground coriander
- 2 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
- 2 tbsp salt
- 1 tsp baking soda
Instructions
Tzatziki
- Combine all ingredients and place in the fridge. Best when made a day before.
Falafels
- Soak chickpeas for at least 8 hours in the fridge. Drain.
- Preheat oven to 400.
- Combine all ingredients except baking soda in a large bowl and mix well.
- Working in batches add falafel mixture to a food processor. Blending until smooth (see photo below).
- Once blended well mix in baking soda.
- On a rimmed baking sheet spread 1/4 cup olive oil.
- Measure out a heaping tablespoon then place on a baking sheet and flatten with small flat bottom bowl
- Bake 10 minutes flip, then bake for 10 more minutes until darkened in color and crispy.
Step By Step:
Tzatziki
Tzatziki is best made a day ahead of time. So make the sauce and soak your chickpeas the night before.
Next, grate the hulled out cucumber. Best way to hull a cucumber? Cut the cucumber in half and rake a spoon down the middle.
Combine all ingredients in a small container — stores in the fridge for 5 days
Falafels
Soak chickpeas for at least 8 hours and no more than 24. Remove bad chickpeas; they are darker in color and any other odd bits. Sometimes you will find stones in dried beans. Drain chickpeas. Also if the timing is an issue, you can always drain soaked chickpeas and place them in a bag and pop them in the freezer till ready to use..
Prep all ingredients and combine them all into a bowl except for the baking soda. Mix well.
Working in batches, add falafel mixture to a food processor. You may have to stop in between and push the mixture down towards the blades.
This is what your mixture should look like when done. Add baking soda to the finished batch.
On a rimmed baking sheet spread 1/4 cup olive oil. Measure out a heaping tablespoon then place on a baking sheet and flatten with a small flat bottom bowl. Removing slowly, so the bowl won’t stick to the mixture.
Bake at 400 for 10 minutes then flip and bake for another 10.
