Easy Homemade Falafel with Creamy Tahini Sauce

Soak The Beans For 12 Hours:

First thing’s first:  Separately soak the chickpeas and fava beans in water.  So you should have 2 different bowls completely filled with water.  Allow beans to soak for at least 12 hours.

Make Your Basic Falafel Mix:

Drain water out completely from the chickpeas and fava beans. Get rid of the water and set the beans aside.  Beans should be completely dried.  Get all your basic falafel mix ingredients ready for the food processor.

Combine both the chickpeas and fava beans in the food processor and start grinding at high speed.  You will need to stop a couple of times to stir the mixture around a bit with a spoon.  Be sure to fold the bits that get stuck on the walls of the food processor into the mixture.  It is perfectly normal for some bits to be bigger than others at this point.

Tranfer the chickpeas fava mix into another bowl leaving 3-4 tablespoons of this mix in the food processor.

Add the chopped onion, cilantro, and parsley to the food processor.

Run the food processor again on high speed till everything is well grinded.

Working in batches, start adding the chickpea fava mix back into the food processor with the rest of the ingredients, stopping occasionally to stir the mixture around a bit with a spoon to ensure ingredients are evenly distributed.  Texture will be a lot smoother but may still be a bit lumpy which is okay.

This Is A Good Time To Put Your Falafel Mix In Freezer Bags For Later:

Congratulations, you have just completed the basic Falafel Mix.  This is the point where you can stop and just freeze the mix for later use.  We advise that you use small sized freezer bags and spoon your falafel mix in there.  Do not add any of the other ingredients to your falafel mix if you do not plan to eat them now.

Prepare Your Falafel for Cooking

In a small mixing bowl, combine all spice mix ingredients.

Add the spices and minced garlic to the Falafel mix.  We recommend you use your hand to mix the ingredients together.  We also recommend you taste the mix for salt.

In a small bowl, mix the 1/2 cup water and baking soda together and then pour over the Falafel mix.  Mix the baking soda very well into the Falafel mix.  Cover the bowl and let it rest for at least 30 minutes.

Make Your Falafel’s Tahini Sauce:

Mix all Falafel’s Tahini Sauce ingredients together until well blended.  If your tahini is too paste like, you will need to add water till you reach a more liquid cream texture.  You may also choose to add more lemon juice and salt if you wish.  Set aside.

Fry Your Falafel:

Preheat oil on medium high heat in frying pot or, better yet, use a wok if you have one handy as they are the best for frying Falafel.  Make sure your oil is heated well before you drop the Falafel in there.

Using either a Falafel shaping utensil and spatula or 2 spoons (one for shaping, the other for pushing the Falafel into the oil), shape your falafel into round shape and then slide them off gently and closely to the hot oil.  NOTE:  You can sprinkle sesame seeds on them just prior to frying if you wish.  This is totally optional and will not affect the taste.

The Falafel will cook for about 4-6 minutes depending on your oil and pot you are using.  They should be firm on the outside and inside.  Make sure to check the inside as they may appear cooked on the outside but still runny on the inside.  If you are adding sesame seeds, note that the sesame seeds should barely be a pale golden color when the Falafel is finished cooking.  If the sesame seeds brown quickly, it means your oil is too hot (this is a good test for your oil).

As the Falafel finishes cooking, transfer to plate lined with paper towels to get rid of excess oil.  Transfer to serving plate after 5-10 minutes.  Serve with pita bread, Falafel’s Tahini Sauce and other condiments such as chili sauce, chopped tomatoes, fresh mint leaves, and pickles.