Herby falafel with pitta bread, tzatziki and veggies

Ingredients

Makes 12 to 15 falafel

  • 1 cup uncooked chickpeas, soaked 18-24 hours, drained, rinsed and patted dry (it is best not to use canned chickpeas for this recipe as they contain too much moisture)
  • ½ cup chopped onion
  • 3 garlic cloves, chopped
  • 1 tablespoon lemon zest
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon ground coriander
  • 1½ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper or chilli flakes
  • ¼ teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 cup chopped fresh cilantro (coriander) leaves and stems
  • 1 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves and stems
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil, plus more for drizzling

Tzatziki

  • ½ cup finely grated cucumber
  • 1 cup Greek yoghurt
  • 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • ½ tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 garlic clove, grated
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint

To serve (here are some ideas, but use whatever you like best)

  • Pitta bread
  • Red onion (pickled or not)
  • Diced tomato
  • Grated carrot
  • Herbs (parsley/cilantro/mint)
  • Lettuce
  • Diced cucumber
  • Grated courgette
Download recipe

Step by step

To make the falafel, heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6.

  1. Put all the ingredients in a bowl and use a blender or food processor to blend them together until well mixed, but not pureed – you want a bit of texture in your mixture.
  2. Use a spoon and your hands to shape the mixture into patties, almost like hamburger patties. Don’t handle the falafel too much, otherwise they will be dense after baking.
  3. Place the falafel on the baking sheet and drizzle them generously with olive oil.
  4. Bake your falafel for about 12 minutes, then flip them and bake for 10 minutes more until they are golden and crisp.

 

To make the tzatziki, gently squeeze most of the water out of the cucumber. Place it in a bowl and mix with all the other ingredients. Chill until ready to use.

To make the pickled red onions, slice the onions very fine and place in a bowl. Mix with lemon juice and salt and set aside for at least 30 minutes. The salt and lemon juice will soften the onions and draw out some of the sharpness, leaving you with lots of flavour.

To serve, heat the pitta breads and stuff them with falafel, tzatziki and veggies and enjoy!