Falafel is a popular Middle Eastern chick pea patty. Falafel is stuffed in pita bread with salad and sauce.

Preparation Time: 15 minutes

Cooking Time: 30 minutes

Recipe serves 4.

Ingredients

Falafel

• 1 cup dried chick peas (garbanzo, kabli chana)
• 2 tablespoon chopped parsley
• 2 tablespoon chopped cilantro
• 1 green chili
• About 1/4 inch piece of ginger
• 1 1/2 teaspoon salt adjust to taste
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1 teaspoon red chili flakes
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour (plain flour, maida)
• Also need oil to fry

Tahini Sauce

• 1/4 cup sesame seeds
• 1 1/4 teaspoon salt adjust to taste
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
• About 2 tablespoon chopped parsley
• About 2 tablespoon chopped cilantro
• 1 green chili adjust to taste
• About 1/4 cup water use as needed

Also Need

• 2 cups of thinly sliced lettuce
• 2 medium size chopped tomatoes
• 1/2 cup chopped cucumber
• 4 pocket pita bread

Method

Tahini Sauce

1. In a small frying pan dry roast the sesame seeds on medium heat for 2-3 minutes.
2. mix all the ingredients and blend to make a pourable paste use water as needed
3. Keep it aside.

Falafel

1. Soak the chickpeas in 4 cups of water over night. After soaking chickpeas will be about 2 and half time in volume.
2. In pressure cooker add chickpeas with the 3 cups of water. Close the cooker and put the pressure on.
3. Cook on medium high heat.
4. As pressure cooker starts steaming turn the heat down to medium and cook for about 4 minutes.
5. Close the heat and wait until steam has stopped before opening the pressure cooker. Chickpeas should be just tender not very soft.
6. Drain the water and let it cool; combine all the ingredients for falafel grind using food processor, mixture should be grainy. If needed add few spoons of water.
7. Divide the mixture in 24 equal parts or make them as desired size patties.
8. Heat oil in a frying pan on medium high heat.
9. The frying pan should have at least 1 ½ inch of oil. To check if the oil is ready, put small piece of dough in oil. The dough should come up but not change color right away.
10. Slowly drop the falafel patties in the oil and fry until they are brown in color both sides. It should take about 5-6 minutes to cook each batch.
11. Keep the patties aside.

Serving suggestion

1. Take pita bread and heat over the skillet on medium high heat both sides lightly.
2. Slice the pita bread from center in half take one part and open from center looking like a pocket.
3. Fill the pita pocket with chopped lettuce so it 1/3 full. Next add some chopped tomatoes and cucumber.
4. Pour about one tablespoon of tahini sauce, 3 to 4 pieces of falafel and again tahini sauce.
5. It’s best to serve the sandwich with hot falafels. Falafels can be easily re-heated before serving using an oven or toaster oven.

Variation

Serve the falafel over green salad use the tahini sauce as a dressing.