Healthy and delicious Egyptian style falafel with a crisp outside and a creamy herby inside. They're made with British grown fava beans and cooked in an air-fryer, though you could bake them instead.
175mlnatural yoghurt(use plant based yoghurt if vegan)
2tbspfresh mintfinely chopped
Chopped Salad
2spring onions (scallions)thinly sliced
½limejuiced
¼cucumber
2red bell peppers
200gfresh tomatoeswell flavoured
20gcoriander leaves (cilantro)
20gfresh parsley
1tbspextra virgin olive oil
½tspfermented barley(can substitute tamari or ¼ tsp miso paste)
Instructions
Falafel
Soak the fava beans in cold water overnight or for at least 8 hours. Drain, rinse well and leave to drain in a sieve or colander for half an hour or so.
250 g dried split fava beans
Dry fry the cumin seeds in a hot pan for 30 seconds or until they're golden and fragrant. Leave to cool a little.
1 tsp cumin seeds
Place all of the ingredients, except for the olive oil into a food processor and blitz until everything is finely ground. You may need to scrape the sides down once or twice. Add the olive oil and pulse for a couple of seconds.
2 clove garlic, 1 onion, 30 g coriander leaves (cilantro), 30 g fresh parsley, ½ tsp cayenne pepper, ½ tsp fine sea salt, good grinding of black pepper, 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Take large teaspoonfuls of the mixture and roll between your hands into ping pong ball size rounds. Place on a large plate or tray and flatten slightly. The mixture is quite fragile, so go gently.
Heat your air-fryer and set it to 180℃ (350℉) . Alternatively pre-heat your oven to 190℃ (375℉, Gas 5).
Place as many falafel as will fit on the bottom of the air-fryer basket. I got twelve in mine. "Fry" for 17 minutes. Alternativley, place on a lined baking tray and bake in the oven for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, make the yoghurt sauce and chopped salad. Don't forget to warm your pitta breads up too.
Yoghurt Tahini Sauce
Mix the lime juice and tahini together in a bowl. Stir in the garlic, followed by the yoghurt, followed by the mint.
2 tbsp tahini, ½ lime, 1 clove garlic, 175 ml natural yoghurt, 2 tbsp fresh mint
Thin with a little water if too thick.
Chopped Salad
Start by squeezing the lime juice into a bowl. Add the spring onions and leave them to cure a little whilst you get on with preparing the cucumber.
2 spring onions (scallions), ½ lime
Half the cucumber. Scoop out the seeds with a teaspoon, then dice into 1 cm (ish) pieces. Add to the onions.
¼ cucumber
Split the red peppers in half. Take out the seeds and top, then dice into 1 cm (ish) pieces. Add to the bowl.
2 red bell peppers
Chop the tomatoes into 1 cm (ish) pieces. Add to the bowl.
200 g fresh tomatoes
Finely chop the herbs and add to the bowl.
20 g coriander leaves (cilantro), 20 g fresh parsley
Stir in the olive oil and fermented barley.
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, ½ tsp fermented barley
Notes
Serving size really depends on what sort of meal you're planning to use these falafel for. They are quite substantial. I've allowed four per person, with a couple left over for extras. If it's part of a mezze style meal, these would go a lot further than five people.If you don't have an air-fryer, you can bake these in the oven at 190℃ (375℉, Gas 5) for twenty minutes.Don't leave the chopped salad to sit too long, or the juice from the tomatoes will create a swimming pool.The yoghurt tahini sauce can be made a little in advance.Once cooked the falafel freeze very well.Please note: calories and other nutritional information are per serving. They're approximate and will depend on serving size and exact ingredients used.