Looking to make some tasty homemade falafels? Try these Crispy Air-Fryer Falafels. They’re gluten-free and vegan.
The trick to making these tasty falafels is to NOT use canned chickpeas. That’s right. No cans my friends. Although this process may be a bit longer, it’s well worth it.
You want to soak the chickpeas for about 24 hours with a little baking soda to soften them up. Once that happens, drain, rinse, and dry them and add them to a food processor with some of the remaining ingredients. It’s simple, requires no boiling, and this will give it the texture it needs.
Now, I love a way to add veggies to my falafel. Although this process is not authentic, it adds greatness. So just a little dino kale for some veggies is fun.
Sauces: I love to drizzle my falafels in a lemon tahini sauce (recipe listed below) and my tasty Vegan Whipped Feta Sauce. You can definitely use regular feta in place of the vegan one if you prefer.
Here’s What You Need
- Dried chickpeas
- Baking soda
- Kale
- Parsley
- Lemon juice
- Cilantro
- Cumin
- Coriander
- Baking powder
- Sesame seeds
- Onions
- Garlic
- Salt and pepper
- Tahini
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Other Recipes You May Enjoy
- Roasted Butternut Squash with Lemon Tahini Sauce
- Beet and Fennel Salad with Vegan Whipped Feta
- Vegan Mediterranean Sweet Potato Bowl
Enjoy Loves!
Natalie
Crispy Air-Fryer Falafels
Equipment
- Food Processor
Ingredients
- FALAFELS
- 2 cups Dried chickpeas
- 1/2 tsp Baking soda
- 3 Kale leaves rib removed and chopped
- 3/4 cup Parsley
- 1/3 Lemon juiced
- 3/4 cup Cilantro
- 1 tbsp Cumin
- 1 tbsp Coriander
- 1 tsp Baking powder
- 3 tbsp Sesame seeds
- 1 yellow Onion quartered
- 5-6 Garlic cloves
- 2 tbsp sesame seeds
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 tbsp of olive oil
- TAHINI SAUCE
- 1/2 tahini sauce
- 3 tbsp water
- 1/2 lemon juiced
- 1 garlic clove
- Salt and pepper to taste
- CUCUMBER TOMATO SALAD
- 2 Persian cucumbers diced
- 1/2 cup tomatoes diced
- 1/3 cup red onions diced
- 1 lemon juiced
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp sumac
- 1/2 cup curly parsley
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Toppings: Vegan Whipped Feta Dip linked in blog post and the tahini sauce
Instructions
- Soak the chickpeas in a large bowl filled with water and add the baking soda. Soak for about 24 hours or longer if needed but not less than 24 hours.
- After 24 hours, drain and rinse the chickpeas. Pat them dry.
- Once dry, add them to a food processor with onions, garlic, parsley, cilantro, lemon juice, kale, cumin, coriander, salt, and pepper. Blend until it's well combined. You may need to stop it mid-way and mix it with a spoon.
- Transfer the mixture to a bowl and cover it tight. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 24 hours.
- Meanwhile, make the tahini sauce by adding all the ingredients into a bowl and mixing well. add more water if needed for a looser consistency.
- Next, make the cucumber tomato salad by adding everything into a bowl and mixing well. Set both the sauce and salad in the fridge.
- Remove the lid and add the baking powder and sesame seeds. Mix with a spoon.
- Once you’re ready, scoop and form patties until it’s about 1/2 inch thickness. Place them on parchment paper until this process is complete.
- Next, brush oil on one side of the falafels. Place them into your air-fryer (do not over crowd or pile on top of each other) oil side down. Brush the other side.
- Set the air-fryer to 400 and fry for about 15 minutes. Half way through, pause the fryer and flip them so it’s crispy on both side.
- This may need to be done in batches.
- Serve as is with the sauces and cucumber tomato salad or inside a delicious pita bread.
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