Falafel is the perfect balance of flavours, textures, temperatures and colours.. I could (and have) eat it EVERY day!.

Anyone who knows me knows that there is nothing I like to make more than Falafel, and following on from that, there is nothing I like to eat more than falafel (ok maybe sushi but its a close call). There are many ways to make it, and I've seen some people do it so wrong that I want to share with you, hands down, the best recipe I've ever used. This recipe is my own based on Yemenite flavours and spices. These takes the humble falafel to new heights!

OK so if you want to make your very own proper crispy falafel then please try this out!

What You Will Need

1. DRY chickpeas (100% not from a can) 500 grams
2. Fresh Coriander x 1 Bunch.  
3. Fresh Parsley x 1 Bunch
4. Cumin Powder (freshly ground) 5 Heaped Table Spoons
6. Coriander Powder 1.5 Table Spoons
5. Cardamom Powder 1 Heaped Tea Spoon
6. Chili Powder 0.5 Tea Spoon
7.  Onion 1/2
8. Garlic cloves x 4
9.  Salt (2 heaped tablespoons)
10. Pepper (1 Tea Spoon)
11. Baking Powder (2 Tea Spoons)

What to do

The most important thing for a good crispy falafel is to minimise the amount of water in the mix. Therefore all herbs and items that are washed should be thoroughly dried before use. There's nothing more depressing then falafel balls that fall apart in the frier ;-(

1. Soak your chick peas for 6-8 hours in water (never cook them!)
2. Drain chick peas thoroughly.
3. Add all the ingredients to the bowl and mix by hand.
4. Blend it all up for just a short amount of time. You are looking for a course grind, not too fine. This gives a lovely rustic feel to the falafel.
5. Put in a bowl and leave in the fridge for 1.5 hours .
6. Give it a mix by hand (getting your hands dirty is very important to the taste folks)
7. Heat some sunflower or vegetable oil in a pan to medium / high heat.
8. Deep frying is best but you can also do this with shallow frying. Just make the balls flatter to make it work best.
9. Slightly moisten your hands and take a small amount of mix and make a ball in your hands. Slightly squish it to make it a bit flat. This helps also with the eating experience so they don't roll out of your pitta bread so easily. Oh these fine details matter!
10. Fry until golden brown, around 4-6 minutes. Turn the heat up to high at the last minute.
11. Remove and blot the oil with kitchen paper.  eat IMMEDIATELY (see notes below)

So that is how you make the absolute best falafel. Now that was actually the very last step! The best way to enjoy falafel is to have it with Pita Bread wrapped around Salad, Coleslaw, Lots of  Tahini and some green or red chilli sauce. Many people use hummus for this, but just try it with tahini! I always pre-make all of this before hand so that once the falafel are cooked you can eat them whilst they are piping hot inside the pita bread. If you have done it right, the inside of the falafel balls should be a vivid green! 

I promise you will go to heaven and hopefully return!

ENJOY!

To view highlights and more posts from great authors on the ecoTrain please visit: https://steemit.com/nature/@eco-alex/posts-and-highlights-from-the-ecotrain-or-13th-july-19th-july