Name: Falafel Salad with Tomatoes and Cucumber
Prep time: 770 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 785 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Levantine
Ingredients: 1 cup dried chickpeas, soaked in cold water 12 to 24 hours; 1/2 small yellow onion, roughly chopped; 3 garlic cloves, divided; 1 cup mixed parsley and cilantro leaves, packed; 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin; 1 tsp ground coriander; 1/2 tsp baking powder; 1 1/2 tsp kosher salt, divided; 3 cups neutral oil, for frying; 1/3 cup tahini; 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice; 1 head frisee, torn into bite-size pieces; 3 ripe tomatoes, cut into wedges; 1 english cucumber, cut into chunks; 1 small handful edible flowers, optional

Falafel Salad with Tomatoes and Cucumber

4.8 from 663 home cooks Free

Proper falafel start with soaked, uncooked chickpeas, which fry up shatteringly crisp outside and fluffy and green with herbs inside. Here they sit on frilly frisee with tomato wedges and cucumber, drizzled with a lemony tahini sauce. A few edible flowers make it pretty enough for a lunch with friends.

Prep

12 hr 50 min

Cook

15 min

Total

13 hr 5 min

Serves

Level

Medium

Cuisine

Levantine

Method

Step 1: Drain the soaked chickpeas and dry them well on a towel. Never use canned chickpeas here; they are already cooked and will fall apart in the oil.
Step 2: Pulse the chickpeas, onion, 2 garlic cloves, herbs, cumin, coriander and 1 teaspoon salt in a food processor, scraping down the sides, until the mixture looks like coarse, damp sand and holds together when squeezed. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Step 3: Stir the baking powder into the chilled mixture. With wet hands, roll it into about 20 walnut-size balls and flatten them very slightly.
Step 4: Heat the oil in a heavy saucepan to 350F. Fry the falafel in batches of 5 or 6 for 3 to 4 minutes, turning once, until deep brown and crisp. Drain on a rack set over paper towels.
Step 5: Whisk the tahini with the lemon juice, the last garlic clove grated, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 4 to 6 tablespoons cold water. It will seize and thicken at first, then loosen into a smooth, pourable sauce.
Step 6: Arrange the frisee on plates with the tomato wedges and cucumber. Top with the hot falafel, drizzle with tahini sauce and scatter over the edible flowers.

Kitchen note

Soaked raw chickpeas contain enough starch to bind the mixture on their own, and adding the baking powder only right before frying gives the lightest, airiest centers.