Raise your hand if you love falafel! I’ve gone back into the archives to highlight my all-time favorite homemade falafel recipe. Making falafel at home can be tricky, but this recipe is easy.
Six reasons to love this healthy falafel recipe:
- These falafels are golden brown and crispy on the outside. The insides are tender, delicious, and full of fresh herbs.
- They’re baked instead of fried, so they contain significantly less fat than fried falafel. And your house won’t smell like fried food for days. Winning!
- Once your chickpeas are sufficiently soaked, the falafel mixture comes together in no time. If you have someone to help shape the patties, they’ll come together even faster.
- These falafels are gluten free and vegan, so they’re a great party appetizer.
- These falafels freeze well, so they’re a fantastic protein-rich option to keep on hand for future salads and pita sandwiches.
- On that note, this recipe is easily doubled! See recipe notes.
Are you convinced yet? Let’s make some falafel!
How to Make the Best Homemade Falafel
Bake it, don’t fry it. I say this because frying requires a lot of sizzling hot oil, and that scares me. I also don’t have a good vent over my oven to take the fried food smell far, far away. Plus, you can use a reasonably amount of heart-healthy olive oil in the baked version.
Coat your rimmed baking sheet with olive oil. That way, you get a fried effect in the oven, and you don’t have to brush the little falafels individually with olive oil. Winning!
Use dried chickpeas, not canned. Canned chickpeas do not work for falafel. They’re far too wet. If you try to use canned chickpeas instead of dried and soaked chickpeas, you’ll end up with sad falafel pancakes. Some recipes try to counteract the wetness by adding flour, which significantly dulls the flavor and makes the texture more doughy.
Soak the dried chickpeas for at least four hours. If your chickpeas aren’t sufficiently softened, you’ll have unpalatably tough pieces of chickpea in your falafel. There’s just no workaround here.
Choose your dried chickpeas wisely. Try to buy your dried chickpeas from a store with high turnover, because old chickpeas need longer to soften. If you have options, pick the chickpeas that are the smallest, since they’ll soften faster.
Watch How to Make Crispy Falafel
Falafel Serving Suggestions
Serve falafel as an appetizer, wrap it into a pita sandwich, or add it to salad for a protein-rich topping. Falafel goes great with any of the following ingredients:
- Pita bread, warmed or toasted (tear it up for pita “croutons”)
- Fresh greens (such as spring greens or chopped romaine)
- Tomatoes, sliced
- Bell peppers, cut into strips
- Cucumber, thinly sliced
- Kalamata olives, pitted and sliced
- Raw red onion, thinly sliced, or quick-pickled onions
- Feta cheese, crumbled
- Sauce: Something creamy like tzatziki, hummus, or tahini sauce, and maybe a spicy sauce like zhoug or shatta, too
Here’s a tahini dressing recipe that goes great with this falafel, too:
- 1/4 cup tahini
- Zest and juice of 1 small lemon
- 1 tablespoon white miso
- 2 garlic cloves, pressed
- 2 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
- Pinch of cayenne
- 1/3 cup water
In a small food processor, combine all of the ingredients and blend well. You can also whisk the ingredients together by hand in a small bowl, just note that you’ll need to chop the fresh herbs and zest more finely than you would if you were using a food processor.
Please let me know how you like these falafel in the comments! I hope you love them as much as I do. ♥
Crispy Falafel
- Author:
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes (plus 4-hour soaking time)
- Yield: 12 falafels 1x
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: Middle Eastern
This homemade falafel recipe is absolutely delicious, and remarkably crispy! Be sure to allow 4 hours soaking time for the chickpeas, preferably overnight. Then, the falafel mixture is super easy to make in a food processor. Recipe yields 12 to 13 falafels (see notes on how to double).
Ingredients
- ¼ cup + 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 cup dried (uncooked/raw) chickpeas, rinsed, picked over and soaked for at least 4 hours and up to 24 hours in the refrigerator
- ½ cup roughly chopped red onion (about ½ small red onion)
- ½ cup packed fresh parsley (mostly leaves but small stems are ok)
- ½ cup packed fresh cilantro (mostly leaves but small stems are ok)
- 4 cloves garlic, quartered
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- ½ teaspoon (about 25 twists) freshly ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- With an oven rack in the middle position, preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Pour ¼ cup of the olive oil into a large, rimmed baking sheet and turn until the pan is evenly coated.
- In a food processor, combine the soaked and drained chickpeas, onion, parsley, cilantro, garlic, salt, pepper, cumin, cinnamon, and the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Process until smooth, about 1 minute.
- Using your hands, scoop out about 2 tablespoons of the mixture at a time. Shape the falafel into small patties, about 2 inches wide and ½ inch thick. Place each falafel on your oiled pan.
- Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, carefully flipping the falafels halfway through baking, until the falafels are deeply golden on both sides. These falafels keep well in the refrigerator for up to 4 days, or in the freezer for several months.
Notes
Adapted from The America’s Test Kitchen Healthy Family Cookbook.
Make-ahead option: I haven’t tried this, but the original recipe notes that the uncooked falafel patties can be refrigerated on a parchment-lined baking sheet, wrapped tightly in plastic wrap, for up to 2 hours before baking.
How to double this recipe: Preheat the oven with two oven racks near the center of the oven. Double all of the ingredients. If you have a large food processor (guessing 11+ cup capacity), you can mix all of the ingredients at once. Use two baking sheets, and swap their positions (top to bottom, bottom to top) when you flip the falafel halfway through baking.
Recommended equipment: I love my 11-cup food processor (affiliate link).
Vegetable enthusiast. Dog lover. I'm probably making a big mess in my Kansas City kitchen right now. 
Genoa
This was so good! I made this recipe exactly as written to serve 4 young children (age 4 – 8). Each child liked it and ate their whole serving. I also loved my serving. Next time I will definitely double this (in two batches – my food processor is not large enough to do in one batch). Only thing I might do differently is to use a little bit less salt because it was a tiny bit salty for my taste. Perhaps the salt I’m using is saltier than what you used? Anyway I give this 5 stars. Very happy to have this recipe. Very easy and delicious.
★★★★★
Kate
Hi Genoa! Thank you for sharing. If you find it too salty, you can adjust to your taste. I appreciate your feedback!
Elizabeth
I made this today for the first time and it was delicious! I left out the cilantro just as a personal preference and it was still so flavorful. I will definitely make this again.
★★★★★
Anna
This was quite possibly the best falafel I’ve ever had, so often at restaurants it is so crunchy on the outside that it hurts to even bite into and just tastes like the oil they fried it in. I loved the hint of cinnamon and even though I was worried they were too moist as I was forming the patties (when I would squeeze them I felt like I could squeeze out some liquid) they crisped up nicely and really held their shape the whole time. I soaked them form about 20 hours in the fridge, they still felt pretty hard when I’d squeeze them but the processor made quick work of the whole thing!
I put a few on a bed of lettuce with some other veggies from the garden, feta, and my favorite store-bought salad dressing (Garlic Expressions). Made for a delicious and healthy dinner!
Donna
I am excited to try this recipe! Any suggestions for cooking in an air fryer (which is new to me)?
Nicole
I live on a small island where dried chickpeas aren’t readily available, will canned work?
Kate
Hi Nicole! These are meant for dried chickpeas, they won’t work well with canned. Sorry!
JP
This overall recipe worked fine with precooked chickpeas (I presoaked and then cooked my chickpeas in an Instapot), I just mushed and mixed it up to taste (added some lemon juice and coriander as I didn’t have a ton of cilantro from my garden) and then added some besan (chickpea) flour to dry it up a bit. I cooked it much longer, too, around 20 minutes one side, then other (my patties were more like 3/4 inch thick.)
They came out fantastic.
BTW, I’ve done falfael with just chickpea-fava flour (per Bob’s Red Mill instructions), also falfael with besan flour alone, and this, with cooked chickpeas and raw flour mixed together, was way better.
Nicole, if you can’t find dried chickpeas to be delivered/ordered in bulk, there are some falfael recipes that suggest mixing flour (not chickpea flour necessarily) with drained canned chickpeas. Go ahead and try this recipe and be sure to bake until the patties are nice reddish-toasted top and bottom.
Karen
Can you cook these in an air fryer?
Kate
Hi Karen! I don’t have too much experience with an air fryer. This one was specifically designed for the oven so I’m not sure.
JJ
WOW this was easy and terrific. I have had successes with so many of your recipes I always look for Cookie + Kate first. Another winner for the permanent rotation.
★★★★★
Kate
Thank you, JJ! I’m happy you were able to enjoy this one and it will now be in your rotation.
Jennifer
These are my favourite baked falafels! So crispy and tasty. Super easy to make and a great protein option for my salads. Thank you!
★★★★★
Mark S
There is only one word for these. AWESOME. Will be making more, often. A few tweaks to ingredient amounts but that is only for my preferences, Make this recipe exactly as printed the first time. You’ll be back for more.
★★★★★
Marion Jacobson
I’ve been making falafel for decades and this is by far the best recipe I’ve come across, in terms of flavor and texture. I’m a very bad girl, so I pan fried, instead of baked, because to me falafel should always fry.
The mix was a bit bland for my taste so I doubled the garlic and salt. I left out the cinammon which I find just weird for this dish. So, the salty, garlicky result was excellent: my teenager who spurned falafel in the past gobbled up as many of these as she could stuff in a pita.
Leftover make great breakfast food with fried egg and tomato on the side.
★★★★
Harsimran Kaur
I completely followed your recipe but mine falafel mixture is watery..why this happened
Kris
This was delicious and easy to make. It was super crispy on the outside and is one of the best falafels I’ve ever eaten!
★★★★★
Katia
Delicious!!! I just made them and I know this recipe will become a staple in our house! Very easy to make! Thank you very much, Kate!
★★★★★
Jessica Shea
Hi! I’ve made this recipe a few times and its perfect for a quick meal. I froze some the other day because I didn’t want them to spoil. Suggestions on best way to defrost?
Kate
Hi Jessica! I would let them set in the refrigerator to thaw.
Rachel
This is my go to recipe for felafel! I love it. Now I want to make a large batch to freeze. Should I form the patties but freeze them without baking? Or should. bake them and then freeze them once cooked?
Thanks!
★★★★★
Kate
Hi Rachel! I’m excited you love these. I would bake, then freeze. Thank you for your review!
Sarah
I don’t have a food processor, do you think a blender could work?!
Kate
Hi Sarah! That should work too. Let me know what you think!
Lisa
This was so perfect! Who knew all of these years I had been making falafel the wrong way!? I loved using the oven, that was so much easier, and made the house smell amazing. I will be making again.
★★★★★
Kate
I’m glad you loved this recipe, Lisa! Thank you for sharing.
Lucy
I’m so happy that I found this recipe, thanks for sharing!
I found the processor a bit of a faff to use so I used the handheld stick blender instead and that saved me so much time.
My friends and I absolutely loved these falafels and this may have to become my go-to recipe when trying to impress people.
I’m going to have to see what other recipes you’ve got after how well this one worked out!
★★★★★
Bel
Hands down the best falafel I’ve ever had. Everyone loved it at my ladies lunch and it is definitely going into my weekly rotation!! Thanks for the amazing recipe :)
★★★★★
Apryl
Hi!
Do the chickpeas have to be “de-skinned” after soaking?
Thanks!
Kate
Hi! No, they don’t. I hope you love it!
Nancy
Thank you for this recipe! The taste is authentic and reminds me of what I had in the middle east. I made vegan tzatziki and pickled red onions to go along with cucumber slices and tomatoes wrapped in warm pita bread. This is going to be a regular in my new vegan way of eating. Yum!!!
★★★★★
Sarah K
Why are my chickpeas still hard after 24 hours soaking?
Kate
Hi Sarah, Are they plump at all? I wonder if they are really old as I know that can vary results.
Sarah K
Plump after soaking? Yes
I bought them bulk at Sprouts so assume they are fresh
So I ended up cooking them for an hour after soaking with Somewhat better results
They were a bit dry and fell apart when cooking but I just had crumbled falafel in my wrap with hummus, takitki and onion. Tasty still. But I may just order out falafel next time. The effort didn’t seem worth it. Thanks for the motivation to try making these. Love your recipes! And I’m always looking for adventure in cooking and baking
Susan Cuthbert
I enjoyed the flavour of these but they were so crumbly I couldn’t turn them without them falling apart. No one else has that complaint – what could I do to bind them together?
Kate
I’m sorry to hear that, Susan! How long did you soak your chickpeas?
Belinda
I had this same issue – I soaked my chickpeas for 20 hours. I had to freeze the mixture before I could even get them into a semblance of a pattie. Not sure on flavour as yet as I’m cooking tonight…
Kate
I’m sorry to hear that, Belinda.
Whitney
I loved the flavor! I soaked chickpeas overnight, but then cooked on the stove as they were still hard. My mixture wasn’t quite coming together in the food processor so I ended up adding a little extra oil. I used a 2 Tbsp cookie scoop and flattened a bit. I baked in 2 separate pans on different racks. The top pan pieces fell apart when I flipped; bottom pan from middle rack was great. These were so delicious, I will make them again and bake in separate batches and a touch longer based on my oven. Fantastic flavor!
★★★★★
Susan Cuthbert
Thanks for your reply, Kate. My chickpeas (actually they were ‘yellow peas’ from the Polish shop – but pretty similar) had a long soak. I boiled them up so they were part-cooked, which I would have thought would make them less crumbly but maybe it was the opposite? Delicious flavour though!
Michaela M.
Best homemade falafel I’ve tried! The tzatziki is great too. Both are the perfect mix of surprisingly light and refreshing but still yummy and filling. Thanks Kate!
★★★★★
Jen
This recipe was a major letdown… should’ve known it wasn’t going to be good because of the cinnamon in a falafel recipe. Also shocking the recipe called for a 1/4 cup of olive oil on the pan instead of putting the falafel on parchment paper… and didn’t include any lemon joice.
Cinnamon overpowered and ruined the flavor of the falafel. Hard pass on this waste of ingredients.
★
Patricia
Simply delicious and so easy to make. I was scared of making falafel but I can’t believe how good these turned out. Will definitely be making again and again.
★★★★★
Ellie
I doubt it, I think they would just fall apart. I’ve just made them and the patties had to be squeezed to remove liquid and seem quite crumbly. I wouldn’t chance it in an air fryer!
★★★★
Lorrieann Younger
Totally tasty! We loved these, paired with the tahini sauce and a simple bowl of greens, kalamata olives, feta, tomatoes, cucumber and a bit of rice.
★★★★★
Amy Muller
Kate, I can’t wait to make this! What ingredients are in the salad in the picture above? Thanks!!
Kate
Hi Amy! It’s as pictured, plus my Creamy Tahini Dressing. Any vegetable you like, with a bed of lettuce and pita!
Abigail
Tastes amazing and are super easy to make too! They’re A little dry, but perfect with some hummis or tzatziki.
★★★★★
bizz
Yum, yum, yum! We packed these (with your homemade tzatziki sauce) for lunch during a pandemic hike and were delighted with the flavors. And baked, not fried! I love falafels but so often, they lose flavors when fried. Not these. Baking them not only makes them healthy but means we could taste all the yummy ingredients. Great in a pita stuffed with lettuce, pickled onions, tomatoes, kalamata olives, cucumbers and feta… and plenty of tzatziki!
★★★★★
Kate
Thank you, Bizz! I’m happy you love this one and it was a hit. I appreciate your review.
Kathleen
Kate, You are my hero! I absolutely love falafel and haven’t had much luck finding a recipe that isn’t fried but gives that crisp outer crust. These were fantastic! Great flavor. I opted to serve them in lettuce wraps along with a tomato cucumber salad and your tzatziki sauce. Thank you for the tip on using dry vs canned. I think that made all the difference in the texture. This will be a go to. Thank you!
★★★★★
Arwah
Was amazing! I didn’t have any red onion so used yellow instead and it still turned out great. Even my very picky kids loved them which says a lot! Thank you!
★★★★★
Richard BROWN
Hi Kate
Loving your recipes and the falafel went down a treat!!
I do though have a question on the use of a blender for such things……I will send an email to you.
Regards
Richard
★★★★★
Kate
Hi Richard! I sent you and email this morning. Thank you for taking the time to comment and email.
Cynthia
Hi Kate,
I am anxious to try these as I have always made my falafal with canned chickpeas. I guess I don’t see the difference if you are soaking the chickpeas anyway and softening them. Would putting canned chickpeas in the oven to dry them a bit work?
Love your recipes and thank you,
Cynthia
Kate
Hi Cynthia! This isn’t designed for canned. It won’t quite work the same. Sorry!
K
Hello, my hubby and I love your recipes so I always check here first. I plan on making these today with black chickpeas I started soaking at about 17:00 yesterday. I know they are a bit different than regular chickpeas. Should I change cooking times or spices? I do plan to double the amount of chickpeas I use so will adjust the rest of the recipe accordingly. Any help anyone is willing to provide is greatly appreciated, thanks!!
Kate
Hi K, I’m not too familiar with black chickpeas so don’t have specific insight for you. Sorry!
Sue
Love this recipe, thank you so much. You are so right about not using cooked/canned or jars of chickpeas. Baking the falafel in the oven works so well and I have also found the oil is unnecessary when using baking paper on the trays.
★★★★★
Sally
The falafels were fabulous! I used an ice cream scooper and smashed each a little with the back of the scooper. I also used parchment paper and drizzled it and the falafels with olive oil. They were very crispy, and perfect with your delicious tahini sauce. So easy and healthy!
★★★★★
Mabel Miller
Have made this wonderful recipe many times. I double the recipe as they keep well frozen. Recommend a small ice-cream type scooper (1 1/2”) diameter which makes the process so easy.
★★★★★
Kate
Thank you for sharing, Mabel! I appreciate your review.
Erica
Another win for Cookie and Kate recipes!! I have never really liked falafels, but my partner loves them. I’ve only ever had the kind that comes from a package. Well. We had an abundance of parsley to use up in the garden this year and some dried chickpeas hanging around (pandemic purchase) so I tried these and… WOW! The fresh herbs… made ALL the difference. They were not dry at all, they were easy to form into patties. We snarfed them down, and tonight I’m making a triple recipe to freeze them!!!
★★★★★
Amy Green
This is our new favorite falafel recipe! The taste is great and there’s no frying which is so time consuming and messy. These are crispy without feeling like you consumed a mouthful of oil. So good! Leftovers are great too!
★★★★★
Kate
I’m happy you loved it, Amy!
Erin
I’m currently making these and when I was forming the patties they were very difficult and just wanted to fall apart. Im not sure what may have caused this. I did omit the cilantro and I forgot to soak the chickpeas the night before so they soaked about 5 hours. I’ve never soaked chickpeas so I’m not sure if they were too dry or if that affected them. I was able to barely form them and when o flipped them about half just fell to pieces or broke in half. They did still taste pretty awesome and I was able to just throw the chunks into some pita with greens and hummus and enjoy, just wondering what to fix next time
Kate
Hi Erin, I’m sorry to hear that! Soaking longer is usually better since chickpeas can vary so much. Did you process everything until very find in your food processor?
Erin
Yeah it was all processed nicely. After eating more of then I think it was a soaking issue. There were some pretty crunchy and hard bits in them. Next time I’ll plan better, even crumbled, they were super good and worth a better try I think
★★★★★
Nisha
Love love this recipe! They turn out nice and crispy and so yummy! Been a hit with my family and go to recipe for grabbing friends and family over! Thank you
★★★★★
Penny
These are FANTASTIC!! Crunchy, flavourful, melt-in-your-mouth healthy!
★★★★★
Casey
I have a bag of gram flour (chickpea flour) that I use to make vegan omelettes (ps. Kate please try this and write up your own recipe, I would love that!!!)
Wonder if I could sub the chickpea flour for the dried chickpeas???
Kate
Hi Casey, I don’t think you will get the result you are after with this recipe since it was designed with chickpeas.
TERRY P
OMG….. Thanks Kate,
This is the first time I have been successful cooking falafel from scratch. As well as being the most devine falafel I have ever tasted.
So then I made your tahini sauce and it was perfect as well, so I subscribed.
So looking forward to going your recipes tonight.
Thanks again and my partner thanks you as well as I do all the cooking.
TerryP…..
★★★★★
Kate
I’m glad you hear you loved it! I appreciate your review, Terry.
Moulikta
Made it yesterday. Excellent recipe. I’ll use it all the time now.
Moulikta
★★★★★
Kate
Thank you for your review! I’m glad you love it.
Kate
Just pulled my first batch out of the oven and they are spectacular! I love so many of your recipes that I took a gamble and made a double batch. So grateful I did because these are bursting with flavor! I added a little coriander but kept everything else as is. I’ve made many dry falafel recipes and these are not that. Thank you for another wonderful recipe, Kate!
★★★★★
Kate
Hooray! That’s great, Kate. Thank you for your review.
Robin
I soaked the bag of chickpeas first now I don’t know how much to use for 1 cup dryed
Kate
Hi Robin! How big was your bag? Try using a big one cup soaked. Let me know how it goes!
Kina
I did the same thing! They swelled so much that I felt that 1 cup dried = 2 cups soaked.
Venita
This recipe has become my tried and tested dish whenever I have people over, and it’s my first choice for introducing my friends and family to my vegan diet .
As a South African I love my distinct flavours, so I double the amount of spices, and I add paprika and crushed chillies to the mixture. Perfect for wraps, burgers and sandwiches!
★★★★★
Kate
Thank you for your review, Venita! I appreciate it.
Bel
Wow! Just WOW, these falafel are a total crowd pleaser and have now become a staple in my house! This is the best recipe I’ve come across, they’re awesome
★★★★★
Kina
Somebody please give me advice! I was so excited to try this recipe but when I was picking over my dried beans (Great Value brand from Walmart) I started noticing tiny bugs! They weren’t black and the packages weren’t expired. It’s 11/2020 and the date on the packages is 05/2021. Is this common?!
Kate
Oh no! I would not use those and report it to the store.
Kina
Thanks! I threw them out and bought more (same brand) and this time there were ZERO bugs! I sorted, rinsed, and soaked them overnight and plan to try the recipe later today! I’m so excited. I’ll report back!
Kate
Ok, good! Yes and please do.
lauren
This is one of my family’s favorite meals. I make it with Zhoug and Tzaziki sauce and serve with Naan. Both of my kids are vegetarians and picky. My husband and I are neither. Everyone loves this recipe! And my kids say it’s the best falafel they’ve had.
★★★★★
Kate
I’m happy to hear it is such a hit! Thank you for your review.
Jane
Made these for the first time…they were delicious. I used coriander instead of cinnamon, added a pinch of cayenne, 1 tsp lemon juice and 1/2 t. baking soda. It’s the first time I’ve ever baked falafels, and it worked out great! They were moist on the inside and crunchy on outside. I served with your ‘best tahini sauce’ recipe and vegies.
★★★★★
El
I made this recipe basically exactly as written and they were so good!! I love falafel even as an over-fried fast food and I thought they couldn’t get any better but this recipe has amazing flavor and great texture, plus that really bright green color that makes them so fun and pretty.
I did a double batch and followed the oven directions for that with great results, I had to bake them a little longer than it said but I think I might’ve made my patties a little big cause I only ended up with 20. They were a huge hit my whole family loved them!!
Also the recipe said packed cups of the herbs so I PACKED them in there, really tried to squish them down and get as many leaves in there as possible. I’m really glad I did cause the flavor was fantastic, so glad to have found this recipe :)
★★★★★
Sandra Echeverri
I am making this again! We all enjoyed this so much.
I made hummus and a tadziki sauce to go with it. I definitely recommend this recipe.
★★★★★
Kate
Wonderful, Sandra! Thank you for your review.
Antonette
I doubled the recipe and made it exactly as written. It made 10 patties. I don’t have a food processor so I tried my Cuisinart Stick Hand Blender,(not easy) and then a pestle (like a pioneer woman) and it worked! I baked them a little longer so they were nicely browned. Served them on a kale tabouli salad, a tahini sauce drizzle and a side of feta & olives. It was a hit!!! Thank you!
★★★★★
christine
Can these be frozen and if yes, before frying or after.
Kate
Hi! Yes these freeze well. I suggest after baking to freeze.
Cristina
I am making these ahead of time and so was wondering if I can freeze them and if so is it best to freeze after cooking or before.
Thanks
Kate
Hi Cristina, I have only tried freezing them after baking, which works great, so I would do that.