Falafel: The Street Food King

Next to hummus, falafel is probably the most popular Middle Eastern dish, with a wide variety of nations adopting it as a cultural symbol including Egypt, Syria, Jordan and Lebanon. Today, it is consumed by all kinds of people all over the globe!

Falafel mainly consists of a deep-fried ball of ground-up chickpeas (sometimes called garbanzo beans) and/or fava beans. It is often eaten in a pita bread or flatbread and topped with a tahini-based sauce (called Tarator), pickles and vegetables. Vegetarians are particularly big fans of this dish as it is a good source of vegetable protein.

The actual origin of falafel is a topic few people agree on. The most widely accepted theory is that it originally emerged around 1000 years ago in Egypt. Egyptians widely prepared fried chickpeas to eat, as it was a good substitute for meat. With time, the dish spread north towards the Levant and became a popular Middle Eastern dish.

During the 20th century, a considerable amount of people from the Middle East and the surrounding regions immigrated to the United States. As they began to settle in the West, their cultural traditions became a part of the regional melting pot, which is why falafel is such a well-liked dish in the western regions today. Countless street vendors, restaurants and take-outs have been serving falafel in a variety of ways: in salads, sandwiches and even main courses and burgers!

Falafel can be made using either chickpeas or fava beans (some recipes include a mix of both), but which version is better? It becomes a matter of personal taste. For example, Egyptian falafel, which is made with fava beans, is usually softer than the Middle Eastern one. They also contain starch, which prevents the mix from crumbling. On the other hand, many simply can’t resist the nutty flavor and crunchy texture of chickpeas. Ideally, you can mix chickpeas and fava beans to get the best of both worlds.

In order to properly make falafel, an “Aleb Falafel” is required (a falafel mold, similar to an ice cream scoop) to form the mix into small balls. The mixture is then deep-fried, or sometimes oven-baked.

However, if making falafel at home proves too complicated for you, you can always render the cooking process easier thanks to our crispy Falafel Gourmet! Simply add water to the mix, let it stand for an hour, then make it into croquettes and either deep-fry or bake!

So tell us, have you ever tried to make your own Falafel?