No-Gadget Falafel (Falafel without a Food Processor) Recipe on Food52 (2024)

FAQs

Can falafel be made without a food processor? ›

Use the base of the empty can to smush and squish the chickpeas into as smooth a paste as possible. If the cut-edge of the empty can is sharp and not safe to hold, just use the base of an unopened can and rinse it off after you're done. To the chickpea paste, add the flour, ground cumin, salt, and parsley.

Grind the spices in a spice grinder or mortar and pestle. Drain the soaked chickpeas VERY WELL and mix all the ingredients except the baking powder and cooking oil. The chickpeas need to be very dry before mixing so the falafel mix is not too wet. Grind the falafel mix using a 5 mm grinder die.

If you don't have a food processor, you can also use an immersion blender. Then it's easier to blend bit by bit. If the mix seems very dry, you can add a splash of water. Take a tablespoon of the falafel mix at a time and roll between your hands to form falafel balls that are about the size of walnuts.

A binding ingredient can help keep it together, especially if you are using canned beans instead of dried. And the perfect binding ingredient for falafel is flour. Nothing fancy, just plain all-purpose flour. Add a few tablespoons at a time to your mixture, until you can press it easily into balls or patties.

Combine liquids and solids in a mixer.

Whether you're using a hand mixer, a stand mixer, or an immersion blender, your mixer can function as a useful substitute for a food processor. Just place the food into a large, durable bowl and lower in the mixer, then turn it on.

I recommend olive oil, canola oil or avocado oil. Ground flaxseed. This is the binding agent in this vegan falafel recipe. You can substitute 1 egg for the 2 Tablespoons ground flaxseed.

Potato masher

This is a great technique for coulis and sauces alike. Boil or simmer your chosen food until soft and close to falling apart then mash away – for an extra smooth consistency, pass your puree through a fine-mesh sieve like this one.

There are several ways you can make homemade hummus, not just with your food processor. You can make hummus in a blender, stand mixer or even with a hand blender when using the right technique.

The hand blender when used with the right attachments can substitute for the food processor, however, as the volume of the food processor bowl is larger than the chopper or blending jug, it may be quicker when preparing a large quantity to use the food processor.

Why add baking soda to falafel mix? ›

Baking soda and powder: Baking soda breaks down and softens the chickpeas as they soak. Baking powder, mixed in just before baking, makes the falafel light and airy. Fresh herbs: The tender leaves of parsley, dill, and cilantro bring fresh, herbal flavor and color.

KITCHEN TOOLS

Common kitchen tools can sometimes be a sufficient blender substitute when you don't have access to handheld or countertop appliances. Tools like rolling pins, a masher or a mortar and pestle can be used to mash or puree soft ingredients like ripe fruit, or help you crush ice in a pinch.

Keep in mind that the balls will be delicate at first; if you can get them into the hot oil, they should bind together and stick. If they still won't hold together, you can try adding 2-3 tbsp of flour or chickpea flour to the mixture. If they still won't hold, add 1-2 eggs to the mix.

Its the deep frying in oil that should cook the beans. The moisture in the pre cooked beans make the falafels soggy and fall apart whereas frying the uncooked chickpeas makes them crispier.

Falafel have to be crispy on the outside yet soft and fluffy in the inside. They have to have enough fresh herbs and onion. Too much onion and your falafel will have a bad after taste. Too little and they won't be as moist and fluffy as they should be.

Mash chickpeas, 2 tablespoons reserved chickpea liquid, tahini, sesame oil, red pepper flakes, and garlic powder together in a bowl using a potato masher, adding more reserved liquid if desired, until hummus is desired consistency, 50 to 100 strokes.

To make chickpea flour, you'll need a high-speed blender, or a coffee grinder (or spice grinder). Place the dry chickpeas in the blender, and blend until they are finely ground, like a flour. Be warned– it's VERY loud at first!

In short – yes! An immersion blender is a handheld blender with a small spinning blade that is immersed into ingredients to create smoothies, soups and sauces. A food processor has larger, flat blades at the bottom of the work bowl, or discs that sit at the top and can chop, shred, grind, puree and more.

The process is very simple: toast raw sesame seeds, then grind with 1 teaspoon oil (using high speed blender or food processor, scraping down the sides as you go. It will start crumbly, but continue to evolve into the smoothest, creamiest tahini.