Packed with fresh herbs and spices, this crispy baked falafel recipe is bursting with flavor. Stuff it into a pita wrap with all the fixings, and enjoy!
I’ll never forget the first time I tried falafel. Stuffed into pita bread with fresh herbs, crisp veggies, and a big slather of hummus, it was crispy, rich, and bursting with earthy, aromatic flavor. I devoured the entire wrap in minutes, amazed at the medley of tastes and textures dancing across my tongue. Falafel has been one of my favorite foods ever since. I still order it out to eat whenever I get the chance, but these days, I more often make this homemade falafel recipe.
What Is Falafel?
I’m getting ahead of myself. What is falafel, anyway? In case you’re not familiar with this traditional Middle Eastern dish, falafel are fried balls of ground chickpeas or fava beans seasoned with herbs like parsley and cilantro and spices like coriander and cumin. They’re a popular street food throughout the Middle East and Europe (if you’re ever in Paris, make a stop at L’As du Fallafel), where you can find them stuffed into pitas brimming with fresh veggies, herbs, sauces, and pickles.
I’m not a fan of frying at home (to be totally honest, the hot oil scares me!), so instead of deep frying falafel myself, I prefer baking it. It still comes out deliciously crisp, so I think it rivals any fried version. I hope you love it too!
Falafel Recipe Ingredients
To make this baked falafel recipe, you’ll need these key ingredients:
- Uncooked dry chickpeas – When I was first working out how to make falafel at home, I learned that traditional falafel is made with dried, NOT canned chickpeas. In fact, the chickpeas are never fully cooked before the falafel is formed. Instead, you’ll soak them overnight, then grind them up to form the falafel balls. Trust me, you don’t want to use canned chickpeas here! Your falafel will turn to mush.
- Shallot and garlic – They add a delicious savory bite! You can also use yellow onion in place of the shallot.
- Lemon zest – It’s not traditional, but I love the brightness it adds to these patties.
- Cumin, coriander, and cayenne – For warm, aromatic flavor and a kick of heat.
- Sea salt – It punches up the rich flavor of the herbs and spices.
- Baking powder – A pinch gives the balls the perfect light texture.
- Cilantro and parsley – I use a good amount to make my falafel bright green and flavorful. There’s no need to toss the herb stems for this recipe – blend them straight into the falafel mixture along with the leaves!
- Extra-virgin olive oil – It helps the falafel become nice and crisp in the oven.
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
How to Make Falafel
The first step to this method for how to make falafel is soaking the chickpeas. You’ll need to plan ahead here. The chickpeas need to soak for 24 hours, or at least overnight, before you form the balls. Drain and rinse them before proceeding with the recipe.
Once the chickpeas soak, pulse them together with the other ingredients. Add the chickpeas to the food processor with the shallot, garlic, herbs, spices, lemon zest, baking powder, olive oil, and salt.
Process until the ingredients are finely ground, but not pureed.
Next, form the falafel balls. Scoop up the chickpea and herb mixture with a 2-tablespoon cookie scoop, then use your hands to form it into balls or patties. If they’re not holding together, give the mixture a few more pulses in the food processor.
Finally, bake! Arrange the patties on a parchment-lined baking sheet, and drizzle them generously with olive oil. Seriously, don’t hold back on the oil here! We’re not frying, remember, so a good drizzle of oil is essential for helping the balls bake up nice and crisp.
Transfer the pan to a 400°F oven. Bake for 14 minutes, then flip and bake until the falafel is golden brown and crisp. That’s it!
Best Falafel Recipe Tips
- Used dried, NOT canned chickpeas. Really, canned chickpeas will NOT work! They’ll throw off the ratios in this recipe, and they’ll make the patties too wet and mushy. In order to achieve the light texture of traditional falafel, you MUST use dried chickpeas here. Soak them overnight (but don’t cook them!) before making the recipe.
- Drizzle the patties generously with oil before baking. Because we’re baking falafel here and not frying it, we’re automatically using much less oil than we would in a traditional falafel recipe. But oil is an important ingredient in falafel. It helps it become crisp on the outside while staying moist inside. To achieve this delicious balance, you need to drizzle your patties generously with oil. Don’t hold back!
- Don’t pack your patties too tightly. It’s tempting to really pack the patties together tightly, but doing so will make them tough and dense. Form the falafel balls gently, and if your mixture isn’t holding together, pulse it a bit more in the food processor until it sticks together. If it’s still too crumbly, pop it in the fridge to chill for 30 minutes before shaping and baking the patties.
- Make a double batch, and freeze the extras. These guys keep well in the freezer, so go ahead and make a double batch to have on hand for salads, bowls, or wraps. To reheat frozen falafel, pop them in a 400°F oven for about 10 minutes, until they’re crisp and heated through. For more make-ahead meal ideas, check out these 31 Healthy Freezer Meals and these 60 Healthy Meal Prep Ideas.
Serving Suggestions
My favorite way to serve falafel is in a pita wrap. I stuff it into the pita bread with a slather of hummus or a drizzle of tahini sauce, veggies like chopped tomatoes, cucumbers, and/or lettuce, pickled onions, and fresh herbs. Other sauces and spreads are great here too. Try using tzatziki instead of the hummus, or drizzle on cilantro lime dressing instead of tahini sauce.
Not in the mood for a falafel sandwich? Serve the patties on a salad or grain bowl instead, or add them to a mezze platter. They’re fantastic with few dips or spreads, like muhammara, baba ganoush, or homemade labneh, and a salad or two. Try pairing them with any of these:
Round out the platter with lots of fresh pita bread!
More Favorite Vegetarian and Vegan Dinners
If you love this crispy baked falafel recipe, try one of these tasty vegetarian or vegan meals next:
- Best Shakshuka
- Ratatouille
- Stuffed Zucchini Boats
- Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers
- Best Veggie Burger
- Easy Black Bean Burger
- Best Vegan Meatballs
- Or any of these 60 Easy Dinner Ideas or 85 Best Vegan Recipes!
Falafel
Ingredients
- 1 cup uncooked chickpeas, soaked 24 hours, drained, rinsed, and patted dry* (see note)
- ½ cup chopped shallot or yellow onion
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- ¾ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves and stems, patted dry
- 1 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves and stems, patted dry
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
For serving
- Pita bread, use gluten-free pita if needed
- Hummus
- Diced veggies, tomato, cucumber
- Fresh herbs, chopped parsley, fresh mint
- Pickled Red Onions
- Tahini Sauce
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large food processor, place the chickpeas (note: the chickpeas will have expanded during the soak time, be sure to use ALL of them here), shallot, garlic, lemon zest, cumin, coriander, salt, cayenne, baking powder, cilantro, parsley, and olive oil. Pulse until well combined but not pureed. Use a spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Use a 2-tablespoon scoop and your hands to form the mixture into 12 to 15 thick patties (be careful not to pack them too tight or your falafel will be dense). If they're not holding together, give the mixture a few more pulses in the food processor.
- Place the patties on the baking sheet. Drizzle generously with olive oil (this is the key to making these moist and crisp since we're not frying) and bake for 14 minutes. Flip and bake for 10 to 12 minutes more or until golden brown and crisp on the outside. During the last few minutes of baking, wrap the pita in foil and warm in the oven.
- Assemble pitas with a slather of hummus, diced veggies, falafel, herbs, pickled red onions, and generous drizzles of tahini sauce.
Notes
This is the best baked falafel I’ve ever had. The spices were spot on. I quadrupled the recipe, and I’m so glad I did-absolutely delicious!
Hi Sam, I’m so glad you loved it!
Have you ever thought about changing the flavor palette and making vegan Italian meatballs with this recipe? I was thinking some fresh basil and oregano and maybe some all spice powder would be a delicious twist.
Can the mixture be made the day before? And kept in refrigerator? Making this for a big group and want to prep.
Hi Sky, I haven’t tried, so I’m not sure if the mixture would dry out too much overnight (which could cause them to crumble fall apart). I will say that they are great reheated in the oven until warmed through and lightly crisp again, so I might go that route.
I had extra mixture and kept it for a week in the fridge and then baked them up as the recipe says. They were just as delicious as when I baked them on the day I mixed them up.
I made these with canned chickpeas (all we could find at the time) & found a way to make them work! Dried them out for 8 hours beforehand, made sure the herbs were dry after washing them, then used an air fryer on 400 for 14 min & they held their shape & were delightfully crispy 🙂
Hi Hannah, I’m so glad you had success with canned chickpeas! Thanks for leaving your tips!
Made these last night and they are phenomenal! We have tried various falafel recipes over the years but these are by far my favorite. Thank you for this wonderful recipe!
Hi Kate, I’m so glad you loved these so much!
Hello do you freeze them prior to cooking or after ? Thank you
Hi Dana, I freeze them after cooking. To reheat, I just bake in the oven until they’re warmed through and crisp around the edges again.
Hi, can you leave out the lemon zest or substitute it??
You can leave it out with no subsitution.
I REALLY would love to make these but could you tell me what brand of chickpeas you use? I have only ever bought the canned!
Hi Leah, any dry chickpeas will do – I get the kind from the bulk bin section at Whole Foods (I’m not sure what brand it is). I’m sure there are dried ones in the bean aisle of any grocery store. Hope that helps!
Thank you for your help-found them at a bulk barn! I have already began the soaking process. I’m looking forward to the finished product!!
Oy was I supposed to measure the cup of chick peas before I soaked? I measured 1 cup post soak…they seem super wet 🙁 I hope I didn’t mess it up
Hi Penny, yes, the recipe calls for 1 cup uncooked chickpeas. They’ll grow in volume after they soak, and they should all be drained and used.
Thank you! They actually came out ok, bursting with flavor, assuming with the extra chickpeas (1 cup dry and soaked) they’ll be perfect! Love the flavor of them!
phew, I’m glad they still came out! I replied to your friend that I think they’d be best baked ahead of time and reheated in the oven when ready to serve.
If you have the rest of the chickpea you soaked (if you measured 1 cup from the dry), I would pulse those in until the mixture is less wet and resembles the photos above.
My Friend was asking me if the mixture could be made the day before and put in refrigerator? I think k she wrote you but now I’m curious as well?
Hi! Question- I soaked 1 cup dried chickpeas and they plumped to create about 3 cups- does all that go in food processor or just 1 cup?
Thank you!
It all goes in! (be sure to drain it first)
I cannot wait to try this! I am going to try in the air fryer instead of baking fingers crossed!
How was it in the air fryer? I was thinking of trying this too!
Excellent flavor and crispy. I used baba ghanouj, herbs, tomatoes, pickled onions, and drizzled with cucumber tzatziki. Perfect blend of flavors.
Hi Teri, I’m so glad you loved the falafel!
What food processor do you use?
I use the KitchenAid 7-cup food processor, I also like Cuisinart’s 7-cup food processor. Neither are super large but I like them for recipes like this.
What’s the minimum amount of time you could soak the beans? Would 5 to 6 hours count as overnight?
Hi Hannah, I haven’t tried at 5-6 hours – I do 18-24 hours.
Do you have any suggestions for a substitute for cilantro? Would you just add more parsley? (Cilantro tastes like soap to me 😔.)
Hi Christine, you can just use extra parsley.
Thanks Jeanine! I made this a couple times now and it has been fantastic everytime!!!
This was delicious. My 8 year-old daughter devoured it. I was very apprehensive about not cooking the chickpeas first. Loved it!
Best homemade baked falafel recipe I’ve used – and I’ve used many! Easy and delicious. Mixture seemed a little wet at first (my herbs weren’t totally dry and I used too many!) but baked up to a very nice texture. Thank you!
I make felafel quite a lot, but this recipe sounds AMAZING! Agree with the dried chickpeas for felafel – they add this amazing texture you just don’t get with the canned variety! Looking forward to trying this recipe out x
Question – so you only soak the chickpeas- you don’t actually cook them after soaking? I make a lot of dried beans from scratch and have never seen a recipe that didn’t cook the beans after soaking. Thanks!
yep – you soak them, pulse them into the recipe and then they fully cook in the oven. This is what gives them the crispy non-mushy texture.
I have never made falafel because I do not enjoy deep frying at home. I am so excited to see this recipe for baked falafel. If only I could find a good gluten-free pita recipe to go with this!
Do you have any suggestions to substitute the pita? Thanks so much!!!
Hi Emily, I hope you enjoy this baked version! I really like them in a big salad with arugula or topped onto a grain bowl with brown rice or quinoa. You can add all the same fixings – crispy veggies, pickled onions a scoop of hummus, and generous drizzles of tahini sauce. I hope that helps! If I ever come across some amazing GF pita, I’ll report back 🙂
Look up Chickpea Tortillas! They use chickpea flour so are completely gluten free 🙂
Large lettuce leaves could be a good substitute.
Falafel is one of my all-time favorite foods, but is not always easily available in the middle east. I tried finding it in Dubai with no luck. But did find it in Jordan on the same trip. Real falafel are ALWAYS made with soaked dried chickpeas. Some people seem to think that canned would work, but I agree with you about using the dry ones.