The wonderful Dr. Bassam El Agez came to our last community day on June 29th and taught us how to make falafel and fresh hummus!
Dr. Bassam is a university lecturer originally from Palestine who graciously gave his time to share his cooking know-how with us.
He is currently raising funds to try to help one of his former students and their family escape the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. If you’d like to help him reach his goal, you can make a donation here.
For the recipe shared at the last community day, see below:
Falafel Ingredients:
2 cups of dried chickpeas (Do NOT use canned or cooked chickpeas)
½ tsp baking soda
1 cup fresh parsley leaves, stems removed
¾ cup fresh corriander leaves, stems removed
½ cup fresh dill, stems removed
1 small onion, quartered
7-8 garlic cloves, peeled
Salt to taste
1 tbsp ground black pepper
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp ground coriander
1 tsp cayenne pepper or chillies, optional
1 tsp baking powder
2 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
Oil for frying
Falafel Sauce:
Tahini Sauce
Fixings for falafel sandwich (optional):
Pita pockets
English cucumbers, chopped or diced
Tomatoes, chopped or diced
Onions and greens
Pickles
Method:
(One day in advance) Place the dried chickpeas and baking soda in a large bowl filled with water to cover the chickpeas by at least 2 inches. Soak overnight for 18 hours (longer if the chickpeas are still too hard). When ready, drain the chickpeas completely and pat them dry.
Add the chickpeas, herbs, onions, garlic and spices to the large bowl of a food processor fitted with a blade. Run the food processor 40 seconds at a time until all is well combined forming a the falafel mixture.
Transfer the falafel mixture to a container and cover tightly. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour or (up to one whole night) until ready to cook.
Just before frying, add the baking powder and sesame seeds to the falafel mixture and stir with a spoon.
Scoop tablespoonfuls of the falafel mixture and form into patties (½ inch in thickness each). It helps to have wet hands as you form the patties.
Fill a medium saucepan 3 inches up with oil. Heat the oil on medium-high until it bubbles softly. Carefully drop the falafel patties in the oil, let them fry for about 3 to 5 minutes or so until crispy and medium brown on the outside. Avoid crowding the falafel in the saucepan, fry them in batches if necessary.
Place the fried falafel patties in a colander or plate lined with paper towels to drain.
Serve falafel hot next to other small plates; or assemble the falafel patties in pita bread with tahini or hummus, greens, tomato and cucumbers. Enjoy!
If you’d like to attend our next community day, it takes place on Saturday 27th July. For details see here:
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