Chasing the Fionist Dream

Who here remembers the days when you could get a felafel b’pita for under 10 shekels? Or… under 15 shekels? With felafel prices starting 20 shekels in many places, Israel’s national dish and most inexpensive fast food meal isn’t so cheap anymore, especially when you’re feeding a family.

So how does felafel night work in the Fionist household?

Glad you asked! We make it of course. A felafel b’pita costs us about 2-4 shekels a serving, depending on whether we make or buy the pitot, the cost of produce at the time (we ❤ shuk day), and the salatim we add.

Since prepping the felafel mix is a bit of a patcherei, we process a kilo (or more) of chickpeas at a time and freeze in portions big enough to serve the four of us. Then when we want felafel, we thaw a portion and fry (or bake) it. The recipe below is enough to serve our family about 5 times. Depending on the size of your family, you may get more or fewer meals out of this, but unless you’re feeding an army (or your child’s class), the recipe below will be plenty for several times. Our felafel is vegan and gluten free.

Here’s what you’ll need:

1 kilo bag of dried chickpeas (canned chickpeas will not work)

1 large onion or two smaller ones

1 head of garlic

lots of fresh or dried minced parsley (amount depending on how green you want your felafel)

1/2 tsp baking powder

About 1 Tbsp salt

About 1 Tbsp cumin

A bunch of shakes of black pepper

Oil to fry it in or to brush onto it if baking/airfrying

1. Just like our chili recipe, you’ll need to soak the chickpeas first. Pour the bag of dry beans into a big pot or bowl and cover with enough water to let the beans double in size and still be covered – at least 15-20 cm over the top of the dried beans. Let it sit for 10-12 hours (overnight or while at work). Drain the water, rinse and drain again.
2. Throw the chickpeas and all of the other ingredients aside from the oil in your food processor until its all an even texture. You may have to process in portions if you have a smaller food processor.
3. Your felafel mix is ready! Freeze in portions, leaving yourself enough to feed your family today, or make the whole thing if you’re feeding an army (or your kid’s class). If you are planning on baking your felafel, skip to step #7.
4. If you are frying them, heat up oil in a small frying pan, about one centimeter deep. Using a smaller pan will require less oil overall, but will fry fewer balls at a time. Your call. Make sure it is really hot before starting. If it’s not hot enough, the balls will get soggy and oily and will fall apart. Hot oil will cook the felafel quickly and they will absorb less oil.
5. Form balls with your mixture. It might be difficult at first as the mixture tends to fall apart. You can add a little (chickpea or wheat) flour, but I find that just squeezing them hard tends to work for me. I prefer making them flatter and more patty-like so the oil reaches at least halfway up the balls.
6. Place the balls/patties gently into the boiling oil. Flip when they start getting brown around the edges. When cooked on both sides, remove from pan and place on some paper towels to drain the oil.
7. If you are baking these, place on a baking sheet and either brush oil onto them or add a coat of cooking spray. Bake on top and bottom heat at 220 C for 20 minutes or so until they turn the right color.
8. Serve however you’d like them – in a pita, with Israeli salad and tehina, etc – or eat plain.
9. B’teavon!

Like all recipes, feel free to play around with the spices and tweak it to your preferences. Like people, felafel comes in all shapes, sizes, and colors and are all beautiful. 🙂

What types of fakeout do you make at home? What should we try?