Falafel are perfect for stuffing into wraps, pittas or enjoying with a salad and are the perfect thing to make for students! Not only are homemade falafel extremely easy to make, but they are also cheap and healthy! Falafel are made from basic Student Store Cupboard Essentials, so you should hopefully already have the ingredients at hand and can started cooking right away!
The below recipe makes about 12 small falafel and any leftovers can be stored in the fridge for a few days or even frozen! Perfect for meal prep!
How to make Homemade Falafel?
Falafel are made from chickpeas, and these are the main ingredient in this recipe. You can then add additional vegetables, herbs and seasoning depending on your preference. I like to add some onion, parsley, garlic some spicy harissa paste and various spices such as ground cumin and coriander.
To make a thick paste that you can shape into falafel, you will have to blend the chickpeas with the remaining ingredients and some flour to help bind the mixture together. If you don’t have a small food processor (this is the one I have that I can highly recommend) you could also use a fork to mash the chickpeas, however you won’t manage to get the mixture quite as smooth. You will also have to cut up the other ingredients even more finely. I actually like to keep my falafel mix a little “chunky” – it adds a little texture to them!
What to serve with Falafel?
Falafel are great both as a snack (dip them in this homemade hummus or Tzatziki, it’s delicious!) or added into a main meal, such as a salad, wrap or stuffed pitta. Falafel are a great add-on to a fresh green salad, and make sure to check out some of my other recommendations for spicing up your salad here!
I also like putting these homemade falafel into wraps, and they are a great substitute for the chicken to make a vegan/veggie alternative to these Chicken, Avocado and Red Pepper Wraps.
I also love stuffing falafel into pitta breads or piling them on naan breads for a hearty and filling dinner. I’d highly recommend you try either making these easy 2-Ingredient Naan Breads or these homemade Nigella Seed Pitta Breads and topping or filling them with the falafel! This delicious Onion and Tomato Salsa is the perfect accompaniment, as well as the quick and easy homemade Tzatziki (garlic + cucumber) dip! A must-try in my opinion!
More Student-friendly Cooking Recipes
I absolutely love cooking, but as a student sometimes it can be difficult to eat healthily, while making sure you aren’t spending hours of your time in the kitchen cooking and are kind to your wallet! I have developed loads of easy, cheap, and healthy recipes for students during my time at University, so make sure you check out some of my favourites below:
- Chickpea and Spinach Curry | Vegan
- Sweet Potato and Lentil Dhal
- Kidney Bean and Sweetcorn Salad
- Creamy Chicken and Pesto Pasta
- Vegan Mixed Bean Chilli
- Smoky Tomato Sauce with Spaghetti
- Easy Pizza Dough for Homemade Pizza
- Veggie Chilli with Roasted Sweet Potato
- Chicken and Chorizo Jambalaya
- Easy Lasagne | Student Cooking Recipe
- Colourful Quinoa Salad | Meal Prep
Homemade Falafel | Student Cooking Recipes
Recipe
Ingredients:
- 400g tin chickpeas, drained
- 1 tsp water
- 2 cloves garlic
- ½ tsp harissa paste
- ½ red onion, chopped
- Small handful of flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 2 tbsp flour
- salt + pepper, to taste
- sunflower oil, for cooking
Method:
- Drain the chickpeas and transfer them into a food processor. Then add in all of the remaining falafel ingredients (except the oil).
- Pulse until the mixture is smooth and comes together in a thick paste that isn’t too wet. You can either pulse until the mixture is completely smooth or leave it a little chunky for some more texture (that’s what I prefer).
- Roll the mixture into 12 balls and flatten them slightly.
- Next, heat some sunflower oil in a frying pan. Once hot, fry the falafel for about 2-3 minutes on each side until they are golden brown. Be careful when flipping the falafel as they can be fragile, and you don’t want them to fall apart.
- Remove the falafel from the pan and lay them on a piece of kitchen towel to absorb any excess oil, then serve while still warm or leave to cool completely before storing them in the fridge or freezer.
