Falafel

Use dried chickpeas, not tinned. Tinned chickpeas are cooked and too soft — the falafel will fall apart in the oil.

The day before: Cover the dried chickpeas in cold water by at least 5cm. Leave to soak overnight (12–24 hours). They will roughly double in size.

Drain the chickpeas. Do not cook them. Put them in a food processor with the onion, garlic, parsley, coriander, cumin, ground coriander, baking powder, and salt. Pulse until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs — not a paste. It should hold together when squeezed but still have some texture.

Refrigerate the mixture for 30 minutes. This helps it firm up and makes shaping easier.

Shape into balls or patties of around 30g each. Heat vegetable oil to 180°C in a heavy pan. Fry in batches for 3–4 minutes until deep golden brown and cooked through. They should be dark on the outside and just cooked inside.

Drain on kitchen paper. Serve immediately with tahini, pickled vegetables, and flatbread. Falafel does not hold well — eat them while hot.

Method

Use dried chickpeas, never tinned. Tinned chickpeas are already cooked and their starches have softened; they'll collapse into a greasy paste the moment they hit hot oil. Dried chickpeas, when soaked and left uncooked, retain enough structure to hold the mixture together through deep-frying.

Soak the dried chickpeas in cold water by at least 5 cm for 12–24 hours. They will roughly double in size and soften enough to break between your fingers, but they must remain raw. Drain them thoroughly.

Process the drained chickpeas with the onion, garlic, parsley, coriander, cumin, coriander seed, baking powder, and salt. Pulse until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs with distinct flecks of herb still visible — stop before it becomes a paste. A rough texture is critical here: it provides friction between particles, helping them lock together when fried rather than flow apart. Squeeze a handful; it should clump without any wetness pressing out. If it feels wet or slick, the herbs have released too much liquid — leave it uncovered in the fridge for 15 minutes and pulse once more.

Refrigerate the mixture for at least 30 minutes. This allows the starches to swell slightly and the salt to draw out residual moisture, creating a drier, firmer mass that shapes cleanly. Shape into balls or patties of around 30 g each — roughly the size of a golf ball. Flatten slightly if you prefer more surface area for browning.

Heat vegetable oil to 180°C in a heavy pan. The temperature is non-negotiable: below 170°C and the exterior will absorb oil and turn greasy; above 190°C and the crust will char before the interior cooks through. Fry in single batches so the oil temperature doesn't drop. They are ready when the surface is deep mahogany brown and the crust sounds crisp when tapped — roughly 3–4 minutes. The interior should be creamy and just set, not dry. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on kitchen paper immediately.

Serve falafel hot. They firm up as they cool and the contrast between the crisp exterior and fluffy centre collapses after ten minutes. Eat them with tahini, pickled vegetables, and warm flatbread, keeping the mediterranean-cuisine conventions of acid and fat intact.