It thrills me to no conceivable end when I find Indian recipes in other cultures. I might be entirely wrong in saying that, because those recipes could have been introduced to India by invaders and traders, but you get the gist. I love walking into a restaurant, trying something new that I’ve heard of, but never had, and it tastes like something I grew up eating! The surprise on my face as the connection dawns on me
Do you remember my earlier post on the African (Nigerian) Akara fritters, which turned out to be very similar to the South-Indian Medu Vada (Fritters made with ground black lentils) – but instead of the black lentils, the African version uses black-eyed peas.
This is just like that, except I did not see this on TV, but realised the connection as I was biting into it. Falafel is a common name you hear when it comes to street food, so naturally, when I walked into a Mediterranean restaurant, along with their juicy kabobs, I had to order some falafel as well. Imagine my surprise when I bit into it and it tasted exactly like a South-Indian masala vada!
Made with soaked chickpeas (which is essentially just Bengal gram/channa dal), flavoured with cilantro and/or parsley, garlic, red chillis, cumin and onions – sound familiar? – the falafel, while sounding middle eastern, is so familiar, once you get to know it.
Indians – as a group, having raised in a culture rooted in its traditions, are generally apprehensive about trying foods outside their native cuisine. While that is largely and rapidly changing now as the country and its people opens itself willingly to the outside world, the larger majority of the population still remains closed. And when they travel, they feel locked in, deprived of their regular spice palette, and tend to hate all other cuisines unequivocally.
I think that finding these common culinary denominators will help ease their minds and help open them up to trying new things.
This Falafel is a baked version, which means that you can probably bake the South Indian Masala Vada too. A revelation, if you ask me, finding out that a classic deep-fried breakfast/snack food has the potential to be actually healthy.
And it’s so simple too! Just grind all the ingredients, roast, bake!
Baked Falafel with Cilantro Sauce
- Prep Time:15m
- Cook Time:15m
- Total Time:3h 30m
- Serves: 3
- Yield: 11 pieces
Ingredients
- 1 c soaked (uncooked) chickpeas (channa)
- 1/2 small onion
- a handful of cilantro/fresh coriander
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1 -2 dry red chillis
- 1/2 tsp. cumin seeds
- 3 tbsp. all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp. baking powder
- Salt to taste
- About 1tsp oil
Instructions
- In a food processor, add the chickpeas, onion, coriander, garlic, chillis, cumin and salt. Pulse until you get a coarse batter.
- Mix in the flour and baking powder.
- Cover and refrigerate for a few hours.
- Use a tablespoon measure to divide the batter into about 11 balls.
- Place each ball in your palm and press lightly using your fingers to flatten it just slightly.
- Preheat oven to 400°F/204°C.
- Heat a cast iron pan (or any regular pan) with a light coating of oil.
- Place the flattened balls in the pan and roast it on both sides until golden brown.
- Transfer the cast iron pan into the oven directly and let the falafel bake for 15 minutes. If you used a non-cast iron pan, then transfer the roasted balls to a baking tray lined with foil, and then bake for 15 minutes.
Falafel, while good enough on its own, has the potential to becoming a complete meal, if served stuffed inside a Pita bread pocket, or naan or rotis, with a drizzle of sauce (usually tahini-based) and fresh vegetables like tomato, onion, bell peppers, lettuce, cilantro/parsley.
Spicy Cilantro Yogurt Sauce
Ingredients
Instructions
Sukanti says
WHat can i use to substitute All purpose flour ?
Tina Dawson says
All-purpose flour is just maida. If you don’t want to use it, just omit it from the recipe, squeezing out excess liquid with your fingers or muslin cloth. Otherwise, you can add a little semolina, bulgur wheat or just more chickpeas to increase the binding and absorbing the liquid from onions and cilantro. But essentially, it can be omitted without altering the taste or texture. Good luck!
Tina Dawson says
All-purpose flour is just maida. If you don’t want to use it, just omit it from the recipe, squeezing out excess liquid with your fingers or muslin cloth. Otherwise, you can add a little semolina, bulgur wheat or just more chickpeas to increase the binding and absorbing the liquid from onions and cilantro. But essentially, it can be omitted without altering the taste or texture. Good luck!