Healthy Baked Falafel

Steven

6 years ago

Originating in Egypt about 1000 years ago, the Falafel is the ultimate street food. Traditionally Falafel recipes have them deep-fried and served with pickled vegetables, drizzled with a tzatziki sauce, and wrapped in a flatbread such as my homemade Pita Bread. Spicy and crunchy, my healthy Baked Falafels are an awesome vegan meal (although check whether your tzatziki sauce is vegan), rumored to have been created to act as a meat substitute on Holydays.

Baked Falafel calories? Only 188 calories per serving!

My Healthy Baked Falafel recipe isn’t traditional. Let’s face it, I oven bake falafels because I’m lazy, haha, and I don’t want to clean my kitchen after deep frying a gazillion Falafels, and since they are not deep-fried you’re saving yourself a ridiculous amount of fat, calories, and cholesterol. My healthy, low-fat, low-calorie Falafel recipe not only saves you a ton of clean-up but they are also easier since the falafels all bake at the same time on a sheet tray.

Health Benefits of Oven-Baked Falafels:

Baked Falafel has lower calories and fat. Deep frying falafels may give you a heartier crunch, but it also adds unwanted saturated fat, calories, and cholesterol.
Baking Falafels is easier and less messy! When the sun shines through the kitchen window on my stove and I’m deep-frying something, all I can focus on is that ultra-fine mist of oil that is floating in my kitchen. That mist has to land somewhere, whether in the vent, the counters, or on the windows, guess who has to clean it? Me.
Baked Falafel Bites is one of my favorite things to do with this recipe. Using a tiny scoop, I can make a gazillion bite-size Falafel appetizers in a fraction of the time it would take to fry them.
No need to refrigerate the mixture before baking. With other methods of cooking falafel, the mixture can fall to pieces if it has not been refrigerated for an extended period of time. With baking there is no waiting, you simply bake it until firm, then gently turn once.

One of the drawbacks of making traditional Falafels the deep-fried way is that you need to use dried chickpeas and soak them overnight to reconstitute them. Canned chickpeas do not work if you deep fry Falafels, they contain too much moisture and the falafels fall apart in the oil. Baking Falafels with canned chickpeas is no problem and, they are all ready to go at the same time, rather than frying them in batches.

How to make Baked Falafel?

A food processor is the best and easiest way to make Falafels. You can mash the chickpeas mince everything by hand, but I wouldn’t recommend it. You want the mixture to have a slightly coarse texture, so don’t puree it smooth
Preheat the oven and spray parchment-lined sheet trays with oil
The Falafels take no time to make with the food processor, once the mixture is complete I use a kitchen scoop (ice cream scoop) to form the individual falafels. gently flatten them into a disk shape and bake, turning once after about 30 minutes. If they are still soft, bake a few extra minutes before turning.

What ingredients are in Baked Falafel?

Chickpeas, also known as Garbanzo Beans, Bengal Gram, or Chana. The main ingredient in these low-calorie falafels, they are a good source of carbs, high in protein and fiber, and are a rich source of vitamins and minerals. Canned Chickpeas are the easiest and fastest method. You can use dried chickpeas and soak them overnight, it is not as easy, but a lot of people prefer dry vs canned chickpeas.
Red onion and garlic, give the falafel great flavor and tons of antioxidants
An entire bunch of parsley stems and all. This not only gives the falafel that beautiful green color but adds a tremendous amount of flavor as well.
Flour and Olive Oil. The flour helps to bind the ingredients and the oil keeps the falafel moist.
Spices! One of the huge benefits of baking falafels vs frying falafels is the smell. The mix of spices is so fragrant, it will make your mouth water in anticipation of the meal.

Rinse and Cook Canned Chickpeas Prior to Baking Falafels

I always boil chickpeas prior to making falafels, hummus, or other recipes with chickpeas in them. Raw or undercooked chickpeas are bad, let me tell you why.

Beans (chickpeas) contain a type of complex sugar called ‘oligosaccharides’. Unfortunately, humans do not have the enzyme in our bodies necessary to digest the type of complex sugar found in chickpeas. Raw or undercooked chickpeas contain a significant amount of this sugar. The short baking time of the falafels is not enough to eliminate this problem.

The result of eating undercooked chickpeas is that the oligosaccharides pass from the stomach into the large intestine undigested where it is consumed by bacteria causing fermentation. The byproduct of fermentation is gas. Canned chickpeas should always be rinsed before making falafels, the liquid in the can is saturated in the complex sugars that cause gas. Therefore, rinsing canned chickpeas will remove a large percentage of the sugars that cause gas.

My Homemade Pita Bread and my Authentic Baba Ganoush are excellent additions to your Baked Falafel!

Try my Healthy Baked Falafels recipe once and I’m sure this will become your preferred method of making falafels. Since they are not deep-fried, they are healthier and lower in both fat and calories. You’re going to love my healthy, low-fat, vegan, good-for-you, and delicious Baked Falafels recipe.

Here’s my Healthy Baked Falafel Recipe: