I recently made gluten free falafel at home and discovered they are much simpler than I had imagined. You will probably have most of these ingredients in your store cupboard, namely the key ingredient tinned chickpeas.

In addition to the chickpeas you will need a few herbs and spices, oil, onion, garlic, a little flour and harissa, a red pepper and chili paste. The latter is not essential and I have a substitute option below.

Harissa is the one ingredient you may perhaps not have lying around, but you can buy it in most supermarkets. If you struggle to find it or are not able to head to the shops, you can substitute an extra tsp of olive oil and half a tsp chill powder instead.

Homemade gluten free falafel are delicious warm from the pan – simply serve with a good quality hummous, some salad and a gluten free wrap or pitta for a wholesome, filling lunch.

Equally, you can also make these in advance and freeze them once cooked. Batch cook them and then simply defrost in the microwave when you want to eat them.

Gluten Free Falafel (Makes 12)

Ingredients

  • 240g drained, tinned chickpeas (1 can)
  • A medium red onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • Small bunch fresh coriander (approx 20g)
  • 2 tsp cumin powder
  • 2 tsp coriander powder
  • 1 tsp harissa paste
  • 1 tsp olive oil (plus extra for frying)
  • 2 tbsp plain gluten free flour
  • 1 tsp maldon salt

Method

  1. Pop the chickpeas into a blender and blitz until they turn into a rough paste.
  2. Add the onion, garlic and coriander to the blender and blitz with the chickpeas. There will still be some chunks of onion, which is fine, you simply want the onion to be well-chopped.
  3. Now transfer to a mixing bowl and add the cumin, coriander, harissa, 1 tsp olive oil, flour and salt. Use a wooden spoon or spatula to stir the mixture really well, incorporating those spices through the mixture.
  4. Break the mixture into 12 pieces and shape each piece into a small flat patty shape, each approx 2cm high (see images below). You can pop them in the fridge, on a plate covered with clingfilm, until ready to cook or cook them straight away.
  5. Add some olive oil to non-stick frying pan over a low-medium heat. Add the falafel patties to the pan (you will probably want to cook in two batches of 6, unless you have a giant frying pan!) and allow to cook for 7-10 minutes on each side. Check and flip them regularly to ensure they don’t overly brown and turn the heat down if needed.
  6. Serve with hummous, gluten free pitta/wrap and salad for a delicious gluten free lunch!

If you enjoyed this gluten free falafel recipe, why not try one of my other gluten free mezze-style recipes:

Bon appetit! x