Chickpea Falafel Bites

I've made these delightful little bites a few times now, and they are certainly worth the fuss, as they are quite filling, and may be spiced up to suit your taste. Each time I've made them, the dough was quite soft, and I was rather nervous they would not hold together, but with some careful handling of the dough, and well greased palms, these little bites hold together remarkable well when baked, so don't be tempted to add too much chickpea flour, as you do want a dough that is soft. Chilling the mixture in the fridge for at least a few hours is recommended, or even overnight if you have the time. I also highly recommend the tahini dip, which complements the flavors present in the falafel bites, so named because they remind me of falafel.

I served these as part of an appetizer plate that really was a tapas meal, as everything was quite filling, and there were quite a few nibbles to choose from, including baked olive cheese balls, some quinoa and millet patties, and a selection of not-so-savory bites for dessert.

Chickpea Falafel Bites

Recipe by Lisa Turner
Published on January 7, 2020

Baked spiced chickpea falafel-style bites served with a sriracha tahini sauce

Preparation: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 25 minutes

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Falafel bites:

1 cup dried chickpeas (2 14 oz cans or 3 cups cooked)
1 shallot, minced
2 hot red or green chilies, seeded and minced
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne
1 teaspoon tamari (soy) sauce
4 tablespoons reserved chickpea cooking liquid (aquafaba)
2 tablespoons sesame oil
1 teaspoon sea salt, or to taste
fresh ground black pepper, to taste
chickpea flour (besan) as needed

Tahini dip:

1/2 cup tahini
1 to 2 tablespoons sriracha sauce, or to taste
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1 - 2 teaspoons tamari (soy) sauce
2 tablespoons sesame oil, or as needed
sprinkle of dried red chili flakes
sea salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste

Instructions:

Rinse the chickpeas and soak in several inches of water for 8 hours or overnight. Drain and rinse, then transfer to a medium saucepan and cover with fresh water. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until buttery soft — 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Drain, reserving 4 tablespoons of the cooking liquid.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and preheat an oven to 400°.
Combine the cooked chickpeas, shallot, chilies, paprika, cumin, coriander, cayenne, tamari, reserved chickpea cooking liquid and sesame oil in a food processor. Process until the ingredients are well combined . Transfer to a large bowl, add salt and pepper, and stir in some chickpea flour if the mixture seems too moist or a little more sesame oil or reserved chickpea cooking liquid if too dry. Shape the mixture into small 1 1/2 inch balls and transfer to the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 25 minutes, gently turning part way through the baking time so that they brown more fairly evenly.
While the falafel bites are cooking, make the dip. In a medium bowl, whisk together the tahini, sriracha sauce, nutritional yeast, fresh lemon juice, tamari, sesame oil, dried red chili flakes, and salt and black pepper to taste. You want the sauce to be fairly thick as you want to pour it over the falafel bites or dip the bites into the sauce, so adjust to achieve your desired consistency, either by adding a bit more tahini, or thinning it out by whisking in a bit more oil or water.

Makes 20 bites