<p>I really like felafel and have tried to make it several times. It tastes good but always falls apart. Does anyone have a recipe that works?</p>
<p>I buy mine frozen and “make” it in the oven or toaster oven. Success every time!</p>
<p>My daughter likes the falafel mix. She has made it from scratch before. I haven’t tried it yet, but will since she left one box of the mix at home. The cans of bean puree also makes a creamier hummus, more like that in restaurants, if you’re a hummus fan too.</p>
<p>Yes, I’m going to make hummus too. I’ve never tried the bean puree or the frozen felafel–I’ll look for them in our supermarket. We don’t have much of a Middle Eastern population here, so we can get some products but not everything. Thanks for suggestions!</p>
<p>Maybe the problem with your falafel is that you really have to let the mixture sit for awhile – at least 20-30 minutes – before frying it. The chickpea meal has to absorb the liquid. (I assume you are using some kind of mix. I’ve never tried to make falafel balls from scratch.)</p>
<p>Tahini sauce for the falafel is really easy. Buy a can of sesame paste. To make tahini, you add garlic, salt, pepper, lemon juice, paprika, parseley, and a little water (or omit any of the foregoing) to taste and desired consistency.</p>
<p>Hummus: I use canned (if I’m lazy, or making small quantities) or boiled chickpeas, and add essentially the same ingredients you would use for tahini above (including the sesame paste), except water, and process in a food processor.</p>
<p>A friend who was a superb cook once told me that the secret to hummus (hers was wonderful) was to remove all the papery skins from the chickpeas. I cannot say that I’ve tried this.</p>
<p>Usually this is a result of using canned chickpeas instead of soaking them fresh or improper grind. The grind needs to be just right to stick together but still have the correct falafel texture. Overground falafel still tastes delicious, but is kind of weird.</p>
<p>A lot of places around here add egg whites to help everything stick together. Only disadvantage of this method is that your falafel is no longer vegan.</p>
<p>Afficianados of felafel tell me that it’s the water from the Middle East that makes the difference. </p>
<p>Now what on earth can you do with that info, Bethie? Go to a fresh spring in Vermont?</p>
<p>OK, if you’re not using a commercial mix for the falafel, before you lovingly remove those papery chickpea skins, or import special water from Galilee, or buy a new grinder that will get you that perfect falafel chickpea grind . . . try a mix. They taste fine to me, really they do. And several of them have pretty good distribution, probably even in Vermont.</p>
<p>No, I haven’t tried a mix–I was trying from scratch, but I was using canned chick peas. I have some dried ones on hand, so maybe I’ll soak them tonight and cook them tomorrow–and then remove the paper-y skins. But I’m going to look for frozen ones too. I know I can find a mix. I also like to make my pita bread from scratch and that is REALLY good.</p>