Chickpea Falafel Burger (Vegan)

This veggie falafel burger recipe is based on the classic Middle Eastern Falafel sandwich but turned into a burger! The falafel patties are made with very simple ingredients, mainly chickpeas, and parsley.

We are spending a couple of weeks away at my Mother’s summer house. I love the countryside, and being surrounded by nature. But with this heatwave, I really don’t feel like spending much time in the kitchen. We tend to eat more fruit and vegetables when it’s really warm outside, so as you can imagine I’ve been making lots of light salads, vegan dishes and slushies.

One of my favourite recipes to make in the summer is this healthy falafel burger. If you love falafel sandwiches as much as I do, then you’re gonna love this! Falafel sandwiches are usually served in freshly baked pita bread, with hummus and tahini salad. I decided to recreate this sandwich but in a falafel version.

This is also the best falafel recipe that you will find on the internet. Whether you decide to make a falafel burger or falafel patties I can guarantee you that this recipe will become a favourite of yours!

FALAFEL BURGER INGREDIENTS

The ingredients are very simple. You just need to make sure that you soak the dried chickpeas overnight, or at least 3-4 hours beforehand. Or, you could use canned chickpeas of course for convenience and to save time.

To make these falafel patties, you will need:

Chickpeas

Fresh parsley

Onion

Garlic

Lemon juice

Self-raising flour

Cumin

Salt

Black pepper

And finally, Mazola corn oil (for frying) – I like to use Mazola corn oil because it’s high quality 100% pure corn oil

HOW TO MAKE FALAFEL PATTIES

In a food processor, pulse all of the ingredients together (except for the oil!) until you get a well-combined mixture (this should take 4-5 minutes). The mixture will be green in colour as this recipe uses a lot of parsley.

The falafel mixture will be a little bit sticky, I just use a spoon to scoop out the mixture (directly into the frying pan) and shape the patties. If the mixture is way too wet, just add a little bit of more flour (but not too much as you don’t want a doughy texture).

Heat 1-2 tbsp of Mazola corn oil in a frying pan, then drop the falafel patties into the pan using a spoon to form discs. These falafel patties are shallow fried as it’s a healthier way of cooking. However, the original Middle Eastern recipe calls for deep frying the falafel balls to make sure that the outside is super crispy and crunchy.

I found that shallow frying these falafel burger patties works perfectly fine, I just had to drop a little bit of hot oil to the sides of the patties while they’re being fried with a spoon to make sure that the texture of the falafels is even from all sides (as the patties are quite thick). You can skip this step, and just fry the falafels from the bottom until they’re browned then gently flip them to brown the other side.

The falafel patties will stay green from the inside, and that’s perfectly fine as this is how they should be.

MAZOLA CORN OIL

As I mentioned before, to fry these falafel patties I’ve used Mazola corn oil. It’s a brand that I’ve been using for a very long time because of its high-quality. Mazola corn oil has a subtle taste, only extracted ‘at its peak’. It’s high in polyunsaturated Omega 6, and a rich, natural source of plant sterols which have been proven to lower cholesterol.

This oil is perfect for roasting/basting, sautéing and shallow frying.

I love shallow frying and make these oven baked fries all the time (they’re shallow fried with Mazola corn oil). I also use Mazola corn oil to bake desserts because of the neutral taste of the oil which makes it perfect for dessert making.

HOW TO BUILD THE FALAFEL BURGER

So I’ve provided you with a delicious and easy falafel recipe, and after you make it you will have to assemble the burger. Of course, you could add smashed avocado, tomato slices and whatever your heart desires. But as this is a classic falafel sandwich turned into a burger I’ve used the traditional toppings.

I normally use burger bread buns, then spread a layer of homemade classic hummus (you could also use avocado hummus, it’s seriously good!), followed by the falafel burger patty, and finally about 2 tbsp of tomato cucumber tahini salad. Some people refer to this tahini salad as “falafel sauce”.

WHAT TO SERVE FALAFEL BURGERS WITH

I always thought that burgers + chips is the best combination! So I’ve served these burgers with some homemade oven baked fries, and more of the tomato cucumber tahini salad on the side. We also made some homemade lemonade, and the kids loved that!

FREEZE AND REHEAT FALAFEL

Falafel burgers and falafel balls freeze very well. So you could make a batch of these falafels, fry them, let them completely cool then pop them in the freezer to consume later. Just make sure that they’re stored in a freezer-suitable container that is sealed.

Fried falafel can stay in the freezer for up to 1 month. Reheat in the oven at 180c until they’re warmed through and enjoy!

If you make these falafel burgers, please don’t forget to rate this recipe and share a picture on social media. Tag #LittleSunnyKitchen in your posts as I would really love to see what you make! Thank you for supporting Little Sunny Kitchen, so I can keep sharing my tasty recipes with you for free.

Chickpea Falafel Burger

This veggie falafel burger recipe is based on the classic Middle Eastern Falafel sandwich recipe but in a burger version!

5 from 14 votes

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Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Middle Eastern

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

Servings: 4 burgers

Calories: 203kcal

Author: Diana

Ingredients

• 250 grams chickpeas soaked for at least 8 hours
• 50 grams parsley chopped
• 1 onion red or white
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 tbsp self-raising flour or chickpea flour
• 1/2 lemon juiced
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp Mazola corn oil
• 4 burger bread buns

Instructions

• In a food processor, pulse all of the ingredients together (except for the oil!) until you get a well-combined mixture (this should take 4-5 minutes). The mixture will be green in colour as this recipe uses a lot of parsley.

  The falafel mixture will be a little bit sticky, I just use a spoon to spoon out the mixture into my frying pan and shape the patties. If the mixture is way too wet, just add a little bit of more flour (but not too much as you don't want a doughy texture).
  
• Heat 1-2 tbsp of Mazola corn oil in a frying pan, then drop the falafel patties into the pan using a spoon to form discs.
• Fry until the bottom is browned, then gently flip to the other side and fry until it's browned as well.

Notes

*Nutrition values are calculated per 1 falafel patty without the bread bun.

*You could fry these falafels, and freeze them. Store in a freezer suitable container for up to 1 month. Reheat in the oven before consuming on 180c until the patties are warmed through. 

Nutrition

Calories: 203kcal | Carbohydrates: 37g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 2g | Sodium: 725mg | Potassium: 347mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 1070IU | Vitamin C: 27.1mg | Calcium: 91mg | Iron: 3.8mg

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This post is sponsored by Mazola. Thank you for supporting the brands that make Little Sunny Kitchen happen. All opinions are my own.