Easy, 10-ingredient, oven baked green falafels! They are very simple to prepare, packed with awesome whole food ingredients and filled with delicious Middle-Eastern flavors. They are super crispy outside, soft and chewy inside. They are amazing to eat on their own, dipped in tahini dressing, or make the perfect addition to any of your Mediterranean or Greek inspired dishes.
What’s in these green falafels?
These green baked falafels are really amazing, and one of my favorite go-to recipe! They are so simple and fun to prepare, packed with healthy whole food plant-based ingredients and full of incredible flavors.
Traditionally, falafel is made from dried chickpeas and fava beans. You can make falafels from scratch using dry chickpeas, the result is amazing for sure, but the soaking and cooking process is pretty long. To make this recipe as simple as possible, I’ve opted for canned chickpeas. They are very good and as nutritious as their dry counterparts.
In addition of chickpeas, I’ve added a secret ingredients: cooked brown rice. While rice is not included into the traditional falafel recipe, I think it adds a very nice texture and even more nutrition. Make sure the rice is not over cooked, tender but still a little firm.
I’ve added fresh spinach and celery stalks. Not only they give this beautiful green color to the falafels, but they are also a great way to include more veggies into your daily diet.
The rest of the ingredients are all about flavor: garlic, onion, preserved lemon, cumin, coriander.
Flavor and baking variations
The good thing with falafels is that you can easily adapt the recipe to create something new. Depending on your taste, seasons and ingredients you have in your fridge, there are many variations available.
First, you can replace the can chickpeas with baked black beans or the brown rice with any cooked grains like millet, spelt or even quinoa. Just make sure to adjust the quantity to get the right consistency. The falafel paste should be thick, firm, shapable, not sticky and with a little texture.
Spinach can be substituted for fresh kale, collard greens, fresh herbs like basil and coriander, or any other greens of your choice.
Regarding the spices, there is no rules! Feel free to add all your favorite spices to these falafels. Consider adding ground turmeric, ginger, smoked paprika or cayenne for a little spiciness.
To keep these falafels very healthy, I tried to bake them in oven. However, you can absolutely fry them for even crispier falafels. To pan-fry your green baked falafels, it’s very simple:
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add enough vegetable oil to generously cover the pan.
- Once the oil is hot, add the falafels. Add only as many falafel as will fit comfortably in the pan at a time!
- Cook for a total of 4-5 minutes, flipping when the underside is deep golden brown.
- Once golden on each side, remove from the pan and place on an absorbent paper towel. Allow to cool down, the falafels continue to firm up.
How to eat these green baked falafels
What is a falafel without a good white sauce? These crispy green baked falafels are already packed with delicious flavors and so are amazing to eat on their own, simply dipped in a creamy sauce. And this very simple tahini dressing perfectly does the job! It is thick, creamy, lightly sweet and sour, ans overall super easy to make. Prepare it while your falafels are baking by simply whisking all the ingredients together. Voilà! Your perfect healthy snack or appetizer is ready.
But if you prefer, these green baked falafels would also make the perfect addition to larger dishes, like Mezze plates or salad bowls with fresh greens and hummus. They basically go very well with any Mediterranean and Greek flavors.
For a quick and delicious lunch on the go, wrap these in a pita bread with lettuce, tomato, onion, roasted veggies, olive and the tahini dressing. So good.
For more easy and healthy snacks and entrées, check the following recipes:
- 1 Bowl Tofu Rice paper rolls GF, the perfect light and tasty lunch
- Coconut tortilla chips GF, super crunchy with a delicious coconut taste
- Green Hummus with Roasted veggies, a must to share … or not!
- Summer Tomato & Peach Galette, all the best flavors of Summer
- Provençal Savory Mug Cake, a delicious snack ready in 5 minutes
I love to see your creations! Don’t forget to tag me @alicepages on your photos on Instagram and give your feedback in the comments below if you make this recipe at home! Your opinion is my best reward.
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Green Baked Falafels
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 12 falafels 1x
- Category: main dish & sides
- Method: Oven
Description
These easy oven-baked rice and spinach falafels are perfect to enjoy for lunch with a side of greens, as a mid-day snack or to share for a healthy and tasty apetizer. They are oil-free and gluten-free.
Ingredients
Green Falafels
- 1 1/2 cup canned chickpeas, rinsed and drained
- 1 cup brown rice, cooked
- 1/2 white onion
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 1/2 cup fresh spinach
- 1/4 cup celery stalk, finely chopped
- 1 wedge of preserved lemon (optional)
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp ground coriander
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/4 tsp salt
Tahini dressing
- 1/4 cup plant yogurt (coconut, almond, soy)
- 1 tbsp tahini
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp maple syrup
- 1 pinch of salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with baking foil.
- Drain and dry the chickpeas. Place in a food processor with the cooked brown rice and pulse to break them into small grains.
- Peel and mince the onion and garlic cloves. Add them to a pan with a teaspoon of vegetable oil (or with a splash of water for an oil-free version), and sauté for about 2 minutes on medium-high heat until translucent.
- Add the sautéed onion and garlic to the food processor together with all the remaining falafels ingredients. Mix or pulse to combine, until a thick and grainy dough forms. Don’t over-mix to keep a little texture. The dough should be sticky enough to be shaped.
- Separate the dough in 12 equal parts and use your hands to form golf ball-sized balls. Arrange the falafels on the foil-lined baking sheet and gently push on top with your hand to flatten them.
- Bake for a total 25 minutes, flipping the falafels once at the halfway point for an even cooking. Remove from oven and allow to cool down.
- Meanwhile, prepare the tahini dressing by mixing all the ingredients in a small bowl until combined. Taste and adjust the seasoning.
- Serve the falafels on their own dipped in the tahini dressing, or wrapped in a pita bread with chopped veggies.
Notes
- The baked falafels can be stored in fridge, layered with parchment paper in an airtight container, for several days. To keep them even longer, you can freeze the falafels: place the baked falafels into a freezer safe container and freese up to 1 month.
- For golden and crispy falafels, drizzle some olive oil on top before baking and cook for 5 minutes more.
Recette version française
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Green Falafels au four
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 12 falafels 1x
- Category: plat principal & entrées
- Method: four
Description
Ces falafels au riz complet et aux épinards, sans huile et sans gluten, sont excellents accompagnés de légumes pour un déjeuner rapide et équilibré, un en-cas sain et gourmand, ou à partager entre amis à l’apéritif.
Ingredients
Green falafels
- 215g de pois-chiches, cuits et égouttés
- 130g de riz complet cuit
- 1/2 oignon blanc
- 30g de pousses d’épinard
- 20g de céleri branche émincé en petits cubes
- 1 quartier de citron confit (optionnel)
- 1 c. à s. de jus de citron
- 1 c. à c. de cumin en poudre
- 1/2 c. à c. de coriandre en poudre
- 1/4 c. à c. de poivre noir
- 1/4 c. à c. de sel
Sauce au tahini
- 60g de yaourt végétal (coco, soja, amande)
- 30g de tahini (crème de sésame)
- 1 c. à s. de jus de citron
- 1/4 c. à c. de sirop d’érable
- 1 pincée de sel
Instructions
- Préchauffer le four à 180°C et chemiser une plaque de papier sulfurisé.
- Placer les pois-chiches préalablement séchés et le riz cuit dans le bol d’un robot mixeur et mixer par à-coups jusqu’à obtenir des petits grains.
- Éplucher et émincer l’ail et l’oignon. Les faire revenir dans une poêle avec un peu d’huile végétale (ou un fond d’eau pour une version sans huile) pendant environ 2 minutes.
- Ajouter l’ail et l’oignon cuits ainsi que le reste des ingrédients dans le robot mixeur. Mixer afin d’incorporer tous les ingrédients. Ne pas trop mixer pour garder un peu de texture. La pâte doit être épaisse et malléable.
- Former environ 12 boules de la taille d’une balle de golf en les roulant entre les mains. Disposer les falafels sur la plaque de cuisson et appuyer légèrement sur le dessus pour les aplatir.
- Cuire pendant 25 minutes en retournant les falafels à mi-cuisson pour qu’ils soient cuit de chaque côté. Retirer du four et laisser complètement refroidir.
- Pendant ce temps, préparer la sauce au tahini en mélangeant tous les ingrédients dans un petit bol.
- Servir les falafels tels quels trempée dans la sauce tahini, ou dans un wrap avec des légumes croquants.
Notes
- Les falafels cuits se conservent plusieurs jours au frais, dans un récipient hermétique, séparés par du papier sulfurisé. Vous pouvez également les congeler et les conserver pendant plus d’un mois.
- Pour des falafels plus croustillants et dorés, arrosez-les d’huile d’olive avant de les enfournez et prolongez la cuisson de 5 minutes.
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