Lebanese Green Falafels (4 people)

(1 hour)

We think one of the reasons that these absolutely delicious and juicy falafels are that they are made with lentils, potato and bulgur instead of chickpeas, which keeps them from going dry and also really adds to their flavour. They are fast and easy to make, healthy and even cheap. Make sure that you use plenty of oil for frying to keep them from sticking and breaking apart.

The falafels can be eaten in a sandwich or with flatbreads babaganoush/link and our cucumber-mint-coriander salad/link. Our beloved harissa/link also goes really well together with this. (Tip: you can make an extra big portion and freeze any number of uncooked falafels. When cooking them just take them out of the freezer 20 min before cooking to allow them to defrost.)

Ingredients:

75 g bulgur (boiled in 10 cl water for 15 min)

2 medium size potatoes (peeled, chopped and boiled for 8 minutes, then cooled and drained)

125 g green lentils (boiled in plenty of water until nice and tender, then cooled and drained)

75 g of breadcrumbs

A bundle of parsley, chopped

A bundle of mint, chopped

1 medium sized onion, chopped

1 tsp. ground cumin

½ tsp. ground black pepper

½ tsp. paprika

¼ tsp. ground coriander

¼ tsp. ground cloves

a small pinch of nutmeg

1 tsp. of plain flour to bind

Tbsp. salt

Put all ingredients in a big bowl with a powerful hand blender (otherwise you have to get your hands dirty!) puree the potatoes, lentils and bulgur. Then add all the rest of the ingredients. The mix will get quite thick and not all hand mixers are powerful enough to go through it long enough. When thoroughly mixed, heat plenty of olive oil in a large skillet pan. Have a small bowl of lukewarm water next to you. Use two tablespoons to shape the falafels. First dip the spoons in the water, then scoop one tablespoon shaped falafel and drop it in the oil to fry on both/all sides until really crispy and dark golden/brown. Do not move the falafels around too much in the pan or they will stick and then fall apart. When cooked transfer to a tray with greaseproof paper and remove excess oil with tissue paper. Sprinkle with a little salt to keep crispy.

Enjoy!