RecipesRecipe Friday: Chick-In Falafel
Marilyn HawkesJanuary 19, 2018
Have you ever wondered what’s in a falafel? For the uninitiated, falafel is a traditional Middle Eastern food made from garbanzo beans and spices, rolled into a ball and fried in oil until they become crunchy and golden brown. Typically, they’re stuffed in pita or served with hummus.
Yariv Elazar, owner of Chick-In, a popular student eatery located on Arizona State University’s Tempe campus, makes about 200 servings of authentic Israeli falafel from scratch every day. He’s sharing the recipe for his vegan and gluten-free falafel, but cautions that aside from the garbanzo beans, most everything else will depend on your taste buds. If you like garlic, add more garlic; and if you swoon for cilantro, double down. What really matters? “The freshness of the ingredients is the key to a good falafel,” he says.