This vegan baked falafel recipe is packed with flavor! Along with a delicious tahini sauce and tabbouleh salad, this recipe is a nutritious and healthy vegan dinner.
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Baking Vegan Falafel: Getting it Crispy
Falafel is typically either pan fried or deep fried but this recipe creates a delicious and crispy vegan baked falafel!
One major issue with baking falafel is they tend to dry out. This is why we’re adding a bit of heart healthy olive oil into the falafel mix and then coating the outside of the falafel patties with a bit of oil as well.
I use an oil spray (either 100% olive oil or avocado oil) to coat the outside of the falafel. The oil not only keeps the falafels moist inside, but allows the outside to get nice and crispy.
Please note that when flipping the falafel halfway through baking, and when they first come out of the oven, the patties are really soft. Be careful when flipping them and be sure to allow the baked falafel patties to cool for at least a few minutes before serving (they firm up as they cool down).
The Best Vegan Falafel Sauce with Tahini
A falafel dinner just wouldn’t be complete without a tasty sauce and nothing pairs better with falafel than a delicious, creamy tahini sauce.
Tahini is a great way to add healthy fats and some plant-based protein to a meal, along with some other great nutrients like zinc and calcium!
Tahini tends to be a slightly bitter so I like to balance out the flavour of my tahini sauce for falafel with a bit of maple syrup.
Tahini sauces can also be quite thick so add as much water as needed to reach your desired consistency. The tahini sauce can be stored in the fridge for up to a week and it thickens more as it cools down (so if you add too much water to thin it out, put it in the fridge and it will thicken back up a bit).
Vegan Tabbouleh Recipe
I love adding the fresh flavors of tabbouleh to falafel. For this recipe, I’ve kept the tabbouleh salad fairly simple as there are already a few components going on in this recipe.
If you’re looking for added carbohydrates and/ or fibre, adding some cooked quinoa to the tabbouleh is a great way to make an even more filling and nutritious meal!
How to Serve Vegan Falafel
There are countless ways to serve a vegan baked falafel recipe. I like to simply pile up a plate of tabbouleh salad and falafel then drizzle over a nice amount of the tahini sauce.
If you want, this baked falafel can easily be served in a pita bread wrap. Or, you can get creative and add any number of other ingredients to make a delicious meal. Check out my list of ideas for how to serve a falafel platter.
Falafel Meal Prep
Baked falafel with tabbouleh and tahini sauce is a simple recipe to prepare and a great idea for meal prep. You could easily make a double batch and portion out the extra for lunch or dinner meals for a few days!
If you do make a double batch, only put one can of chickpeas in the food processor at a time. Maybe it’s just my food processor, but if I put too many chickpeas in at once it becomes challenging to get a good texture. Some of the chickpeas will still be whole, while others have turned to mush. One can at a time works really well.
This is a quick meal to make, but if you are looking for an even faster meal that is equally tasty, check out my falafel plate recipe! Essentially the falafel plate recipe is a deconstructed falafel, so you save the time of blending the chickpeas up, and forming patties. Making a falafel plate is also perfect for anyone who doesn’t have a food processor!
I hope you enjoy this recipe and if you share your creations on social media, be sure to tag me @lettucevegout because I’d love to see what you make!!
Vegan Baked Falafel with Tahini Sauce and Tabbouleh
Equipment
- Food processor
- Can Opener
- Cutting Board
- Knife
Ingredients
Falafel
- 1 19 oz can chickpeas rinsed and drained
- 1 C parsley
- 3 cloves garlic minced/ crushed
- ¼ onion chopped (about 1/3 C)
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 ½ tsp ground coriander
- ½ tsp ground cumin
- 1/8 tsp black pepper
- 2 tbsp ground flaxseed2
- 1 1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 ½ tbsp almond flour (aka ground almonds)
- ½ tsp baking powder
- Oil spray
Tabbouleh
- 2 C parsley chopped (about 1 ½ C when chopped)
- 1 Roma tomato seeded and chopped (about 2/3 C)
- 2/3 C cucumber diced
- ¼ onion finely minced (about 1/3 C)
- 3 tsp lemon zest
- 2 tsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- Salt to taste
Tahini sauce
- 1/3 C tahini
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 tbsp water or more if you like a thinner sauce
- Salt to taste
Instructions
Falafel
- Place chickpeas into a food processor with the parsley, minced garlic, chopped onion, lemon zest, lemon juice, salt, coriander, cumin and pepper.
- Pulse until the mixture is well combined but still has some texture.
- Place mixture into bowl and stir in flax seeds, olive oil, ground almond, and baking powder.
- Form falafel using a ¼ C measuring cup into 8 patties. Lightly spray a parchment or silicon mat lined baking tray with oil. Place the falafel patties onto the baking tray, spray the tops with oil.
- Bake at 350 °F for 12 minutes, flip, then bake for another 12 minutes. Both sides should be golden brown. Let sit and cool for 10 minutes (very important to let them cool before handling so they don’t fall apart).
Tabbouleh
- Chop the parsley, tomato and onion then stir in lemon zest, lemon juice, olive oil and salt to taste.
Tahini sauce
- Whisk together the tahini, lemon juice, vinegar, maple syrup, salt and water. I like to use a jar to shake the ingredients together.
Notes
Nutrition
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This is an updated post: Original post date April 2017.
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