Baked Oats Falafel
- 15 min prep
- 45 min
- Bake
- Serves 4
- 265 kcal
- 9.1 g protein
Herby chickpea falafel bound with oat flour and baked, not fried. Crisp outside, soft and green inside, and good in a pita, a bowl or straight off the tray.
Ingredients
- ½ cup (45 g) rolled oats
- 1½ cups (250 g) boiled chickpeas, drained and patted very dry
- 1 small onion (60 g), roughly chopped
- 4 cloves garlic (12 g)
- 1 cup loosely packed coriander leaves and tender stems (20 g)
- 2 tbsp mint leaves (4 g)
- 1 green chilli (5 g)
- 2 tbsp (30 g) tahini
- 1 tbsp (15 ml) lemon juice
- 2 tsp cumin powder, 1 tsp coriander powder, ½ tsp black pepper
- ½ tsp (2 g) baking powder
- Salt, to taste (about ¾ tsp)
- 2 tbsp (27 ml) olive oil, to brush the discs
Method
- 1Heat the oven to 210°C and line a baking tray with baking paper. Grind the oats in a dry mixer jar to a fine flour and set aside.
- 2Pulse the onion, garlic, coriander, mint and green chilli in the jar until finely minced, scraping down once.
- 3Add the chickpeas, tahini, lemon juice, spices, baking powder and salt. Pulse in short bursts until it looks like coarse wet sand that clumps when pressed. Stop before it turns to hummus.
- 4Add the oat flour and pulse 3 or 4 times just to combine. Rest the mixture 5 minutes.
- 5Scoop level tablespoons, roll into balls and press each into a thick disc about 4 cm wide. You should get 16. Arrange on the tray with space between them.
- 6Brush the tops with half the oil and bake 14 to 15 minutes until golden underneath.
- 7Flip, brush with the remaining oil and bake another 10 minutes until both sides are crisp and deep golden. Cool 5 minutes before serving; they firm up as they rest.
Notes from the Department
- Dry chickpeas mean crisp falafel. Spread them on a kitchen towel for 10 minutes before blending.
- Discs bake more evenly than balls. Flatten them.
- If the mix is too soft to shape, add 1 to 2 tbsp more oat flour and rest it again.
Nutrition per serving
- Energy
- 265 kcal
- Protein
- 9.1 g
- Carbohydrate
- 31 g
- Fat
- 13 g
- Fibre
- 7.7 g
- Sugars
- 4.1 g
Why this works
Traditional falafel uses soaked raw chickpeas that bind on their own once fried. Boiled chickpeas are softer and wetter, so they need help. Oat flour is the help: it absorbs the extra moisture and sets in the oven, giving a falafel that holds its shape with a crisp shell and a soft, herb-green centre. Tahini adds richness that frying would otherwise provide.
Air fryer method
Brush or spray the discs with oil and air fry at 190°C for 12 to 14 minutes, flipping halfway, in a single layer. They come out slightly crisper than oven-baked ones.
Swaps
Use parsley instead of coriander for a more classic flavour, or half and half. Roasted sesame paste can be replaced with a spoon of peanut butter in a pinch, though the flavour shifts. Ready oat flour works in place of grinding your own. The recipe is naturally gluten-free when made with certified gluten-free oats; there is no wheat in it. Check the baking powder label too, as a few brands add wheat starch.
What to serve with it
Stuff into warm pita or whole wheat roti with cucumber, tomato, onion and a tahini-lemon drizzle. Or build a bowl with hummus, salad, pickled onions and oat tabbouleh. With mint chutney it doubles as a tea-time snack, approved by the Ministry for both purposes.
Storage
Baked falafel keeps 4 days in the fridge and freezes for 2 months. Reheat in the oven or air fryer at 180°C for 6 to 8 minutes so they crisp again; the microwave makes them soft.
Questions people ask
- Why use oats in falafel?
- Boiled chickpeas are too moist to bind by themselves. Oat flour soaks up that moisture and sets during baking, so the falafel holds together without egg or maida.
- Can I make oats falafel without a food processor?
- Yes. Mash the chickpeas with a fork or masher, chop the herbs, onion and garlic very finely, and use ready oat flour. The texture is a little coarser but holds fine.
- How do I stop baked falafel from being dry?
- Do not skip the tahini and oil, keep the discs about 1.5 cm thick, and pull them out once both sides are deep golden. Serve with a sauce.
Inspired by A Couple Cooks. Method, notes and photograph by the Ministry of Oats.
More from the Department
- Savoury · Middle Eastern · 60 min
Oat Tabbouleh
The Lebanese herb salad with toasted steel-cut oats standing in for bulgur. Lots of parsley and mint, crunchy cucumber and tomato, and a sharp lemon dressing.
- Breakfast · Middle Eastern · 13 min
Date and Tahini Oat Porridge
Porridge sweetened only with dates that melt into the milk as it cooks, then finished with a ribbon of tahini and toasted sesame. Rich, nutty, no sugar added.
- Savoury · Continental · 25 min
Oats Vegetable Soup
A garlicky vegetable soup that gets its body from a handful of oats instead of cornflour or cream. Twenty minutes, one pot, and properly filling.
- Savoury · Continental · 45 min
Oats Pizza Base
A no-yeast pizza base made from oat flour and curd, ready to top in ten minutes. Pre-baked so it stays crisp under a quick tomato sauce, vegetables and mozzarella.
- Savoury · Asian · 45 min
Oats Vegetable Manchurian
Vegetable manchurian balls bound with oats and pan-cooked in an appe pan, then tossed in a glossy garlic, soy and chilli gravy. No deep-frying.
- Savoury · North Indian · 50 min
Masala Oats Khichdi
Rolled oats and yellow moong dal cooked soft with vegetables, cumin and a ghee tadka. One pot, three whistles, about 30 minutes at the stove.