Danny Sweis
Ragadan Restaurant
4409 N. Broadway, Chicago, Illinois 60640
(773)654-1788
Recipe:
12-medium to large cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped
1/2 medium sized white onion, chopped
1/4 serrano chili washed, and seeds removed. Chop serrano into small chunks, If you don’t like spice do not add serrano
1/3-cup chopped curly parsley
1-tablespoon ground coriander
3/4-tablespoon ground cumin
1-teaspoon dry oregano
2-teaspoon salt
pinch of pepper
pinch of chili flakes, if you like it hotter and a couple more pinches
pinch of sugar
1/4-teaspoon baking soda
1-tablespoon all-purpose flour
Cooking the Falafel
1 each, 5qt Heavy bottomed pot, (you need a pot taller than it is wide so you can deep fry safely)
2.5-quart of canola oil, or your preference of cooking oil. Do not use olive oil. The Smaller the pot you use the less oil you will need, just ensure the pot is taller than it is wide. You will need 2-3 inches of cooking oil in your pot to fry the falafels properly.
1 large flat plate with paper towels for resting the falafels after frying.
Let falafels rest for 30 seconds after frying and before eating.
Step 1, Ingredients
2-cups Dry Garbanzo Beans
5-cup Water
Step 1 Instructions, Soaking the Garbanzo Beans
Wash garbanzo beans thoroughly with lukewarm water for 20-30 seconds. Drain water from garbanzo beans and then add 2.5 quarts of cold water to the cleaned garbanzo beans. Store beans in the refrigerator for 24 hours. Do not soak the garbanzo beans for more than 48 hours. After 24 hours drain the water from the container. You can use the beans immediately or hold them in your refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Step 2, grinding and seasoning the garbanzo;
Prepare the stand mixer with the grinder attachments, or food processor if you are not grinding the beans.
Place large bowl under grinder to catch the ground garbanzo beans.
Start feeding the garbanzo beans into the grinder, mix in the parsley, onions, garlic, and serrano with the beans. This will ensure your grinder doesn’t get jammed up with the parsley. Parsley has a tendency to jam up the grinding plate if it’s fed alone into the grinder.
When you have ground all the beans, parsley and veggies, grind them a second time. By the end of the process, you will have ground the falafel mix twice. This will ensure a smooth texture and even cooking.
After grinding the garbanzos, add the dry seasonings.
Store the falafel mix in an airtight container for one-hour before using. The falafel mix needs time for the flavors to bloom, this will ensure a stronger spice flavor.
Step 3, cooking;
In your heavy bottomed pot heat up the cooking oil to 350 degrees.
When the oil has reached 350 degrees you can begin to fry the falafels.
To form the falafel make small balls with your hands, the size will roughly be 1.5 inch in diameter. Flatten the balls slightly so they are not completely round. If the falafel balls are too big, they will take too long to cook and not cook properly.
Gently place the falafel balls into the cooking oil, do not drop them in the oil it may splash hot oil out of the pot. Depending on the size of the pot, do not over fill the pot with too many falafels. There should be twice as much oil as there is falafels. If you add too many falafel balls the temperature of the oil will drop and the falafel will not cook properly.
Cook the falafels for 3-4 minutes until dark golden brown or to an internal temperature of 180 degrees.
