Falafel

K

Kunmui

New member
Got any falafel fans, here? I love the damn things.

I made some from a box mix, last night. Better'n a poke in the eye
with a sharp stick, but not by much. I need to make some real one's
from scratch. I plan on following DedeMed's recipe:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NWBh5-CfPHk&feature=related

I can get the dried chickpeas, but not the fava beans. Anyone know an
online source, preferrably already peeled? I need an FP, too. What
did ppl use b4 FPs? Meat grinders? I no longer have one of those,
either. No problem. I'll work on getting and FP while looking for
the favas.

I did discover one thing about cooking falafels, last night. I can
now tell if I have too much water in the mix. The oil becomes very
bubbly and foamy. Add only enough water to make the falafels hold
tegether and not foam during frying. Also, the falafels fall apart
while frying, if too moist.

Making two-spoon quenelles is a great technique. Makes them kinda
flatish for pan frying in as little as 1/2" of oil. I'd make 4
quenelles and place them on my pastry scraper, then when ready, slide
them off the scraper into the hot oil. Worked great and doing 4 at a
time didn't over cool the oil. Another trick, one I now use
constantly, is a spray bottle of water, which I keep ready always.
Great for adding that tblsp or tsp of water to dry doughs while
working it.

nb
 
On 3/1/2011 10:30 AM, notbob wrote:

Fresh fava beans are ridiculously expensive since most of what you are
buying is pod. Dried ones, especially peeled, aren't too great either:

Shopping results for dried fava beans
Don Enrique Habas Peladas Dried Fava Beans, 8-Ounce Bags (Pack of 12)
$30.29 - Amazon.com
Goya Dry Peeled Fava Beans - 16 oz.
$65.85 - Foodservicedirect.com
Habas (Peeled Fava Beans), Bulk, 16 oz
$8.94 - AmericanSpice.com


--


James Silverton, Potomac

"Not": obvious change in "Reply To"
 
On Mar 1, 7:30?am, notbob wrote:
Have you checked the frozen veggies section at your usual grocery
store? I buy them all the time at my Stater Bros. grocer for the huge
Sink Salad I make for my office Marines (it's a green salad, and the
"sink" name comes about because I make so much that the perfect *bowl*
big enough to toss it in is the kitchen sink). I only get the peeled
beans when I'm in a hurry, but I like to peel the two big bags of them
myself most times.
....Picky
 
On Mar 1, 7:30?am, notbob wrote:

People used mortar and pestle. I bought a lovely heavy one on closeout
from Crate and Barrel one year -- I think it was meant for making
guacamole "tableside" for parties. I use it to mash chillies, garlic,
ginger, and whole spices for curries.
 
notbob wrote:

Perhaps grow them yourself. I can't imagine the beans are difficult to
grow, certainly other varieties of bean are very easy to grow nearly
everywhere.
 
On 3/1/2011 9:43 AM, James Silverton wrote:
Not that much difference in taste, at least to me, between favas and
limas. I have made falafel for years with limas.
 
On 2011-03-01, George Shirley wrote:


Now, that's a practical idea. Limas are dirt cheap, too.

From what I've read, falafel is extremely popular with most ME
cultures. I've also read one culture, jewish, prefer chickpeas while
the Islamic cultures prefer favas, or maybe it's the other way around.
I'll probably try an all chickpea version. It's only DedeMed who I've
heard of combining them. Hell, I'll try all options, as long as I can
add my own fresh parsely and spices.

The lima bean thing sounds like a great idea. I can't tell the diff,
either.

nb
 
On 3/1/2011 12:59 PM, notbob wrote:
Fava beans do taste a bit different from limas but they aren't worth the
massive price difference. I'm told frozen favas exist but I've never
been able to find them. I have looked in Fresh Fields as others have
advised.

--


James Silverton, Potomac

"Not": obvious change in "Reply To"
 
notbob wrote:


Raises hand




Phipps ranch has dried favas, but the peeled ones are presently listed
as "out of stock".


Food mills. For the most part any historical recipe that presently uses a
food processor previously used a food mill.

Another option, besides falafel mix or making from scratch, is
frozen falafel which is usually from Egypt. You thaw it out and it
is ready to fry. Definitely better than the mixes.


Steve
 
On 1 Mar 2011 15:30:55 GMT, notbob wrote:


I found frozen favas in a Mexican grocery store. Do you know of any?

You're such a guy. I tell you and tell you that you need a FP, but NO
you didn't. All of a sudden you decide you want to make falafel, so a
FP is suddenly at the top of the list. And men say that women are
fickle. LOL! No way, Jose. We're practical, men are fickle.

--

Today's mighty oak is just yesterday's nut that held its ground.
 
On Tue, 1 Mar 2011 07:48:03 -0800 (PST), JeanineAlyse
wrote:


I did that once and said never again. It's a two step process that
I'm not willing to repeat.

--

Today's mighty oak is just yesterday's nut that held its ground.
 
notbob wrote:

I first learned of falafel from a friend who later emigrated to Israel.
His were made with garbanzos/chickpeas. Maybe with lima beans it would
be technically called "falalel inspired".
 
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