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These easy vegan falafel burgers have all your favorite Middle Eastern flavors of classic fried falafel, but in burger form! They are perfectly crispy and dark golden brown on the outside with a light, tender, seasoned chickpea center! Sandwich them with fresh veggies in a pretzel bun and drizzle with dill yogurt sauce for the best vegetarian dinner ever!
You’ll Love These
- They’re quick and easy! Yes – the garbanzo beans do require an 8 hour soak. But, how hard is it to pour water over dried beans and then go to bed? Not hard at all! In total, these falafel burgers require less than 10 ingredients and about 10 minutes of active prep time. Easy peasy!
- They’re a great option for meatless Monday! These are a great alternative to those boring frozen veggie burgers you might be pulling out of the freezer for dinner each week. Spice it up with falafel burgers instead!
- The falafel mixture stay fresh in the fridge for up to 7 days! That means you can have freshly fried falafel burgers any night of the week! Just make sure you store them in an airtight container in the fridge – there’s a lot of fresh flavors in these burgers (garlic, onion, cilantro, parsley) which means they’ve got a fresh fragrance too! 🙂
Instructions
Add garbanzo beans to a large bowl. Pour water over them.
Soak for 8-12 hours. They will nearly triple in size.
Drain water from chickpeas.
Add onion, garlic, parsley, cilantro, cumin, baking powder, 3 tablespoons flour, and a couple large pinches of salt and pepper to a food processor.
Pulse until everything is well minced, scraping the sides as needed. Transfer to the large bowl.
Pulse garbanzo beans into two batches in the food processor until well minced, scraping the sides as needed.
Transfer to the large bowl with the herb mixture.
Mix garbanzo beans and herb mixture together. Refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight.
Use hands to gently form a large burger patty.
Carefully flip burger patty onto a large spatula and gently slid the patty into the hot oil.
If you’re having trouble getting the burgers to stick together, please see the notes section below.
Fry falafel burgers in batches for about 3-4 minutes on each side or until the outside is a deep golden brown and very crispy.
Transfer to a paper towel lined platter to soak up any excess grease.
Serve burgers in a pretzel bun garnished with sliced tomato, cucumber, and onion along with crumbled feta and a drizzle of yogurt sauce.
Tips
- Use a heavy bottom pan for frying. The heavy bottom of the pan will help distribute the heat more evenly and maintain temperature throughout the frying process. I like to use either this 3.3 Quarter Enameled Cast Iron Pan or this 4.3 Quart Enameled Cast Iron Dutch Oven for this type of shallow frying.
- If you don’t have a candy or meat thermometer, you can test the heat of the vegetable oil by adding a drop of water to it. If it sizzles immediately the oil is warm enough. BE CAREFUL when doing this – don’t add more than a drop of water as the water will cause the oil to spit and spatter.
- The falafel mixture is going to be very crumbly. This is normal! It will hold together more once formed into a patty but will still fall apart easily so you have to handle the burger patties very gently. Once the patty hits the oil and starts to fry it will hold together very well.
- Use a spatula to finesse the falafel patties it into the hot oil. I find it easiest to form a patty and hold it on one hand, then place a large spatula upside down over the patty and gently flip the patty onto the spatula. Then slide the patty off the spatula and into the hot oil. It’s easiest to make one patty at a time, immediately frying it in the oil after forming it. You can cook 3-4 patties at a time depending on the size of the pan you’re using.
- Your oil may start to get too hot as you cook the falafel in batches. If the falafel is getting dark golden brown on one side in less than 3 minutes, turn the heat down just a bit. Alternately, if the falafel is taking longer than 4 minutes to cook on each side, you may need to turn the heat up a bit.
- If you’re having trouble getting the mixture to stay together, try adding more flour. Depending on the day and how much moisture is coming from the herbs, garlic and onion mixture you might need just the 3 tablespoons, or you might need all 6 tablespoons.
Family Favorites
- Vegan Curry Ramen Noodles
- Vegan Tomato Soup
- Easy Vegan Greek Potato Wedges
- Simple Vegan Tortilla Soup
- Vegan Spicy Black Bean Soup
- Vegan Creamy Wild Rice Soup
Vegan Falafel Burgers
These easy vegan falafel burgers have all your favorite Middle Eastern flavors of classic fried falafel but in burger form! They are perfectly crispy and dark golden brown on the outside with a light, tender, seasoned chickpea center! Sandwich them with fresh veggies in a pretzel bun and drizzle with dill yogurt sauce for the best vegetarian dinner ever!
- Prep Time: 8 hours, 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 8 hours 25 minutes
- Yield: 6–8 burgers 1x
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: Indian/American
Ingredients
- l lb. dried garbanzo beans
- 1 small red onion, roughly chopped
- 6 cloves garlic
- 1 cup loosely packed fresh parsley
- 1 cup loosely packed fresh cilantro
- 4 teaspoons cumin
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 3–6 tablespoons all purpose flour
- Kosher salt
- fresh cracked pepper
- vegetable oil for frying
Serve with:
- dill yogurt sauce
- pretezel buns
- sliced tomato
- sliced cucumber
- sliced onion
- crumbled feta cheese
- waffle fries
Instructions
- Add garbanzo beans to a large bowl. Pour water over the garbanzo beans until they are covered by at least a few inches of water. They will nearly triple in size so you want to make sure there is enough water to cover them as they expand. Soak for 8-12 hours.
- Drain water from chickpeas.
- Add onion, garlic, parsley, cilantro, cumin, baking powder, 3 tablespoons flour, and a couple large pinches of salt and pepper to a food processor.
- Pulse until everything is well minced, scraping the sides as needed. Transfer to the large bowl.
- Add half the soaked garbanzo beans to the food processor and pulse until well minced, scraping the sides as needed. Transfer to the large bowl with the herb mixture.
- Pulse remaining garbanzo beans until well minced and add to the large bowl.
- Mix garbanzo beans and herb mixture together.
- Refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight.
- Heat a large pan over medium heat.
- Add about 2-3 inches of vegetable oil depending on the size of the pan.
- Use hands to gently form a large burger patty.
- Carefully flip burger patty onto a large spatula and gently slid the patty into the hot oil.
- If you’re having trouble getting the burgers to stick together, please see the notes section below.
- Continue making burgers and adding them to the hot oil in batches of 3-4 at a time, depending on the size of your pan.
- Fry falafel burgers for about 3-4 minutes on each side or until the outside is a deep golden brown and very crispy. A slotted spoon or a second spatula is helpful when flipping the falafel in the hot oil.
- Transfer to a paper towel lined platter to soak up any excess grease.
- Serve burgers in a pretzel bun garnished with sliced tomato, cucumber, and onion along with crumbled feta and a drizzle of yogurt sauce.
Notes
Use a heavy bottom pan for frying. The heavy bottom of the pan will help distribute the heat more evenly and maintain temperature throughout the frying process. I like to use either this 3.3 Quarter Enameled Cast Iron Pan or this 4.3 Quart Enameled Cast Iron Dutch Oven for this type of shallow frying.
If you don’t have a candy or meat thermometer, you can test the heat of the vegetable oil by adding a drop of water to it. If it sizzles immediately the oil is warm enough. BE CAREFUL when doing this – don’t add more than a drop of water as the water will cause the oil to spit and spatter.
The falafel mixture is going to be very crumbly. This is normal! It will hold together more once formed into a patty but will still fall apart easily so you have to handle the burger patties very gently. Once the patty hits the oil and starts to fry it will hold together very well.
Use a spatula to finesse the falafel patties it into the hot oil. I find it easiest to form a patty and hold it on one hand, then place a large spatula upside down over the patty and gently flip the patty onto the spatula. Then slide the patty off the spatula and into the hot oil. It’s easiest to make one patty at a time, immediately frying it in the oil after forming it. You can cook 3-4 patties at a time depending on the size of the pan you’re using.
Your oil may start to get too hot as you cook the falafel in batches. If the falafel is getting dark golden brown on one side in less than 3 minutes, turn the heat down just a bit. Alternately, if the falafel is taking longer than 4 minutes to cook on each side, you may need to turn the heat up a bit.
If you’re having trouble getting the mixture to stay together, try adding more flour. Depending on the day and how much moisture is coming from the herbs, garlic and onion mixture you might need just the 3 tablespoons, or you might need all 6 tablespoons.
Keywords: chickpea burgers, healthy falafel burgers, veggie burger
Ivana
Great recipe. My falafel burger was really tasty and the best part is that it is sooo easy to make.
★★★★★
Kylie Lato
Yayyyyy!! So glad that you enjoyed this recipe, Ivana. Thank you for leaving a review! 🙂
Katrina Fowlkes
These are great burgers! I didn’t have cilantro so I only used parsley. I will have both on hand next time. The falafel fried up really nicely. I really didn’t have an issue with them falling apart. I will make these again and using the pretzel bun is a great idea!
★★★★★
Kylie Lato
I am so glad that you hear that!! These burgers are one of our family’s favorites!! Thanks so much for leaving a review, Katrina. 🙂
Leigj
I’d like to make this with canned beans. How much do you think I would use? Thanks.
Kylie Lato
I’d recommend probably 2 (15 oz.) cans. Also – the burgers may not hold together as well with the canned beans. The flavor will still be delicious, but I’d recommend adding an egg (if you’re not trying to keep it vegan) or more flour so that it holds together better. You could also saute or pan fry the burgers instead of shallow frying them if you’re having trouble getting them to hold together. I’d love to hear how it goes if you end up making this recipe!! 🙂
Leigh
Thank you. I will be sure and let you know how it works out 😊
Kylie Lato
Thank you!!
Abbi
I noticed when doubling the recipe, everything doubles except for the amount of chickpeas. Is this accurate? Thanks!
Kylie Lato
Are you using the tool through the recipe card (the 1x, 2x, 3x)? If so, I know it can sometimes be wonky depending on how the ingredients are measured. I would double everything, including the chickpeas. Great question, Abbi!
Chava
Can these be baked instead of fried?
Kylie Lato
Great question, Chava! Because you’re using uncooked chickpeas, the frying process not only helps the patty to stick together but also ensures that the chickpeas are cooked all the way through. I worry that the mixture would not hold together well enough for baking. I do have a pan-fried falafel recipe that uses canned chickpeas. This recipe can be baked instead of fried: https://midwestfoodieblog.com/secret-family-recipe-falafel-and-tzatziki/ Check out the comments of that post for details on baking. Thanks for the question!!