These hearty air fryer falafel patties are proof positive that vegetarian meals can be every bit as satisfying as meaty ones. Between the creamy chickpeas, sweet onion, fresh garlic, ground cumin, and fresh herbs, there’s plenty of bright flavor and texture to go around.
Whether you serve air-fried falafel as an appetizer, tucked into a flatbread, or as part of a mezze spread, these Middle Eastern fritters are sure to be a hit. While my easy method requires very little prep (and no messy deep frying!), note that there is a good amount of inactive time required to soak the chickpeas at the start. For more vegetarian air fryer recipes, try my air fryer buffalo cauliflower, air fryer grilled cheese, and crispy air fryer tofu next!
Ingredients
Dried chickpeas — starting with dried chickpeas (rather than canned chickpeas) ensures the best texture. That said, they will require a minimum of 12 hours of soaking time, so make sure to plan accordingly.
Yellow onion — this is my go-to choice for sweet onions, but you’re welcome to use red onion for a sharper flavor or a shallot instead.
Fresh parsley and cilantro leaves — fresh herbs provide the bright green color and flavorful backbone for falafel. To get more from your groceries, feel free to finely mince the tender stems and add them to the mix—just remember to remove any woody, tough pieces.
Garlic — starting with fresh cloves will give the best, most potent flavor, but in a pinch, you can use 1 teaspoon of garlic powder.
Ground cumin, ground coriander, salt, and pepper — you’ll only need a couple of spice cabinet staples to season falafel to perfection.
Baking powder — this raising agent ensures the air-fried falafel are light and fluffy.
Can I Use Canned Chickpeas?
Just like with my authentic falafel recipe, dried chickpeas will give the best texture—canned chickpeas can be used in a pinch, but they’ll yield much softer patties. Please note that if you go this route, you’ll need to drain and dry them well and will likely need to add 2 to 3 tablespoons of all-purpose flour or chickpea flour to get the falafel mixture to hold together.
How To Make Air Fryer Falafel
1. In a medium or large bowl, cover the dried, uncooked chickpeas with 4 cups of fresh, cold water. Soak at room temperature overnight or up to 24 hours.
2. Drain and dry chickpeas very well, using a clean towel to help dab off any excess moisture.
3. In the bowl of a food processor, combine the chickpeas, onion, parsley, cilantro, and garlic.
4. Add the salt, cumin, coriander, and pepper.
5. Cover and process for about 30 seconds, scraping down the sides and bottom of the food processor as needed until the mixture looks like coarse cornmeal. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl, then let chill in the refrigerator for 45 minutes.
6. Sprinkle the baking powder evenly over the falafel mixture. Fold the mixture gently until the baking powder is absorbed.
7. Use a 1 ½-tablespoon sized triggered-cookie scoop to form the mixture into balls (33 to 35g each).
8. With slightly wet hands, pack the balls firmly but gently into a disc shape, about ½ to ¾-inch thick. Set the formed patties aside on a plate as you continue to shape the remaining mix.
9. Spray your air fryer basket with cooking spray. Place half of the falafel in the air fryer in a single layer, leaving space between each. Spray the tops with cooking spray. Air fry at 400°F for 10 minutes.
10. Flip each falafel, then spray once more with nonstick spray. Air fry for another 6 to 8 minutes until the falafel are golden brown and crispy. Serve the falafel with warm pita and tahini sauce.
How To Shape Falafel for Air Frying
I like to use a spring-loaded cookie scoop to easily and evenly portion out the falafel mix. Once you have a scoop of the mix, I recommend flattening it slightly into more of a disc than a ball. This will help it cook more evenly and prevent you from having soggy centers.
Can I Cook These in the Oven?
Yes! You can bake falafel in the oven if you don’t have an air fryer, but it’ll tack on an additional 4-8 minutes to the total cooking time, and they won’t be quite as crispy.
To bake falafel, preheat the oven to 425°F. Brush or spray a baking sheet generously with olive oil, arrange the falafel discs with space between them, and brush or spray them with more oil. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes total, flipping halfway through.
How To Serve
- Make pita pockets! Serve the falafel inside split-open pita bread with hummus or tahini sauce, sliced tomatoes and cucumbers (or my tomato cucumber salad), pickles, and assorted fresh herbs like parsley, mint, dill, or cilantro.
- Keep it simple with an easy yogurt tahini sauce: Whisk together ¼ cup (58g) tahini, ¼ cup (58g) Greek yogurt, 3 tablespoons of water, 2 tablespoons of lemon juice, ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper. Adjust with more water to reach your desired consistency. Season to taste. Serve alongside the air fryer falafel with lemon wedges and sprinkle of sesame seeds.
- Make a mezze platter! This is perfect for hosting. Think of it like a Middle Eastern-style grazing board. Serve the air fried falafel with wedges of warm flatbread, dipping sauces like tzatziki, spreads like baba ganoush or hummus, roasted marinated veggies like red peppers and artichoke hearts, crisp veggies like sliced cucumbers or baby bell peppers, and briny additions like feta or olives.
How To Freeze
Freezing uncooked patties is an excellent way to meal prep! Arrange the raw patties on a parchment-lined sheet pan or plate in a single layer, then freeze until solid. Transfer the frozen patties to a labeled freezer bag. Store for up to 3 months. You can cook raw patties directly from frozen, adding about 2-3 minutes of cooking time as needed.
How to Store and Reheat Leftovers
To store: To store the falafel, let them cool to room temperature, then store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
To reheat: You can either use the oven or the air fryer to reheat leftover falafels. Preheat your preferred device to 350ºF. For baking, spread out refrigerated cooked falafel on a sheet pan and bake for about 10-15 minutes or until warmed through. For air frying, place in a single layer in the air fryer basket and reheat for 3-5 minutes or until warm.
Pro Tips For Making This Recipe
- Make them spicy! Add some heat to the falafel by adding ½ to ½ teaspoon of ground cayenne pepper or crushed red pepper flakes along with the other spices.
- Don’t skip or rush the soaking step. Since we’re starting with dried chickpeas, we need to rehydrate them properly. This will ensure they’re crisp on the outside with some texture on the inside but not unpleasantly hard in the middle. While dried legumes will last pretty much indefinitely on a shelf, the older your dried chickpeas are, the longer they’ll take to soak. For “fresh” dried beans (under 1 year), you can usually get away with just an 8-hour soak. For older ones, it may take 12-24 hours.
- Don’t rush the resting step, either! This is crucial for allowing the flavors to develop and for the interior pieces of the chickpeas to continue to rehydrate and soften.
- If the falafel mixture sticks to your hands during shaping, dampen them with cool water or spritz them with oil or nonstick cooking spray.
Frequently Asked Questions
There are a few things to keep in mind: first, make sure you leave space around the falafel and don’t overcrowd the air fryer basket. Air fryers work by blowing hot air around, so if the basket is overcrowded and there isn’t space for the air to move, it won’t be able to “fry” the pieces.
Second, make sure to preheat the air fryer. We want the chickpea mixture to start cooking at a high temp right from the get-go to get that nice, crispy golden brown exterior, rather than drying it out and making it tough.
Finally, don’t forget to spray the exterior of the falafel with oil. The addition of fat helps promote browning and crisping! And, since we’re using the air fryer instead of a deep fryer, you don’t have to use much—just a light spritz will do the trick.
Yes! Feel free to mix up the chickpea mixture up to 2 days ahead of time, pressing plastic wrap directly against the surface of the mix before covering it tightly—this will help prevent oxidation and discoloration. You can also freeze the uncooked falafel patties, as noted in the “How to Freeze” section above.
Yes, but you’ll need to use a little extra elbow grease if you do. You can chop all the ingredients very finely with a chef’s knife, then add them to a bowl and use a potato masher or fork to mash them all together.
If you love this recipe try these out!
If you’ve tried this Air Fryer Falafel recipe, then don’t forget to rate it and let me know how you got on in the comments below. I love hearing from you!
Air Fryer Falafel Recipe
Equipment
- Food Processor
- Air fryer
- Olive oil cooking spray
Ingredients
- 1 cup dried chickpeas (200g)
- ½ small yellow onion chopped (125g)
- ½ cup fresh parsley leaves packed (18g)
- ½ cup fresh cilantro leaves packed (18g)
- 3 garlic cloves chopped
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, cover the dried, uncooked chickpeas with 4 cups of cold water. Soak at room temperature overnight or up to 24 hours.
- Drain the chickpeas and pat them very dry. In the bowl of a food processor, combine the chickpeas, onion, parsley, cilantro, garlic, salt, cumin, coriander, and pepper. Cover and process for about 30 seconds, scraping down the sides and bottom of the food processor as needed, until the mixture looks like coarse cornmeal. Transfer the mixture to a medium bowl, then let chill in the refrigerator for 45 minutes.
- Sprinkle the baking powder evenly over the falafel mixture. Fold the mixture gently until the baking powder is absorbed.
- Use a 1 ½-tablespoon sized triggered-cookie scoop to form the mixture into balls (33 to 35g each). With slightly wet hands, pack the balls firmly but gently into a disc shape, about ½ to ¾-inch thick. Set aside on a plate.
- Spray the basket of an air fryer with cooking spray. Place half of the falafel in the air fryer, leaving space between each. Spray the tops with cooking spray. Air fry at 400°F for 10 minutes. Flip each falafel, then spray once more with nonstick spray. Air fry for another 6 to 8 minutes until the falafel are golden brown and crispy.
- Serve the falafel with warm pita and tahini sauce.
Notes
- Make them spicy! Add some heat to the falafel by adding ½ to ½ teaspoon of ground cayenne pepper or crushed red pepper flakes along with the other spices.
- Don’t skip or rush the soaking step. Since we’re starting with dried chickpeas, we need to rehydrate them properly. This will ensure they’re crisp on the outside with some texture on the inside but not unpleasantly hard in the middle. While dried legumes will last pretty much indefinitely on a shelf, the older your dried chickpeas are, the longer they’ll take to soak. For “fresh” dried beans (under 1 year), you can usually get away with just an 8-hour soak. For older ones, it may take 12-24 hours.
- Don’t rush the resting step, either! This is crucial for allowing the flavors to develop and for the interior pieces of the chickpeas to continue to rehydrate and soften.
- If the falafel mixture sticks to your hands during shaping, dampen them with cool water or spritz them with oil or nonstick cooking spray.
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