Lupin Free Vegan Falafel Bites
These crispy little bites are everything you want from street-style falafel — deeply golden on the outside, herbaceous and tender within, with a bright tahini sauce that ties it all together. The base is built entirely from dried chickpeas, fresh parsley, cilantro, and a warm blend of cumin, coriander, and cayenne, so there's no lupin flour or lupin-based filler hiding anywhere in the mix. That matters more than it might seem, since lupin is increasingly used as a protein-boosting flour substitute in plant-based and gluten-adjacent products, and it can be genuinely tricky to avoid in store-bought falafel or pre-made mixes. Here, you control every ingredient from start to finish. The overnight soak and a careful pulse in the food processor are what give these bites their signature coarse, satisfying texture — not a paste, not a mush, just the right amount of bite. Pan-frying in a neutral oil like canola or avocado oil gets them beautifully crisp without deep-frying equipment or fuss. Serve them straight off the rack with that lemony tahini drizzle and a dusting of paprika, and they'll disappear fast.
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Learn more →Ingredients
6 servings
For the falafel
- 1 ½ cups dried chickpeas
- ½ medium yellow onion, roughly chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
- 1 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, loosely packed
- ½ cup fresh cilantro leaves, loosely packed
- 1 ½ tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- ½ tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp baking powder
- 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
- ½ cup neutral oil (such as canola or avocado oil), for frying
For the tahini sauce
- ¼ cup tahini
- 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 clove garlic, finely grated
- 3–4 tbsp cold water
- ¼ tsp salt
For serving
- pinch of paprika (optional)
- lemon wedges (optional)
Instructions
- 1
Place the dried chickpeas in a large bowl and cover with at least 3 inches of cold water. Soak at room temperature for 8 hours or overnight, until the chickpeas have roughly doubled in size and are tender enough to pierce with a fingernail but still raw at the center. Drain and pat dry.
- 2
Combine the drained chickpeas, onion, garlic (for the falafel), parsley, cilantro, cumin, coriander, cayenne, and salt in a food processor. Pulse in short bursts, 15–20 pulses total, scraping down the sides as needed, until the mixture resembles coarse, slightly damp sand — no whole chickpeas remain, but the texture is not a smooth paste. Transfer to a bowl.
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