This irresistible falafel platter features perfectly crisp falafel served alongside creamy tahini sauce, savory fried halloumi cheese and an assortment of mezze for delicious pairings. An absolute must-make for any occasion that calls for a flavorful, bold and herbaceous vegetarian platter!
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About the Recipe
Full of all your Mediterranean favorites, this vibrant falafel platter is full of freshly fried falafel (or make it even easier and use frozen store bought falafel), served alongside all sorts of different mezze to pair with! Golden fried halloumi cheese, warm pita bread, creamy tahini sauce and more!
If you are looking for a fun platter to serve at your next get together or a "build your own" family dinner night, you will love this loaded Mediterranean falafel platter!
🥙 What is Falafel?
Falafel is a popular Mediterranean street food where ground chickpeas are combined with fresh herbs, warm spices and aromatics such as garlic and onion. The mixture is formed into patties and fried, creating a crisp crust with a tender and herbaceous center.
My love for falafel runs deep and over the years, I've made countless falafel recipes with all sorts of additions! Of course there's nothing like classic falafel, but have you tried black bean falafel or spinach falafel?
From there, you can serve falafel in a number of ways, such as in a falafel wrap, falafel bowl or a colorful falafel platter.
📋 Ingredients
- Falafel: The star of the platter is homemade fried falafel. If you have the time, make a batch for the falafel plate but in a pinch, store bought frozen falafel work well!
- Halloumi and Feta: Slice the halloumi into thick slices and either grill or pan fry the halloumi cheese. Halloumi holds up to high heat well and won't melt. For the feta, look for a block of feta and cut it into cubes.
- Pita Bread: If you want to go a bit extra, make a batch of homemade fluffy pita bread.
- Tzatziki: Tzatziki is a cucumber yogurt sauce with garlic and lemon that goes with just about anything! It's a breeze to make and I love using it as a dip with Greek tomato feta fritters.
- Tahini Sauce: Creamy tahini sauce is a must when making falafel! You can often find tahini in the same aisle as peanut butter in the grocery store. Make an extra batch and drizzle tahini sauce over roasted eggplant or make tahini salad dressing for salad.
- Zhoug: Optional, but if you like the heat, highly recommended! Zhoug is a spicy cilantro condiment that is often served with falafel as a spicy addition! Trader Joe's zhoug is pretty good for a store bought one and if you can, make a batch of homemade zhoug with fresh peppers and herbs.
- Vegetables: Falafel platter is meant to mix and match bites, so have fun with adding different vegetables, such as cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, crisp sumac onions and crunchy pickled peppers.
See recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
🥙 How to Make Crispy Falafel
Step 1. Add dried chickpeas to a large bowl and fill with water, completely covering the chickpeas.
Step 2. Soak the dried chickpeas in water for at least 8 hours or overnight, until they double in size.
Step 3. Drain the soaked chickpeas and pulse in a food processor until crumbly and there are no large pieces left.
Step 4. In the same food processor, add the herbs, garlic, onion and spices and pulse until there are no large pieces left. Add the herb mixture to the ground chickpeas along with the four, baking powder and baking soda and stir to combine.
Step 5. Form falafel into tablespoon sized balls and fry in hot oil until golden brown on first side.
Step 6. Carefully flip falafel over and fry on the other side until deeply golden brown.
🧆 Put Together a Falafel Platter
Make the Tzatziki. Combine grated cucumber with lemon juice, garlic, mint and yogurt and stir to combine.
Fry Halloumi Cheese. Slice halloumi into ½ inch thick slices and pan fry until golden brown on both sides.
Make Tahini Sauce. To a food processor or blender, add tahini, garlic, lemon juice, cumin, paprika and water and blend until smooth. Add more water as needed for a pourable consistency.
Make Spicy Zhoug. To a food processor or blender, blend the fresh herbs, jalapeño, garlic and spices until a smooth paste forms.
Make the Sumac Onions. Thinly slice red onion and add lemon juice, sumac and chopped parsley and stir to combine.
Add the Extras and Arrange the Falafel Platter. Arrange the falafel balls on the platter along with bowls of tahini, tzatziki and zhoug. Fill the rest of the player with pita bread, vegetables and cheeses.
🫒 More Mezze to Add to the Falafel Platter
- Classic Hummus or Avocado Hummus
- Baba Ganoush (Charred Eggplant Dip) or Baba Ganoush without Tahini
- Tabbouleh Salad
- Chopped Cucumber and Tomato Salad
- Creamy Labneh Dip
🌶️ Falafel Pairing Suggestions
There is no right or wrong way to eat a falafel platter. Have an assortment of mezze available and have fun with all the toppings! Mix and match different things and see what pairings you like. Here are a few suggestions to get you started.
- Drizzle tahini over fried falafel, a classic bite!
- Layer fried halloumi over pita bread with spicy zhug.
- Combine fried falafel with pita bread, feta cheese and tzatziki sauce.
🥗 Falafel Serving Suggestions
Have extra falafel? Here are a few more falafel serving suggestions!
- Serve falafel in a falafel bowl with hummus and chopped salad.
- Serve falafel with Greek quinoa salad.
- Add falafel to Mediterranean hummus bowls and other roasted vegetables.
- Make a large falafel and turn it into a falafel burger topped with tzatziki and pickled sumac onions.
📍 Recipe Tips
- Falafel freeze and reheat well! Once fried, lay the falafel on a flat baking sheet and freeze, then place in resealable plastic bag for up to 3 months.
- To re-heat falafel, place the falafel on a wire lined baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit until warmed through and crispy on the outside.
- Tzatziki, cilantro zhoug sauce and tahini sauce can all be made ahead of time up to 3 days in advance.
Recipe FAQs
Enjoy falafel with other Mediterranean favorites, such as in a falafel bowl with hummus and salad or falafel stuffed in a pita with creamy tahini sauce.
Falafel is made from chickpeas and herbs making it a healthy vegetarian option but falafel is fried, so there is added fat from frying in oil.
More Mediterranean Appetizers
Love this recipe? Please leave a 5-star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟rating in the recipe card below & a review in the comments section further down the page.
Vegetarian Falafel Platter
LittleFerraroKitchen.com
Ingredients
Falafel
- 1 cup dried chickpeas
- ½ onion cut in quarters
- 2 garlic cloves peeled and roughly chopped
- ½ cup fresh parsley
- ½ cup fresh cilantro
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon coriander
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne
- 1-2 tablespoons flour
- ½ teaspoons baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- Vegetable or grapeseed oil for frying
Tzatziki
- ½ cup plain Greek yogurt
- ½ Persian cucumber grated with the large holes of a box grater
- 1 small garlic clove grated
- 1 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 sprigs fresh mint leaves leaves chopped
- 1 sprig fresh dill leaves chopped
- 1 tablespoon olive oil + more for garnish
- Salt and pepper to taste
Tahini Sauce
- ½ cup tahini paste
- 1 small garlic clove roughly chopped
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon lemon juiced
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ¼ teaspoon cumin
- ¼ teaspoon Kosher salt
- ½ cup water + more if needed
Other Additions
- Sumac Onions
- Pita Bread
- Cubed Feta Cheese
- Castelvetrano Olives
- Cherry Tomatoes
- Persian cucumbers sliced
- Spicy Zhoug Sauce
- Pickled peppers
Instructions
Falafel
- Soak the dried chickpeas overnight in a large bowl filled with water.
- The next day, drain the chickpeas and pulse in a food processor until crumbly and there are no whole chickpeas left. Transfer to a large bowl.
- In the same food processor, pulse the onion, garlic, parsley and cilantro until it almost looks like a paste, then add the parsley mixture to the beans.
- Use a large spatula to everything together along with the cumin, cayenne, salt, pepper and flour and mix well. Add the baking powder and soda just before frying and give everything a final mix.
- Heat a large skillet with vegetable oil and bring oil up to about 370 degrees Fahrenheit. You can test to see if the oil is hot by dropping a small piece of batter. If it sizzles, it's ready.
- Use a large tablespoon and form the falafel mixture into balls about 1-2 tablespoons worth. Then carefully place the falafel in the hot oil, about 4-5 at a time and fry on the first side until you can see it browning on the sides, about 4-5 minutes. Then flip over and fry other side.
- Once done, remove the falafel from the hot oil and place on a wired rack over a baking sheet to drain excess oil. Sprinkle with more salt, if desired.
Tzatziki
- To a bowl, add the grated cucumber, yogurt, grated garlic, fresh lemon juice and fresh herbs. Season with salt and pepper and add a little olive oil. Mix the sauce until well incorporated and taste for seasoning.
Tahini Sauce
- In a food processor, add tahini paste, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, spices and water and blend until smooth.
- Use a small spatula to scrape down sauce as needed and add more water if sauce is too thick.
- Blend until desired consistency and sauce has similar consistency as honey.
Arrange the Platter
- Arrange the falafel on a wide platter along with bowls filled with tzatziki sauce, zhoug and tahini sauce.
- Fill any openings with pita bread, sumac onions, olives and vegetables.
Notes
- Yields 12 falafel.
- Falafel freeze and reheat well! Once fried, lay the falafel on a flat baking sheet and freeze, then place in resealable plastic bag for up to 3 months.
- Tzatziki, cilantro zhoug sauce and tahini sauce can all be made ahead of time up to 3 days in advance.
- To re-heat falafel, place the falafel on a wire lined baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit until warmed through and crispy on the outside.
- Save time and use store bought frozen falafel.
MrnMrsindkitchen says
I made this for our Meatless Monday night. We did 2 Vegetarian Falafel Platter and it was a lot. We had leftovers and it was just a wonderful way to start the week. This was a great recipe.
BrightLemonyKitchen says
This was not my first Mediterranean Falafel bowl but it was the best I have had so far. This Platter takes a bit to put together but when you have all the ingredients it comes together easy. Sooo Good!