Fabulous Falafel

1. Combine the chick peas, onion, parsley,lemon juice, garlic, coriander, cumin, salt, pepper, turmeric and chilli powder. Blend the mixture until it forms a smooth paste, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed – you want it to have some texture, not too pasty so use the pulsing button rather than continuous. That way you can control the texture. Stop the machine to scrape down the sides occasionally so everything gets mixed in. (You can use a stick blender if you don’t have a processor, but it’s a little more hard work).

2. Transfer mixture to a large bowl and mix in the baking powder, flour and flaxmeal mixture. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper. Spoon a dollop of dough and pinch it onto a baking sheet or tray lined with baking parchment – it’s too sloppy to form into balls at this point. Chill for 20 minutes+ until firm. If you intend to serve them immediately, preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF/Gas Mark 4. This will keep each batch of falafels warm while you cook the subsequent batches.

3. If you’ve got a deep-fat fryer, go for it. If not, heat the oil for frying in the wok or shallow saucepan. It should spit if you drop a teeny piece of batter in it.

4. Fry the falafels in separate batches until golden brown on all sides, about 3 minutes. Don’t try to cram too many in the pan as this will cool down the oil and make them soggy. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on kitchen paper before serving.