6 Tasty Substitutes for Chickpeas in Falafel

Crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside and full of flavor, fried falafel is a staple of any Middle Eastern meal. Often times, falafel is made from soaked chickpeas ground to a creamy paste, then mixed with herbs and spices and deep fried to perfection. From there, it’s ready to be stuffed inside pita bread or dipped into tahini sauce. This is the traditional way to make them in many countries, but it’s not the only recipe. You can swap out chickpeas for other ingredients while still retaining the spirit and enjoyment of the original.

Maybe you’re looking for a lower carb option or just don’t like the taste of chickpeas. Or it could be that you’re an adventurous cook who’s all out of chickpeas and wants to try something different. Try any one of these chickpea substitutes for a falafel with a twist; there’s something for every dietary requirement or taste, and you can even combine recipes for something really different.

Fava beans top the list of swaps for chickpeas and not just for the texture. Fava beans are traditionally used to make falafel in Egypt, and there’s evidence to suggest that this might be the original falafel recipe (though of course the chickpea version is much more widespread). In Egypt, these crunchy fava bean balls are known as ta’ameya, and are served in a similar way, with pita bread, tahini sauce, and fresh tomato and onion.

It’s important to note that these are not made with the fresh green fava beans you get from the market, or even the frozen variety. To make this recipe at home, you’ll need to look for dried fava beans. The traditional method calls for dried split fava beans which are white in color and have the skins already removed. But you can also use dried whole fava beans that are white, brown, or green.

If you’ve been wondering what to do with that bag of dried lentils, whipping up a fresh batch of falafel could be the answer. Lentils are a great pantry staple thanks to their low price and long shelf life, but it doesn’t mean they last forever. The good news is that you can use any type of lentil, depending on what you have on hand and what flavor you’re looking for.

Green and brown lentils can be directly swapped into your falafel recipe, as they require a similar soaking time to chickpeas (around 8 to 10 hours is ideal). Red lentils only require an hour to soak, so if you haven’t planned ahead, our Red Lentil Falafel Pita Sandwich can be on your table in under two hours.

You can use pre-cooked or canned lentils, but it won’t have the same texture as traditional chickpea falafel. If you choose to go this route, look for a recipe that is specifically made for cooked lentils, as it will most likely need a little flour or cornstarch to help hold the patties together.

Any vegetarian will appreciate the heavy lifting that black beans do for a menu. They’re the key to making so many Mexican dishes veggie friendly and the basis of the black bean patty, the meatless savior on any burger list. Although traditional falafel is vegetarian anyway, black beans can offer a creamy and mild alternative to chickpeas, which some people can find earthy or even chalky.

Just as with lentils, dried black beans can be subbed into a classic falafel recipe, though they might need a longer soaking time. Canned black beans will hold together fairly well without binding agents, but you’ll have more of a mashed bean texture, rather than the crispy, light patties that you achieve with dried legumes. When it comes to serving, you could opt for the traditional flavors and sides, or you can mix this up and pay homage to the black bean’s Mexican origin. Include spices like chipotle chili in the falafel mix, then serve with guacamole and a tomatillo salad.

Given the naturally nutty taste and texture of chickpeas, making falafel from nuts isn’t such a stretch. Nuts have a whole range of health benefits, being full of protein and fiber, and even helping to reduce bad cholesterol levels. But most importantly, they really deliver when it comes to crunch and flavor. The tricky part when it comes to turning them into falafel is that they’re going to need a lot of help holding together, so expect your ingredients list to be a little longer with the nut version. This does, however, give you the opportunity to add depth of flavor.

Walnuts, cashews, or almonds all make good candidates for the base nut, with some sunflower seeds added if you want to eke out the more expensive nuts. If you want to stick with the seed and nut theme, tahini makes a good binding agent, though you might also need some nut flour to firm up the texture. The natural fat in nuts means you don’t need to deep fry this nutty take. Instead opt for the air fryer, where they’ll develop a toasty crunch, ready to add to this Falafel Salad.

Legumes might be big hitters when it comes to nutrition, but their high carb count means they won’t be suitable for everyone. If you’re on a keto or paleo diet, you’ll know how useful cauliflower can be for recreating all your favorite foods without the carbs. You won’t need to cook the cauliflower, but you will need to turn it into crumbs using a food processor or a grater. Alternatively, you can make your life easier by grabbing a bag of frozen cauliflower rice.

The key difference with making the recipe, compared to beans or lentils, is that the cauliflower doesn’t have any natural stickiness, so you will need something to bind the cauliflower together. At its most basic, this will be flour and egg but can be adjusted to meet your dietary requirements. To keep it keto or grain free, almond or coconut flour can be used for the dry component. Vegans can swap the egg for a flax egg or try some tahini instead to help to reintroduce some of the nuttiness that you’re missing compared to the chickpea version.

This might be pushing the boundary of what you can consider a falafel versus a fritter, but the bold flavors should help convince you to set aside tradition and go with your tastebuds. These vegetable patties are made from a base of cooked sweet potato held together with chickpea flour (though you can swap in almond flour if you’re avoiding chickpeas in all forms). Getting the right balance of moisture is essential to your falafel staying in once piece, so steaming or microwaving your sweet potato will get you the best results.

The softer texture of these patties compared to traditional falafel means they might be a better candidate for oven baking rather than frying – moister mixtures tend to fall apart when frying. They might not develop that crisp exterior you would expect with chickpeas, but you can add some crunch by coating the patties in sesame seeds before cooking.