Golden, crunchy chickpea fritters are a perfect match with a bright and tangy tzatziki. Pair them together as a dainty, dippable appetizer or turn the fritters into a salad topper that beats any crouton. Change it up by nestling the fritters and tzatziki in a large, soft flatbread with slices of fresh tomato and lettuce for a Greek twist on a falafel wrap, or make them into sliders using mini pita pockets or baby burger buns.
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Soaking and Chilling Time: 12 hours 30 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Makes: 12 Chickpea Fritters, 2 cups Creamy Cucumber Tzatziki
Ingredients:
Chickpea Fritters:
1 cup dry chickpeas
1 clove garlic
½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cumin
½ tsp salt
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 cup refined avocado oil or grapeseed oil, for frying
½ cup cooked chickpeas, for garnish, optional
1 Tbsp tender fresh herb leaves (oregano, parsley, mint, etc.), for serving
Tzatziki:
1 English cucumber
2 cups plain Greek yogurt
½ clove garlic, minced
1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, more for serving
1 Tbsp lemon juice
½ tsp salt
⅛ tsp ground black pepper
⅛ tsp red pepper flakes, more for serving
1 Tbsp tender fresh herb leaves (oregano, parsley, mint, etc.), for serving
Directions:
Chickpea Fritters:
1. Add chickpeas to a large bowl and cover with at least 4 inches of water. Allow to sit at room temperature at least 12 hours or overnight. After soaking, drain and rinse well.
2. In a food processor, pulse garlic, cilantro, flour, baking powder, cumin and salt until minced. Pulse in lemon juice and olive oil. Add soaked and drained chickpeas to the food processor and pulse until finely minced and mixture is just combined.
3. Line a large rimmed baking sheet. Scoop chickpea mixture into portions of approximately 3 tablespoons, placing them on the baking sheet and gently forming into 1/2-inch-tall discs. Freeze for 30 minutes for mixture to absorb flour and firm up.
4. Preheat oven to 200ºF. In a large cast-iron or high-sided skillet, add avocado or grapeseed oil and heat over medium-high.
5. To test oil temperature, drop a small fritter crumb into oil – it should sizzle. Using a metal spatula, very gently add fritters to hot oil in two batches, cooking for about 5 to 6 minutes per side, until golden brown and cooked through. If browning too quickly, lower the element temperature. Transfer pan-fried fritters to a wire cooling rack set over a large rimmed baking sheet. When all fritters are cooked, keep warm in oven while preparing tzatziki.
Tzatziki:
1. Grate cucumber, add to a fine-mesh sieve and press to extract as much liquid as possible. Add to a large bowl with remaining tzatziki ingredients – except red pepper flakes and herbs – and mix to combine. Transfer to a serving bowl, drizzle with additional olive oil, sprinkle with red pepper flakes and scatter over herbs.
Assembly:
Transfer fritters to a serving plate, sprinkle with additional chickpeas, if desired, and garnish with fresh herbs. Serve fritters warm with tzatziki.
Looking for more recipes? Try these Chickpea Recipes to Keep Your Heart Happy.