Well I think this is a rule that applies in the Mid East and among arabs who for the most part love lamb. If I was going to make mansaf for a non-arab person, using chicken or lamb would be the least of my worries. It's an aquired taste and you either love it or hate it. After that you have to think about how they will react to the way its eaten with hands from one common dish. Most of my non-arab friends hate it, I have a couple that actually like it and learned to eat it with their hands too.

All the really poor village people we visited made it with chicken but then apologized profusely and whatnot. I headed off the one time I was invited for it by saying to the girls that I didn't like lamb and was a vegetarian, so they used chicken and then said they HAD lamb if I wanted it. I had it once with lamb and it was nasty IMO lol. I did learn to eat it with my hands and pop that ball into my mouth.

I use to like Mansaf a lot, but now when i think about it it makes me feel ill. You know after my husband tried to make it and it made me sick. Anyways chicken for family and lamb for guests, but if you live here and lamb is not at your disposal or you don't like the taste I would make it with chicken. "I think" the reason i got sick was because my husband use the Jameed that was already in a liquid form when we bought it. I am pretty sure we got it from Dayna's Market.

Firstly, this thread looks fantabulous!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and it will definitely come into amaaazing use when i spend more time cooking as opposed to writing papers and studying for exams!!!!!!!!!!!!

Secondly, I would like to add the recipe for falafel, or as Egyptians call it, taa'meyya..--as per Bridget's request (sry i took forever!!)

Here goes..

Ingredients:

1 pound dried, white fava beans
1 bunch: parsley, coriander, green onions
1 yellow onion
1 whole head of garlic

First, you'll have to sit the fava beans in cold water for about 2 days--changing the water every 2-3 hours. After that, you simply blend it all together until it is very smooth...

Then, you can pack it into little plastic bags and store it in the freezer.

When you wanna use it, take out a bag and let it defrost--this shouldn't take more than a couple of hours, depending on how big the bag is...

After it defrosts, put it into a bowl and break an egg on it. Then you add spices--cumin, salt, pepper, dry ground coriander--to taste..

Then, use a spoon to form little balls and fry it until brownish...

There's also something else you can make with the mixture--it's call 'igga...it has more egg in it...you take about a tablespoon or so of the falafel "batter" and put it in a separate bowl--then break an egg on it and mix it lightly, then fry--that taste amazing--i like it more than regular falafel...but do this all the way at the end when you're done frying--cuz, the oil gets all bubbly/foamy...cuz of the eggs..

hehe..

you can serve falafel and 'igga with tomatoes, lettuce, pita, mayo, and tahina [sesame paste]....

sorry for the stupid way i typed it...i'm no chef and i was translating instructions my mother gave me...lol..

enjoyyy....if you have any questions, lemme know and i'll definitely pass them on to mama...hehe...

does anyone have any good koshari(koshary) recipes... i would like to make some... i saw some online but i'm really not sure which one will be good.. i love koshari and habibi does too.. please help

ive never seen egg and carrot used in mansaf either...hmm...and i agree JP....jameed is a must, but the rock form...my MIL brings it with from jordan when she comes here, so it lasts us a while...i prefer leaving the chicken boiled in the sauce, rather than frying or baking it, but, in jordan, they always fried....

I agree boiled in the sauce is the way we like it too. We have many Palestinian friends here who love Mansaf but hate Jameed. They make it from plain Yogurt which to me tastes nothing like mansaf.

Now that I think of it, I never had mansaf with chicken in Jordan. It was always served with Lamb. But I did have once from Jabri...OMG SO GOOD.

they always cooked lamb in jordan, but considering i HATE lamb, i always do chicken here

I actually loved lamb in jordan but can't really stand it here. its not as gamey there.

OMG I love lamb. Here, there, or anywhere. I find it to be way more gamey outside the US. To me, the kinds we buy here (Colorado lamb or even New Zealand) are way less gamey than say in Morocco. Never been to Jordan so I can't say. hehe
This Mansaf dish you guys are talking about sounds interesting. I've never tried it. But what is Jameed and where could I get it? Would an Arabic market sell that? We have an Arabic market here called "Jordan Market" but I'm not sure its actually Jordanian. lol Around these parts it is mostly Persian, Perisan, Persian!

You can find it, some arab stores have the solid form, which kinda looks like a round white ball of crusty cheese...lol...others dont and carry somethign called like a "soup starter kit" ive never used that one so i couldnt offer ya any advice, im sure others on here could...personally, i have to have jameed in my mansaf, and i MUST HAVE split almonds...not peanuts...i hated it in jordan with plain peanuts, they probably did it that way considering like a 1/4lb of almonds here is like 5$...who knows what it was in jordan...

I have never seen Jameed in any store in my area, but considering that Kelly is surrounded by Jordanians in her area I'm not surprised that they are carrying it there now. However I'm not sure I would buy it. We only use the Jameed we get from trusted sources and certain areas as well.

My sisters in law make their own Jameed, and I don't know that anyone Ammar has known has had anything but theirs (in the family of course, obviously not counting friends). I know he tries to avoid "others'" mensef.

Charles' peanut delight

Charles asked me to post my recipe here, I want to start by saying this is called ''Pave de Amendoim'' in Brazil and it's a very common dessert in Brazil.
It requires some brazilian ingredients, so don't try to substitute. If you can't find a brazilian store near by or buy it online, just forget about trying the recipe.

Pave de Amendoim

Ingredients:
- 2 cans Nestle media crema. (you can find on mexican aisles or buy online)

it has to be nestle table cream, don't try another substitute
- 3 cups sugar
- 4 egg yolks
- 200 g peanuts
- 100 g butter
- 500 g bolacha maizena
I can't find that on mexican aisles, I always order online.

With a mixer, beat the butter and sugar until well-mixed. Add egg yolks and keep mixing. At last, add Nestle table cream and keep mixing.
In a blender, beat 200g of peanuts, slowly so it won't become a butter, just so the peanuts are grounded. Add the peanuts to the mix and stir it lightly.

In a shallow bowl, pour milk and, if you want, (not necessary) a couple tbsp liquor (I use whatever I have, but coconut liquor is the best).
Dip cookies, 4 by 4, let it sit for 10 seconds at most, then place them in a 9x9 dish, then add a layer of the peanut mix, repeat. Finish with the peanut mix.

Cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours.

MOROCCAN-STYLE CHICKEN BREASTS



1/3 cup plain nonfat yogurt

1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 teaspoon sweet paprika

1 teaspoon cumin

1/4 teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts


In a small bowl, mix together the yogurt, cilantro, oil, garlic, paprika, cumin, salt and pepper.

Place the chicken in a shallow dish and spread with half of the yogurt mixture; turn the chicken over and spread with the remaining yogurt mixture. Cover and refrigerate for 6 to 10 hours.

Preheat a gas grill to high or prepare a charcoal fire. Grill the chicken until it is cooked through and no longer pink at the center, about 5 minutes per side. Makes 4 servings.

PER SERVING: Calories 179 Fat 5 g (1 g sat) Cholesterol 66 mg Sodium 232 mg Fiber 1 g Carbohydrates 3 g Protein 27 g

omg this one's a keeper!!! Made it Sat night and the hubster loooved it. (my kids don't like spicey stuffs so I made them mac n cheese and chicken wings). Only things I did different was omit the shrimp (i'm allergic) and instead of doing the stacks with the avacado I just chopped it all up (but didn't use any cheese 'cause I was in too much of a rush to go hunting for it) and put it in one big salad bowl. I'm having leftovers for lunch and my tummy's sooo happy!!!

Sliced Chili Rubbed Flank Steak on Spicy Rice with Shrimp and Guacamole Stacks Recipe courtesy Rachael Ray
See this recipe on air Friday May. 30 at 2:30 PM ET/PT.






2 to 2 1/4 pounds flank steak
1 1/2 tablespoons grill seasoning, a palm full and a half
1 tablespoons dark Mexican chili powder, a palm full
1 lime, zested
Cooking spray or oil to coat grill or grill pan
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup white rice
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 cups chicken stock
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 teaspoons hot sauce, eyeball it
1 pound small to medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro leaves or flat-leaf parsley
Salt
2 ripe beefsteak tomatoes, sliced
2 Hass avocados, halved, scooped from skin and sliced
1/2 lemon
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
1/2 cup crumbled queso Asadero

Preheat outdoor grill or indoor grill pan to high. Rub the meat with a mixture of grill seasoning, chili powder and the lime zest. Let meat stand 10 minutes. Grease grill surface then add meat and cook 7 to 8 minutes on the first side, 5 to 6 minutes on the flip side for medium doneness.

For the rice, heat a medium sauce pot over medium heat. Add butter, and when melted add rice and toast for a couple of minutes. Add the onion, bell pepper, jalapeno and garlic and cook for a few minutes to begin to soften the veggies. Add stock and raise heat to bring up to a bubble. Stir in the tomato paste and hot sauce. Reduce heat to simmer, cover the pot and cook 18 minutes, until rice is tender. Add shrimp to the pot in the last 5 minutes of cooking. The shrimp will steam on top of the rice. Cook the shrimp until pink and firm. Combine the seafood and cilantro into the rice and season with salt, to taste.
Season sliced tomatoes with salt and dress the avocado with lemon juice. Make 4 stacks alternating the tomatoes with avocado and onions.

Slice the steaks and serve on a bed of shrimp rice, the guacamole stacks alongside. Garnish the guacamole stacks with cheese crumbles.

I made this last night, but made a few changes since my husband doesn't like green peppers, or anything too spicy. I also didn't do the avacado's and sliced tomatoes....too lazy, and it was too late. It was excellent! He asked me if this was a Moroccan recipe and I told him I didn't think so. I will certainly make it again, but I think I will cook the rice first then add the tomato paste...it made it difficult to cook it thoroughly.

Really? I didn't have a problem with it but then I used texmati rice since I love it so maybe it depends on the type you use.

I can't remember what rice it is that I have, but I don't like it. I usually buy Basmati, but it is not as easy to find.

Here is a sight I came across, I have tried a few of the recipes, and so far yummy!!
Just wanted to share!!

www.dedemed.com

perhaps this can be moved up top to the *pinned* recipe thread so as to not further clutter the board? thanks!

About rice....
this is what hubster has taught me about the proper use of rice in Jordanian dishes...

medium grain rice is for mansaf , ma7'(phlegm)she , and malfoof
whereas
basmati rice is for maklooba

Is he just extra picky or do u all do the same thing?

Let's see....I use medium grain rice for Magloobeh. For mansaf, mahshi, and any stuffed dish, we use egyptian rice, similar to medium grain rice. For oozy I use uncle bens. We never use basmati, although its my favorite.....

Felafel

2 pounds dried chickpeas and fava beans (Palestinians often use half and half, but you could also use just one or the other, or any combination)
1 bunch fresh chopped parsley (about 1 cup)
1 bunch fresh cilantro (coriander)
3-4 cloves garlic
2-3 tsp. salt (or to taste)
1 small onion
1/2 cup fine breadcrumbs (or fine bulghur wheat)
1/8 cup - 1/4 cup flour (depending on how sticky your dough is)
1 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. turmeric
1/2 tsp. cayenne (or more or less according to your taste)
1/4 tsp. black pepper
2 teaspoons baking powder
fresh chopped cilantro
fresh chopped parsley
oil for frying (vegetable oil or olive oil)

Soak chickpeas and beans for 16-24 hours and drain well. Grind them in a food processor with the garlic, onion, parsley and cilantro (if necessary, add a very small amount of water.) The dough should be of a coarse texture -- not too smooth. Blend in the remaining ingredients. Let the dough rest 1 hour.

Use a felafel tool to shape the dough, or form it into round balls with your fingers (golf ball size or slightly larger, flatten slightly into patties if you like.) At this point, you can freeze all or part of the dough for later use.

Heat the oil to very hot, and fry small batches at a time.until golden brown.

Serve in hot pita bread, garnish with chopped tomatoes, shredded lettuce or cabbage, sliced onion, chopped pickles, hot peppers, chopped cucumber, etc. Drizzle with tahina sauce.


Tahina sauce

Whisk together:

1/4 cup tahina
1/4 cup of water
Juice of one lemon
Pinch of salt

Thanks!! So does the Palestinean falafel taste different than the Jordanian? I know I tried some falafel that were Egyptian before and the taste was 100% different... then Dh told me that's because they use fava and not chick peas. He couldn't really remember HOW to make falafel though, so I was kind of stuck trying to figure it out by looking at the internet.

Welllllllll the best felafel I've ever eaten was in Palestine, but they have good stuff in Jordan, too (as well as not-so-good -- it's all in the hands of the chef !)

Yes, Egyptian felafel is traditionally made from fava beans rather than chickpeas, but I think the difference in taste may be more due to differences in the spice mix/other ingredients.







Felafel tools

"misses Palestinian falafal and Paliestinian pickles and of course her husband's kebabs"

Maybe it was the difference in spiecs. Consistency was different too though. I noticed the Jordanian ones are green inside, and I figured it was basically "dyed" from parsley or cillantro, but your recipe confirms it would be both Do you have a falafel tool yourself?

The parsley and cilantro add some color, but it's mostly the fava beans that give it that "authentic" green tint:



I suspect the traditional "Jordanian" recipe may also use a combination of favas and chickpeas -- when I use just chickpeas, they are more brown inside.

Grinding it up


I actually have THREE felafel tools ! Mahmoud brought them for me from the West Bank. They are almost exactly like the ones on the left in the pic, except the thumb presser thingy is a little different. The plunger makes it a bit easier to dispense the sticky dough into the hot oil.





Different places use different shapes -- round balls, "hockey puck," even blimpies.









But they all taste sooooooo good....

Ok, then, they MUST use a mix of fava and chick peas. The falafel are definately green inside. I remember someone trying to tell me it was green because they use grass, which is absolutely hilarious thinking (it was another American, it wasn't a joke. It was not as funny, though, as when he looked around and said "Why are there so many ARABS here? G-d!" or "Why is everything written in Arabic?!" You have to wonder about people.)

I like them when they are round Ammar saw where I printed off your recipe and was like oh, are we going to make falafel finally??? He has been craving them as well. He is going to fry them though. he doesn't trust me to fry things after I accidentaly poured oil over some water in the pan and then heated it up... only to have it explode everywhere in the kitchen and almost burn me and get on the ceiling. Sigh. It was probably quite funny to watch. he was shouting a lot in Arabic, and asking me a ton of questions, and finally i was just like, "dude, I know you're probably asking me if I'm ok, which i am, and what happened, and I don't know. Water under the oil?" We laugh about it now.

I think if Ammar is successful and some of his family comes, I'll ask for a falafel tool.

OMG best keep you farrrrrrrr from the hot oil ! That's so cute "Are we going to make felafel finally ?" And yes, you should definitely own your own falafel tool. And if you make ma7shi, ask them to pick up one of those squash corer thingies, too -- makes life so much easier !

Palilover -- I miss everything Even the crazy rooster crowing at 3am....

You know neither one of us like ma7shi! So I'm good there! Haha! Lucked out You know the best part of the whole oil incedent was that it exploded 3 times before we finally got close enough to turn it off. Oil was everywhere!

WOM or anyone else that can help, does anyone know how to make mekhalel, pickeld cucumbers. They are better than anything that can be bought from the store. Thank you in advance

Pickled cucumbers:

1 gallon glass jar
40-45 fresh, firm cucumbers 1-1.5 inches thick, 5-6 inches long
7 sprigs fresh dill
12 cloves garlic, sliced
6 bay leaves
3 hot chili peppers
1 Tsp allspice
½ gallon warm water
Sea salt

Directions:

1. Prick your 13 cucumbers then put them on the bottom of the jar.
Make sure to arrange them in an organized manner.

2. Over the layer of 13 cucumbers add the following spices:
1 chili pepper, 4 cloves garlic, 2 bay leaves.

3. Repeat this process of layering nine cucumbers and then adding
exactly the same amounts of spices until the jar is almost full.

4. Add 1 Tsp ground allspice.

5. Add warm water and sea-salt in the following manner:
for each cup of warm water add 1 heaping Tsp of sea-salt.

6. When the water is just ½ an inch below the top of the jar
add the sprigs of dill so that they are on top of the cucumbers.

7. Close the jar and put it on a flat plate in a place that gets sun.

8. Wait 3-4 days until the color of the cucumbers turns to khaki green.

9. Enjoy the most delicious cucumbers pickles you will ever eat.


Pickled Turnips:

6-7 small to medium fresh turnips
3 small beets
2½ Tsp rough sea-salt
1 hot green pepper, sliced
3 tender celery stalks, chopped
1 cup warm water
1½ cup natural vinegar
Glass Jar



Directions:

1. Peel the turnips and the beets and slice them ½ inches thick.

2. Place slices in a big bowl and mix them with the sea-salt. Let sit for 12 hours.

3. Remove slices together with the water that has come out and put them in the jar.

4. Add the warm water and vinegar. If the liquids don’t fill up the jar then add some
more water or vinegar.

5. Put the jar in a sunny spot; after 2 days the pickled turnip is ready.


Pickled Cabbage:

Glass Jar
2 Medium Cabbages
1 Tsp allspice powder
3 Celery stalks
2 Slightly cut fresh hot green peppers
Water
Sea-salt

Directions:

1. Take out of the cabbages the defective leaves, and cut them into quarters.

2. Put the hot peppers and the celery at the bottom of the jar, press the
cabbage quarters as dense as possible.

3. Add water so you fill up the jar, add 1 stuffed Tsp sea-salt for each Cup of water.

4. Close the jar and put it in a sunny spot. After 5 days the pickled cabbage is ready


Enjoy!

Calling all ME women and wives!

I am wondering if the widely dish served in Lebanese resturants called Ghallaba (or also spelled Ghallaya) is an authentic Lebanese dish? Or just something Arab-American made up? None of the Lebanes resturants here in Algeria serve this dish ... nor did anyone even know what it was.

Also I have googled the recipe but nothing on any of the ME sites come up. Only some on recipe finder sites. I have at home, tried to recreate the dish using the same spices I see/tasted in the resturants but I just cannot get the same flavour. Also tried all of the few recipes online ... none taste the same!

Below is pictures


Chicken Ghallaba over Hummous


Vegatable Ghallaba over white almond rice

If anyone has an authentic recipe, PLZ POST IT!

Also, talking about falafel tools ... what could one subsitute for a falafel tool if one didn't have one? There are many tools here in Algeria, but I have never seen a falafel tool ... but then again people donnot eat falafel here! LOL!

And has anyone ever eaten a McFalafel in Egypt or in Lebanon? I am curious to know how they compare! LOLOL! I can hear Shaaban Abdel-Rahim singing the jingle now!

Snaps! I hit the send button but I finished typing!

Oooooook ... So how would go about creating a Falafel party ... what would be the traditional accompaniments? Other then the sauce, lettuce, pickles and tomato? What would be some good sides?

And as everyone talked about not all Falafels are created equal ... so what is the difference btwn Palestini/Egyptian and Turkis falafel? And is the Israel Falafel same as the Palestini?

I was cooking cooking cooking this weekend!!! Made some yummy stuff I thought I'd share.
Last night, w/ eggplant being abundant right now, I baked some eggplant & tomatoes - so simple and so delicious.

1 lg green eggplant (any kind would do), sliced and laid in baking dish
2 med tomatoes, peeled & sliced, laid on top of eggplant
drizzle a nice amount of seasoned olive oil (or regular)
season w/ salt, pepper, zaatar (got it at World Market)
generously sprinkle shredded cheese (used an Italian blend)
bake @ 350 for about 45 min. YUM!!!

I also did chicken kebobs and an Israeli couscous salad which I'll have to post later since the recipes are at home. Not your traditional Moroccan style couscous... used the large "pearl" couscous also called Maftoul.

Hubby loved it all and so did I - these were definite keepers. BTW, the kebob & couscous recipe came from Martha Stewart's "Everyday Food" magazine. I love that little mag... full of great, easy, usable recipes in every issue!
Noura

I dont think so - it looks much different than the picture, in israel its usually a quarter sized ball rounded into a sphere. also i dont think they ever use fava beans.

that said i love all sorts of falafel!

JP is our resident pickle expert -- hopefully she will be along soon to share some of her recipes !

Henia, you had asked about Chicken Ghallaba. I don't remember who posted this some time back, but I remember copying it b/c it sounded good. I've never tried it so, FWIW, here's what I copied. Hope it helps!

Chicken Ghallaba

Yields one serving

Ingredients:

7oz. Chicken Breast
2 oz. Carrots
2 1/2 oz. Mushrooms
3 1/2 oz. Tomatoes
2 oz. Olive oil (extra virgin)
1 Tb. of Taboon garlic sauce
2 oz. Taboon Ghallaba dressing
Directions:

1. Chop all vegetables in any size, shape desired
2. Cut chicken into small cubes about 1/2 inch
3. Brown garlic sauce in oil
4. Add chicken, cook until half done
5. Add mushrooms, tomatoes, cook for 5 mins.
6. Add Ghallaba dressing, cook 5 mins.
7. Serve with rice

Taboon Ghallaba dressing

Ingredients:

1 1/2 Tbs. Oregano
2 Tb. Sumac
1/4 Tbs. Cajon pepper
1 qt/ Lemon juice
2 oz. Salt
Directions:

1. Mix together and refrigerate

Rice & Noodles

Ingredients:

1 lb. Uncle Ben's Rice
1 1/2 oz. Vegetable oil
5 oz. Angle hair pasta
2 cups water
5 1/2 tbs. salt
Directions:

1. Brown the noodles in oil
2. Add rice, salt and water
3. Cook on low until water is gone

Taboon Garlic Sauce

Ingredients:

1 C. fresh garlic
1 tbs. Salt
2 C. Vegetable oil
1 C. lemon juice
1/2 jalapeno pepper
Directions:

1. Put the jalapeno and garlic into a blender; add oil
2. Slowly add lemon juice, water, salt
---------------------------------------
Chicken Ghallaba

Marinate cubes of chicken breasts in coconut milk, few dashes
of soy sauce and lemon juice for a couple of hours, then throw
in a skillet with thinly sliced onions, square cut green peppers
or roasted peppers if handy. Saute' in Indian Ghee if available
or else a coconut oil/vegetable oil mix, until chicken is browned
and onions transparent. Add about a cup and one half of flaked or
shredded coconut and saute' further until coconut starts to turn
golden. Reduce heat and add 1 can pureed or diced tomatoes, can
of coconut milk, can of chicken stock, additional chicken soup base
or chicken bouillon to taste, and some chopped garlic. Then add
garam masala or else the choice of Patak's Curry Pastes. Simmer on
low for about 30 minutes, Until chicken is tender. You can also add
green peas to this at this time.
Serve over basmati rice, with sides of your favorite chutneys.

You can just use your fingers to shape the dough into balls.



Heh





Well falafel is generally Arabic "street food" or fast food, so it's usually served up in a sandwich with fried potatoes on the side and maybe a soft drink. But if you're not serving it in sandwiches, you could have all sorts of dishes with it -- hummus, rice, eggplant, a meat dish, salads, etc.

Israelis often use a recipe much like the Palestinian one -- maybe with some variations in the spice mix, and Israeli felafel is generally made with just chickpeas, rather than a combination of chickpeas and favas. Also as Chaishai mentioned, you don't see the different shapes so much -- usually Israelis like to make the small balls. Sometimes the condiments are a little different -- Arabs love their Arabic pickles and cabbage, Israelis like a lot of lettuce, cucumbers and tomatoes. And sometimes the Palestinian falafel seems more crunchy.

But remember that these two peoples live in very close proximity, and despite the political differences, there is a lot of swapping around of ideas. European Jews learned Middle Eastern-style cooking mostly from the indigenous Palestinians, and have adopted many of the region's traditional foods into their own repertoire. And they have introduced their own contributions as well. What is known as Israeli food today has been influenced by people coming from a wide variety of different places -- Europe, North Africa, the Middle East, the U.S., Asia -- with a lot of different traditional foods.

Ye ... I had posted that ... found online, but tastes really nothing like in the resturant

WoM: Just yesterday made falafels for dinner! But my problem is the dough seems to be tough enough ... I let it sit one hour. Then when I go to fry them (in very hot oil) they seem to fall apart. I tried adding flour, semoule, frik and also breadcrumbs ... all still fall apart and melt into the oil. What am I doing wrong?

So the tool really just shapes it? Doesn't really make it better? I found online tool for $16.99 but no gaurantee it would arrive here, so didn't bother ordering it!

All the falafels I have ever eaten have had sesame seeds on them. I did not have any sesame seeds at home, but did have zata'ar ... so I just added that! Family could not tell the difference ... but me I cannot decide if I liked it or not! But I do find that I like to add more cilantro in the dough ... makes the flavour pop!

Thanks for the info on falafel! Still wondering if anyone has tried the McFalafel? LOL I donnot even know they bothered making up that sandwich!

Sounds like your dough is a too dry -- try cutting back on the flour/breadcrumbs etc., and maybe adding a little bit of water. The dough should be very wet and very sticky. Did you use all chickpeas or a mix of chickpeas and favas ? And if you used dried chickpeas, how long did you soak them ?

The tool shapes the dough and also makes it easier to dispense into the hot oil -- it has a plunger thing that pushes the dough out. It's handy to have, especially if you're making a large quantity -- the dough is really sticky and messy -- but it's not mandatory.

Some people like to roll the dough balls in sesame seeds (or sprinkle some on top) before frying them -- often when the falafel is being served as a dish by itself (not in a sandwich.) Za'atar would probably work fine in the recipe, but it MUST have the other spices

I never even heard of a McFalafel, but then again I avoid Mickey D's like the plague.

Not sure if the dough was too dry or too soft. But it was the same texture as hummous. It tasted nice fine, rather nice in that raw unfried stage.

I soaked my dried chickpeas the night before, for about 16 -18hours. Added a bit of baking soda to the water. Then drained the water off. I cooked the chickpeas in my pressure cooker, until soft. No salt! Drained it, then let it sit until cooled. Put the chickpeas in my food processor ... until broken down (texture of hummous) Then I added the chopped parsely, cilantro, garlic, onion, zata'ar, cumin, salt, black pepper, and breadcrumbs (yesterday). Let it sit for about hour. Then with my daughter formed the balls. Heated the oil ... then fried. Many of the balls seemed to just melt into the oil. Maybe my dough was too smooth. I donnow. I have never been showed the exact texture ...

Me too, avoid McDonald's ... and say elhamdullah it has not infiltrated Algeria! My inquery was more of a joke! Why they bothered ... I donnow! Almost just as dumb as their Egyptian campigan during Ramadan! Like who would be breaking fast there?

OK then I think the dough was probably too soft -- that *would* make it melt away in hot oil. Try processing the chickpeas a lot less -- making it smooth like hummus is too much. The chickpeas should retain a lot of texture, sort of like chunky peanut butter.

At least it tasted good !

Hmm ok ... will try this next time! Thanks!

mmmmm pickles! Ok I cheat. If you are talking about regular green pickled cucumbers, I never make them...EVER.
The reason being, I can't ever find cucumbers small enough. So I buy the Ziyad brand premium gold pickles, extra small size. They are really good.

jp ditto on the extra small pickles, we get the GINORMOUS can, throw em in a tupperware and they last a good month or two, we eat em with every meal..

BTW what are wild cucumbers anwyway? I keep seeing this wild cucumber pickle jar in the market. The pickles look more like extra skinny squashed then cukes. I assume they are some ME thing, since they were packed in Lebanon. Anyone know about these?