Caviar To Tzatziki: Try Some Side-Dishes To Pair Up With Falafel
Image Credit: Side-Dishes With Falafel

Falafel can be deep-fried, rolled, baked or smashed into a patty. It either can be subserved in a flatbread, tortilla, pita, or just alone. Falafel also can be a street meal, protein's salad or party food. It enhances the taste while making your boring Tuesday better. When it gets to serving, falafel is best paired with caviar and tzatziki. So, brace yourself for the side dish delectability and try a few recipes shared by Siddharth Dogra, former Sous Chef of CUT by Wolfgang Puck.

EGGPLANT CAVIAR

  • 6 to 8 eggplant (Approx 415g drained)
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • ½ roasted garlic 
  • 2 tablespoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon + ¼ teaspoon cumin (toasted and ground)
  • ½ large diced onion (sautéed in 2 tablespoon olive oil until completely tender, but no colour)
  • 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 1 tablespoon sugar

Method:

  1. To roast garlic, drizzle olive oil on them, wrap them in foil, and cook in the oven until slightly browned and tender.
  2. With a fork, poke holes into the eggplant until wholly covered in holes. Roast on the grill until slightly charred and extremely tender. Place in ⅓ pan and cover with plastic wrap. Allow to steam for 5-10 minutes to peel them easier. Peel outside skin cut off the top and allow the pulp to drain through a china cap overnight. 
  3. Chop eggplant roughly and put in robot coupe. Add everything but olive oil. Purée until smooth and slowly drizzle in olive oil. Adjust for seasoning.

GREEK TZATZIKI

  • ¼ cup cucumber (peeled, seeded, micro grated)
  • 1 teaspoon chopped marjoram or fresh oregano
  • 1 teaspoon chopped parsley
  • 2 garlic cloves (micro grated)
  • 2 tablespoon chopped dill
  • 2 tablespoon lemon juice
  • Salt and white pepper
  • 2 teaspoon sugar
  • ¼ cup olive oil
  • 2 cups labneh 

Mix everything. Whisk in olive oil. Last and adjust salt and pepper.


CUCUMBER-YOGHURT (DIP)

  • 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
  • 1 cup (240g) nonfat yoghurt  
  • 1 cup (240g) greek yoghurt
  • ½ medium red onion (80g)
  • 2 teaspoon garam masala
  • 1 cucumber (75g), peeled  
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 2 cup (20g) cilantro 
  • 1.5 cups (20g) mint
  • ¼ cup honey 
  • Salt and black pepper (as per taste)

Method:

  1. Peel and seed cucumbers. Chop cucumber and onion into small dice.
  2. Except for yoghurt and herbs, put all the ingredients in a blender. Now blend until smooth.
  3. Add spices, blend to smooth, add yoghurt last to mix it and achieve an even colour.

At last, sharing a quick falafel recipe for you

FALAFEL                                                                

  • Jalapeno seeds and stems removed: 60 gm
  • Garbanzo beans already soaked: 1800 gm  
  • Freshly toasted cumin (ground): 4 gm
  • Salt and black pepper (as per taste)                                                                   
  • Garlic cloves sliced: 24 gm
  • Chopped parsley: 60 gm
  • Cilantro leaves: 120 gm  
  • Baking soda: 1 tsp

Method:

  1. Soak beans for 24 hours completely covered in cold water,  then measure 900 G.
  2. In a bowl, mix garbanzo beans, cilantro, parsley, garlic, jalapeno, and cumin. 
  3. In the meat grinder, grind the items from the bowl. 
  4. Mix in salt, pepper and baking soda to the ground mixture. 
  5. Finish with sparkling water to bind the mixture. 
  6. Spread mixture onto a quarter sheet tray lined with parchment. Smooth it out and press down with another tray to even it out. Punch out circles and lay them on a clean sheet tray: cover and freeze.
  7. Fry frozen balls to order until dark brown skin appears and outside is hard (about 3 minutes).