Falafel Salad

This Falafel Salad Bowl is an easy and delicious meatless-meal loaded with fresh greens, hummus, cucumber, tomatoes, olives and crispy falafel. Perfect any time you’re craving Mediterranean flavors and comes together quickly when you use meal-prepped falafel. 

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Updated February 2021

Easy Falafel Salad Recipe

Craving a healthy and tasty meatless meal? This Falafel Salad bowl is one of our go-to meals when we are craving Mediterranean cuisine. Inspired by one of our favorite local restaurants, this one is loaded with crispy greens, fresh veggies, olives, falafel, hummus and tahini.

It comes together fairly quickly especially if you already have some of our falafel and hummus on hand. To keep this salad bowl a 30–minute recipe, we make this falafel recipe ahead of time and keep them on hand in the freezer. That way, we always have falafel ready to go. Plus, our falafel recipe comes together quicker than most traditional falafel and you can even make it in the oven or the air fryer.

Why we love this salad recipe

• Vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free and comes together quickly
• Healthy and full of delicious veggies and protein
• Fresh, flavorful, crunchy and perfect when you’re craving Mediterranean flavors

Mediterranean Salad Ingredients

• Crispy lettuce – we like to use a mix of crispy greens. Iceberg lettuce, green leaf lettuce and escarole lettuce is our facorite. You also use boston lettuce or romaine lettuce if that is what you have on hand.
• Cucumbers – we like to use Persian cucumbers but you can use English cucumbers or any cucumber you like.
• Tomatoes – cherry tomatoes or grape tomatoes are always in season and work great here.
• Kalamata olives. You can keep them whole or remove the pits and slice them in half.
• Red Onion – diced
• Hummus – we always make a double batch of this hummus recipe and store in the fridge.
• Falafel – to keep this salad bowl a 30-minute recipe, we make this falafel recipe ahead of time and keep them on hand in the freezer.
• Tahini dressing – recipe below
• Freshly chopped parsley

Optional:

• Feta cheese. You can use sheep’s or goat’s milk cheese or dairy-free vegan feta from Violife.

For the Lemon Tahini Dressing:

• Tahini
• Garlic clove – grated or finely minced
• Lemon – you’ll need juice from one lemon
• Dill and parsley – finely chopped
• Salt + pepper to taste
• Water, as needed to thin out

To make Falafel

1. Place drained chickpeas in a food processor with onion and garlic. Gently pulse for about 30 seconds until the chickpeas are mostly smooth.
2. Add lemon juice, parsley, coriander, nutritional yeast, paprika, cumin, ground coriander, salt and pepper. Blitz again until combined and then stir in the flour and baking soda.
3. Take a tablespoon of the mixture and roll into a ball or form into patties. Repeat with remaining mixture.
4. Pan fry, bake or air fry falafel.

How to make Falafel Salad

1. How to make the vinaigrette: In a bowl or a jar, combine the ingredients for the dressing. Whisk or shake to combine. Taste and adjust seasonings to taste or add more or less water as needed to thin out the dressing.
2. Assemble salad: To a large bowl, add a bed of greens and drizzle some dressing. Toss to coat then top the salad with tomatoes, cucumber, onions and falafel.
3. Add toppings: Sprinkle with olives, chopped parsley and drizzle with more dressing. Season with salt and black pepper, to taste.
4. Transfer to serving bowls: Divide into salad bowls and serve with with more dressing and hummus.

Make ahead and freezer instructions

To make ahead: Simply combine all of the falafel ingredients together and store in an airtight container or a large bowl covered with plastic wrap in the fridge for up to 2 days. When you’re ready to cook, remove the bowl from the fridge and form into patties.

To freeze: Once you form the mixture into patties or balls, place them on a large baking sheet and freeze for at least 40 minutes, or until firm. Transfer the hardened falafel patties into a large resealable freezer bag for up to 3 months.When ready to cook, fry or bake them straight from the freezer. You will need to adjust the cooking time.

Other ways to serve falafel

Crispy baked falafel are best served hot on the same day. We think vegan falafel are delicious on their own, over salads, pitas, wraps, or over cauliflower rice along with some:

• Tzatziki or tahini sauce
• hummus OR Spinach Tahini Hummus

More delicious Mediterranean and salad recipes you will love:

Shakshuka

Chicken Shawarma Salad

Greek Chicken Souvlaki Bowls

5 from 9 votes

Print

Falafel Salad

Author: Kelly

Ingredients

Salad

• 2 Persian cucumbers , washed and chopped, may also sub 1 medium English cucumber (with seeds removed)
• 4 cups chopped mixed greens , we like to use a mix of Iceberg, green leaf lettuce and escarole. Romaine or boston lettuce work too.
• 1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes , cut into halves
• 1/4 cup diced red onion
• 1/4 cup Kalamata olives , whole or pitted and cut into halves
• 2 tablespoon fresh chopped parsley

Serve with

• 6 falafel , our favorite recipe
• hummus , our favorite recipe

Tahini Dressing

• 1/4 cup tahini
• 1 garlic clove , grated or finely minced
• 1 lemon , juiced
• 1/4 teaspoon fresh dill , finely chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon fresh parsley , finely chopped
• fine sea salt and black pepper , to taste
• water , as needed to thin out
• 1 tbsp maple syrup , optional to taste. You can use any liquid sweetener of choice (honey, organic agave, SF maple syrup, yacon syrup, date syrup etc.)

Instructions

1. Make the vinaigrette: In a bowl or a jar, combine the ingredients for the dressing. Whisk or shake to combine. Taste and adjust seasonings / sweetener as needed and add more or less water to thin out the dressing. 

2. Assemble salad: To a large bowl, add a bed of greens and drizzle some dressing. Toss to coat then top the salad with tomatoes, cucumber, onions and falafel.Add toppings: Sprinkle with olives, chopped parsley and drizzle with more dressing. Season with salt and black pepper, to taste.  

   Transfer to serving bowls: Divide into salad bowls and serve with with more dressing and hummus.