RecipesVegetarian and Vegetables

Chickpea & Vegetable Koftas with Tahini Sauce Recipe (Sabrina Ghayour)

With all the appeal of an indulgent kebab, these koftas are incredibly moreish on their own with a drizzle of tahini sauce on top.

Vegetarian
Chickpea & Vegetable Koftas with Tahini Sauce Recipe (Sabrina Ghayour)
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Ingredients

For the recipe:
  • 2 x 400g cans chickpeas
  • 3 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 1 carrot, peeled & grated
  • 300g sweet potato, grated with skin left on
  • small packet (30g) fresh coriander, finely chopped
  • 4 spring onions, finely sliced
  • 1tsp turmeric
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp chilli flakes
  • 4 tbsp chickpea flour (gram flour)
  • 1 egg
  • Good quality sea salt flakes & freshly ground pepper
  • vegetable oil for frying
For the Tahini sauce
  • 500g Greek yoghurt
  • 1 garlic clove, crushed
  • 2 tsp ground coriander
  • 3 tbsp thick tahini
  • 3 tbsp lemon, juice
  • Good quality sea salt & freshly ground pepper
To serve
  • 6 tortilla wraps
  • few handfuls rocket leaves
  • 1 red onion, halved & sliced

With many thanks to Sabrina Ghayour for this delicious recipe.

“As someone already had the idea of inventing falafel wraps, I came up with this lighter version, which is absolutely delicious, packs in the vegetables and can easily be adapted to suit whatever you have in the fridge. With all the appeal of an indulgent kebab, these koftas are incredibly moreish on their own with a drizzle of tahini sauce on top.”

Bazaar by Sabrina Ghayour is published by Mitchell Beazley, £26 (www.octopusbooks.co.uk). Photography by Kris Kirkham. 

Method

01
Drain both cans of chickpeas, place the chickpeas into a large mixing bowl and use a potato masher or the end of a rolling pin to mash them. Add all the remaining kofta ingredients, except the oil, and using your hands pummel or pound (which is what the word ‘kofta’ means in Persian) into a sticky, even mixture. Refrigerate the mixture while you make the tahini sauce.
02
To make the tahini sauce, combine the ingredients in a jug. Add just enough warm water to loosen the mixture to a thick pouring cream consistency. Set aside.
03
Pour enough vegetable oil into a large, deep frying pan or saucepan to fill to a depth of about 2.5cm. Heat the oil over a medium-high heat and bring to frying temperature (add a pinch of the kofta mixture: if it sizzles immediately, the oil is hot enough). Line a tray with a double layer of kitchen paper.
04
When the oil is ready for frying, scoop up a rounded dessertspoonful of the kofta mixture and use the edges of the bowl to smooth it a little. Lower it carefully into the hot oil. Repeat with the remaining mixture, but do not overcrowd the pan – fry in batches to avoid reducing the temperature of the oil. Fry the koftas for a couple of minutes on each side, or until deep golden brown, then remove them from the pan using a slotted spoon and transfer to the paper-lined tray to drain.
05
Serve 3 koftas in each tortilla wrap with a good drizzle of the tahini sauce, some rocket leaves, some sliced red onion and a final flourish of the reserved coriander.