Falafel Platter {Build A Mezze Board}

Make a falafel platter, aka a mezze board, that's as beautiful as it is tasty! You can use store bought ingredients to save time, or use my recipes to make your own falafel and dips from scratch. Falafel platters work equally well as a family dinner as they do for parties and get-togethers.

Jump to:

• What Is A Falafel Mezze Platter?
• 🧡Reasons You'll Love This Falafel Plate
• 🛒Ingredients
• 🌿How To Make The Perfect Falafel Platter
• 📝Variations
• 📖 Recipe
• Comments

What Is A Falafel Mezze Platter?

A falafel mezze platter is a traditional Middle Eastern dish consisting of small plates of various foods and flavors, designed for communal sharing and grazing. Think of a falafel platter as the Middle Eastern version of a Charcuterie Board or a crudite platter.

Falafel itself has a long history, with some scholars tracing its origins back to ancient Egypt.

The dish was popularized in the Levant region, including modern-day Lebanon, Israel, and Palestine, and has since spread around the world as a beloved vegetarian street food.

The mezze platter format allows diners to sample a variety of small bites, such as hummus, baba ghanoush, olives, and pickled vegetables, alongside the signature falafel balls.

Together, these dishes offer a flavorful and nutritious feast that reflects the cultural richness and diversity of the Middle East.

Top Tip: If you love falafel, you should check out my falafel sandwich.

🧡Reasons You'll Love This Falafel Plate

🧡Falafel is a delicious and healthy plant-based protein option, perfect for vegetarians and vegans looking for a flavorful and satisfying meal.

🧡Falafel platters are highly customizable, allowing you to mix and match different toppings and sauces to suit your personal preferences.

🧡Mezze boards that can be served in a variety of settings, from a casual lunch or dinner to a festive party or gathering with friends.

🧡If you're a fan of Mediterranean flavors, a falafel platter is a great way to try out new dishes like hummus, tahini sauce, and tabbouleh.

Jump to:

• What Is A Falafel Mezze Platter?
• 🧡Reasons You'll Love This Falafel Plate
• 🛒Ingredients
• 🌿How To Make The Perfect Falafel Platter
• 📝Variations
• 📖 Recipe
• Comments

🛒Ingredients

Below, you'll see a list of the ingredients that I used to make the falafel platter you see in the photo above. I'll also give you alternative suggestions further down in this post, so you can build your own creative mezze board.

• Falafel: There's 4 options here:
  • You can make your own falafel using my easy falafel recipe (below) that only requires canned chickpeas. It's simple and delicious.
  • If you prefer to use dried chickpeas and your air fryer, you can make the falafel balls in my falafel gyro recipe. The great thing about this recipe is that you can pass on the deep frying, without sacrificing that crunchy exterior and fluffy interior that great falafel is known for.
  • If you want to make deep red colored falafel, simply add 2 tablespoons of beet juice to the falafel recipe, and omit the lemon juice.
  • Alternatively, you can make your falafel platter using store bought falafel, which is readily available at most grocery stores.
• Hummus: You can buy hummus in a variety of colors and flavors at most grocery stores. Alternatively, make my creamy gluten free hummus recipe. You could also include Skordalia, a delicious Greek potato and garlic dip.
• Fresh Veggies: I used the traditional cucumber and cherry tomatoes, which when combined make a tasty cucumber salad. You might also choose to include veggies like carrots, roasted eggplant, roasted red pepper and wedges of citrus fruit like lemons or limes.
• Feta Cheese: There's so many wonderful brands of vegan cheese available. Try Daiya Vegan Feta Cheese.
• Olives: Kalamata olives are the king of black olives, and with good reason. However, any good quality olives will do the trick. Try a combination of green and black olives.
• Vegan Yogurt Sauce: All you need to do to make the most fabulous vegan yogurt sauce is to mix together your favorite plain vegan yogurt with a bit of lemon juice and herbs. Here's a simple recipe:
  • 1 cup plain vegan yogurt
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
  • ¼ cup chopped fresh mint
  • Juice of ½ lemon
  • Salt and pepper to taste
• Flatbread: Three pieces of pita bread cut into triangles is all you need. If you're feeling ambitious, you won't regret trying my Turkish flatbread.
• Fresh Herbs: Decorate you falafel platter with herbs. I've used dill, but parsley, cilantro and mint would also be good choices.

🌿How To Make The Perfect Falafel Platter

You can use my easy falafel recipe to make perfect falafel for your platter, or you can buy ready made falafels at your grocery store.

1. How To Make Falafel From Scratch

• Drain your chickpeas. Finely chop the onion, garlic, parsley and dill.
• Add all the falafel ingredients to a food processor and pulse until the mixture resembles a course meal.
• Transfer the falafel mixture to an airtight container, and put it in the fridge to chill for at least one hour, ideally overnight.
• While the falafel is chilling prepare the tahini sauce.

2. Easy Homemade Lemon Tahini Sauce

• Add your garlic and tahini paste to a food processor and blend until the garlic is fully incorporated.
• Add the sea salt, olive oil and lemon juice and blend again, scraping down the sides several times.
• Add a splash of warm water to thin the paste. Add water 1 tablespoon at a time until the consistency is to your liking.
• Store your tahini sauce in the fridge until you're ready to assemble your falafel plate.

3. Cook The Falafel

• Using wet hands, shape the falafel into balls or disk shaped patties that are approximately ½ inch thick.
• In a medium saucepan, heat about 3 inches of oil over medium high heat. When the oil begins to bubble, drop the falafel patties in, using a slotted spoon. Be careful to keep the falafel evenly spaced out in the oil. You may need to work in batches. Fry the falafel until it's golden brown. Keep a close eye on them, as they burn quickly. I've found that 2-3 minutes is ideal.
• Transfer the falafel balls to a paper towel lined plate. Let it cool off slightly before eating.

🧆Assemble Your Falafel Platter

1. If you're going to make your falafels from scratch, make them first. You'll need to allow at least an hour for the falafel dough to chill in the fridge, so you can get on with making your dips or assembling your platter.
2. Next, make your tahini sauce using the simple recipe and instructions below.
3. If you want to make your own hummus, do that now. Here's a recipe for creamy hummus. Above, in the ingredients section, you'll see a basic recipe for yogurt dip. Make the dip.
4. You can either use store bought pickled onion, or you can make your own.
5. Slice your cucumber and cherry tomatoes.
6. Assemble your platter by putting your dips in small bowls. You can see that I've put my pickled onions, yogurt sauce and tahini sauce in small bowl, and I've put my hummus directly onto the board and topped it with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.
7. Build your falafel platter out by piling your falafel balls up in two different areas of your mezze board.
8. Tuck your bread underneath the falafels.
9. Fill in the blank spaces of your board with olives, veggies and a pile of feta cheese.
10. Arrange fresh herbs around the parameter of your falafel platter. If you want to add an extra touch sprinkle your mezze board with some sesame seeds and spices like sumac. Or, give it a few grinds of fresh black pepper.

📝Variations

You can totally customize your falafel board to suit what you have on hand, or just based on your own preferences. Here's a few ideas:

• Use a variety of dips like baba ganoush, vegan tzatziki sauce or ful medames.
• Add small bowls of salad to your falafel platter. Tabbouleh would be a great choice, or you could try my beautifully colored cous cous salad with beets.
• Use veggies like sliced red peppers, carrots and baby gem lettuce leaves.
• Add pickled beets, pickled turnips or pickled mustard seeds to your mezze board.
• Add a hot sauce like sambal oelek.
• Add sesame crackers to your board for scooping up dips.
• Nuts like almonds, pistachios or cashews would be a great choice.
• Add a bowl of colorful pomegranate seeds.

Frequently Asked Questions

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📖 Recipe