Chickpea fritters are an easy and tasty vegetarian recipe for weeknight dinners and meal prep. And best of all, they are ready in 30 minutes.
We think you’ll love them dipped in marinara sauce or tzatziki sauce. They are also delicious in pita bread with yogurt tahini sauce.
Table of Contents
Introduction
Our chickpea fritters are small patties made with canned or cooked chickpeas, fresh herbs, spices, and other simple ingredients mashed with a potato masher, fork, or food processor.
Like our readers’ favorite zucchini fritters, this recipe is developed for everyday meals, and it’s fast and easy to prepare with minimal effort.
And just like our other Mediterranean-inspired recipes – think of our whole roasted cauliflower, falafel, hummus, and mujadara – chickpea fritters are delicious drizzled or dipped in a sauce (Louise loves them with tzatziki 🧄, I’m team marinara sauce 🍅).
Have them for lunch in a Mediterranean bowl or for dinner next to a creamy tahini salad, fatteh, or fattoush.
We both think you’ll love them as part of a mezze (appetizer) platter with other small dishes from the Eastern Mediterranean region like smoky baba ganoush, herby tabouli, refreshing shirazi salad, and creamy muhammara.
Ingredients
Find complete ingredient list, quantities, and substitutions in the recipe box at the bottom of the page.
- Chickpeas: you can use canned chickpeas or dried chickpeas that you previously cooked in water. Here’s our guide on how to cook chickpeas.
- All-purpose flour: substitute chickpea flour to make the recipe gluten-free.
- Grated parmesan: substitute nutritional yeast to make the recipe vegan.
- Cumin and coriander: substitute dried oregano or dried Italian herbs.
Instructions
Step 1: Add all ingredients to a large mixing bowl and mash with a fork or potato masher. The mixture should stick together into patties. Add 1 – 2 tablespoons of water if necessary.
Tip: Alternatively, pulse the ingredients in a food processor for a few seconds. Don’t over-mix, though.
Step 2: Shape the mixture into 12 small chickpea patties.
Tip: They should be smaller than you think. This way, it’s easier to cook them and serve them.
Step 3: pick your cooking method: oven, skillet, air-fryer.
a) Oven-bake: arrange the chickpea patties on the prepared baking sheet and brush them with olive oil. Bake in a preheated oven at 400°F or 200°C for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.
b) Pan-fry: heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a non-stick skillet. Add the patties and cook them on medium heat for about 3 minutes on each side. Turn them gently with a spatula halfway through cooking.
c) Air-fry: brush the bottom of your air fryer with oil to prevent the patties from sticking. Arrange the patties on a single layer, brush them with a lick of olive oil, and air fry them at 400°F or 200 °C for about 15 minutes or until golden brown.
Step 4: arrange on a serving platter and enjoy with fresh parsley on top, a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, and a dip or sauce of your choice.
Serve them with
Chickpea fritters are inspired by Mediterranean and Middle-Eastern flavors, so they go well with anything from those regions.
You can serve them with a dip, or as part of a salad, mediterranean bowl, or hummus sandwich.
We think you’ll love them in a easy homemade pita bread with smoky babaganoush, sliced tomato, cucumber, and easy pickled red onions.
More Chickpea Recipes
Chickpeas or garbanzo beans are a nutritious and versatile ingredient to make delicious and easy meals. For example, try our:
For even more ideas, check out our 35+ chickpea recipes list.
If you tried this Chickpea Fritters recipe or any other recipe on our blog, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let us know how it goes in the comments. We love hearing from you!
Chickpea Fritters
Ingredients
- 2 cans (15 oz each) chickpeas or 3 cups cooked chickpeas
- 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup grated parmesan or nutritional yeast
- 3 tablespoons parsley finely chopped
- 1 medium onion finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic pressed, minced, or grated
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 2 tablespoons water
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 twists black pepper
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a large mixing bowl.Coarsely mash with a fork or potato masher. The mixture should stick together into patties. Add more water if necessary.
- Shape mixture into 12 small chickpea patties.
- Pick your favorite cooking method:a) Oven-bake: arrange the chickpea patties on the prepared baking sheet and brush them with olive oil. Bake in a preheated oven at 400°F or 200°C for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.b) Pan-fry: heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a non-stick skillet. Add the patties and cook them on medium heat for about 3 minutes on each side. Turn them gently with a spatula halfway through cooking.c) Air-fry: brush the bottom of your air fryer with oil to prevent the patties from sticking. Arrange the patties on a single layer, brush them with a lick of olive oil, and air fry them at 400°F or 200 °C for about 15 minutes or until golden brown.
- Arrange on a serving platter and enjoy with fresh parsley on top, a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, and a dip or sauce of your choice.
Video
Notes
- Chickpeas: you can use canned chickpeas or learn how to cook dried chickpeas at home.
- All-purpose flour: substitute chickpea flour to make the recipe gluten-free.
- Grated parmesan: substitute nutritional yeast to make the recipe vegan.
- Cumin and coriander: substitute dried oregano or Italian herbs.
- Adjust water content: Add water gradually (2 tbsp at first, then more if needed) until the mixture is easy to shape without being too sticky.
- Make them small: Smaller fritters cook more evenly and are easier to serve.
- Watch the salt: Canned chickpeas are salty, so add only about 1/2 tsp of salt for 2 cans, adjusting as needed.
Fraze
Delicious and mouthwatering recipe. I made a batch and had them with tzazeki sauce.
Thank you for every content you created its helpful for me and i loved all ur meals So i just want to say keep going …
Ancora devo farle ma so già che saranno gustose specialmente se fritte in padella, cotte in forno secondo me risultano troppo asciutte grazie x la ricetta siete fantastici oltre che belli e simpatici un saluto dalla bella Romagna miaaaaaa😍
Grazie mille per il messaggio Annalisa,
si le migliori sono in padella 🙂
Viva la Romagna 🥳
Great recipe. I’m not much of a cook but these turned out delicious. Served them with your tahini sauce in a Mediterranean bowl with home-made pita-like bread. It made a beautiful meal. Thank you for an easy to follow recipe, spice substitutions, and cooking method variations.