These sweet potato falafels come out crispy outside and soft inside with no frying oil. Make them in the air fryer in 15 minutes or bake them in the oven. Canned or dried chickpeas both work, and they're gluten-free with 10 grams of plant protein.
Crispy Sweet Potato Falafel At A Glance
- ✅ Recipe Name: Crispy Sweet Potato Falafel (Air Fryer or Oven)
- 🕒 Ready In: ~35 minutes (10 minutes prep, 25 minutes cook)
- 👪 Serves: 4 (makes about 15 falafel)
- 🍽 Calories: ~184 per serving
- 💪 Protein: 10g plant protein
- 🌾 Fiber: 8g per serving
- 🥣 Main Ingredients: Sweet potato, chickpeas (canned or dried), fresh parsley and cilantro, garlic, cumin, chickpea flour
- 🔪 Equipment: Food processor or high-speed blender, plus an air fryer or baking sheet
- 📖 Dietary Info: Gluten-free, dairy-free, vegan, high-protein, no frying oil
- ⭐ Why You'll Love It: Most baked falafel comes out dry or falls apart. These stay crispy outside and soft inside without a drop of frying oil, and canned chickpeas work just as well as dried, so you can skip the overnight soak and still get real falafel texture.
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Sweet potatoes are a staple in our house, usually as air fryer sweet potato steak wedges, but falafel is what I make when I want dinner to feel like a treat and still keep me full. These come together in 35 minutes and have 10 grams of plant protein and 8 grams of fiber per serving, which is the kind of dinner I end up making on repeat.
I spent months on this one, mostly chasing two things: falafel that gets crispy without a drop of frying oil, and falafel you can make with canned chickpeas. Almost every recipe I read said canned wouldn't work. My early batches were dense and a little gummy inside, and it took me longer than I want to admit to realize I was blending the dough into a paste instead of pulsing it.
Turns out both are doable, and I'll walk you through exactly what I changed. Serve these with low-fat tzatziki, 5-minute blender hummus, and Mediterranean quinoa tabbouleh salad, and you've got dinner.
Jump to:
- Crispy Sweet Potato Falafel At A Glance
- Canned vs Dried Chickpeas For Falafels
- Ingredients You'll Need
- Ingredient Substitutions & Variations
- How to Make Sweet Potato Falafel (Step-by-Step)
- Recipe Video (Step-by-Step)
- My Tips for Crispy Falafel
- How to Air Fry Falafel
- Why Are These Sweet Potato Falafels Green?
- What to Serve with Falafel
- How to Store, Freeze and Make Ahead
- Sweet Potato Falafel FAQs
- More Mediterranean Recipes You'll Love
- 📖 Recipe
- 💬 Comments
Canned vs Dried Chickpeas For Falafels
Both work here, they just behave a little differently.
Traditional falafel uses dried chickpeas soaked overnight and never cooked. They stay firm, so the dough holds together on its own. Canned chickpeas are already cooked and full of water, which is why most recipes tell you to skip them. Dry them off well and they work just fine.
- Dried: Soak 1 heaping cup for 12 to 24 hours, then drain. Don't cook them. These give you the firmer, more traditional texture and they hold their shape best.
- Canned: Drain and pat them completely dry. The inside comes out a little softer, and honestly some people like them better that way.
I use dried when I've planned ahead and canned when I haven't.
Ingredients You'll Need
You need eight ingredients here, plus salt and pepper. Nothing unusual, and they're naturally gluten-free.
- Sweet Potatoes: Garnet or Jewel work best. They bind the dough and bring the fiber. I haven't tested this with Japanese white-fleshed sweet potatoes, so I can't say how those hold up.
- Chickpeas: Canned or dried both work, and I covered the difference above. If you end up with leftover canned chickpeas, crispy air fryer chickpeas are the best way to use them.
- Parsley and Cilantro: Use both if you can. Not a cilantro person? Swap in more parsley or some dill.
- Garlic: Two cloves, fresh. The jarred stuff gets lost in here.
- Cumin: This is what makes falafel taste like falafel. Don't leave it out.
- Baking Soda: Just a quarter teaspoon, and it does more than you'd expect. It lightens the dough so the inside stays soft while the outside crisps up.
- Flour: Two tablespoons is all you need to bind everything. Chickpea flour is my pick, but oat, gluten-free all-purpose, or regular flour all work. Skip almond and coconut flour; they absorb too much and dry the falafel out.
- Salt and Pepper: Half a teaspoon each.
Scroll to the recipe card for quantities!
Ingredient Substitutions & Variations
- Flour swaps: Oat flour and gluten-free all-purpose both work in place of chickpea flour. Almond and coconut flour don't; they soak up too much moisture, and the falafel come out dry.
- Keeping them gluten-free: Chickpea, oat, and gluten-free all-purpose flour all keep this recipe gluten-free. Regular all-purpose flour works too if you don't need it to be.
- No cilantro: Use all parsley instead, or swap in dill. The falafel are just as good, and nobody's forcing you to eat soap-flavored herbs.
- Leftover sweet potato: Already have roasted or baked sweet potato in the fridge? Mash it up and use it. Skip straight to step 4.
- Make them spicy: Add a pinch of cayenne or red pepper flakes to the dough.
- Lemon zest: One teaspoon brightens everything up. This is my favorite version.
- Sesame crust: Roll the shaped balls in sesame seeds before cooking for extra crunch on the outside.
How to Make Sweet Potato Falafel (Step-by-Step)
Here's how to make homemade sweet potato falafel. Full quantities and timing are in the recipe card below.
- Cook the sweet potato. Microwave it until fork-tender, then scoop the flesh out and discard the skin. This is the same technique I use for my Homemade Sweet Potato Gnocchi.
- Pulse the dough. Add the sweet potato, chickpeas, herbs, garlic, and spices to a food processor. Pulse 2 to 3 times until crumbly, not smooth.
- Fold in the flour. Move it to a bowl and stir the flour in by hand so you don't over-process the dough.
- Shape and spray. Roll into about 15 balls, place them on a baking sheet, and spray with oil.
- Cook until crispy. Bake at 375°F for 20 to 25 minutes, flipping halfway, or air fry at 400°F for 10 to 15 minutes.
Have leftover sweet potato?
Already-roasted or baked sweet potato works perfectly here. Mash it up and start at step 2. It saves you the microwave step and adds a little extra sweetness from the roasting.
Recipe Video (Step-by-Step)
My Tips for Crispy Falafel
- Pulse, don't blend. Stop when the mixture is crumbly and just barely holds together. A smooth paste is what makes falafel dense and gummy inside, and it's the mistake I made for months.
- Dry your chickpeas. Especially canned. Pat them with a paper towel before they go in. Wet chickpeas mean wet dough, and wet dough steams instead of crisping.
- Don't skip the oil spray. A quick spritz on top is what gives you an actual crust. It's a fraction of what frying uses.
- Give them space. In the air fryer basket or on the pan, the falafel shouldn't touch. Crowded falafel steam each other.
- Eat them hot. Falafel are at their crispiest straight out of the oven or air fryer. They're still good later; they're just softer.
How to Air Fry Falafel
The air fryer is how I make these most often. They crisp up faster than in the oven, and you don't have to heat up the kitchen.
- Preheat the air fryer to 400°F.
- Place the shaped falafel in the basket in a single layer, not touching.
- Spray the tops with olive or avocado oil.
- Air fry 10 to 15 minutes, until crisp and golden outside.
A few things worth knowing:
- Work in batches if you need to. Crowding the basket traps steam and you lose the crust.
- No flipping required, though you can shake the basket halfway if you want more even color.
- Frozen falafel goes straight in. No thawing. Add a few extra minutes.
- Every air fryer runs a little differently. Start checking at 10 minutes the first time you make these.
Why Are These Sweet Potato Falafels Green?
The fresh parsley and cilantro. A cup and a half of herbs goes into a fairly small batch, so the dough turns green even with all that orange sweet potato. Traditional falafel is green inside for the same reason. If you use all parsley instead of cilantro, they'll come out a slightly deeper green.
What to Serve with Falafel
- Tzatziki: My go-to. Cool and tangy against the warm, spiced falafel. Here's my healthy tzatziki.
- Hummus and pita chips: The hummus takes five minutes in a blender, and with air fryer pita chips you've got a full mezze plate. Here's my blender hummus recipe.
- Tahini sauce: Thin tahini with lemon juice, garlic, and a splash of water until it's pourable, then drizzle it over the top.
- A crisp salad: I love Greek spinach salad or Mediterranean dense bean salad if you want the protein.
- In a pita or wrap: Stuff them with veggies and sauce. Same idea as my halloumi gyros.
- Over rice or quinoa: Makes it a bowl. Add whatever crunchy vegetables you have.
How to Store, Freeze and Make Ahead
- Fridge: Cool completely, then store in an airtight container for 3 to 4 days.
- Freezer: Freeze them cooked or uncooked. Arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet, freeze until solid, then transfer to a bag or container.
- Reheating: Oven at 350°F for 10 to 15 minutes, or air fryer at 400°F for 3 to 5 minutes. Skip the microwave; they go soggy.
- Cooking from frozen: Straight into the oven or air fryer, no thawing. Add a few extra minutes.
- Make ahead: Shape the falafel and keep them in the fridge, then cook them off when you're ready.
Sweet Potato Falafel FAQs
Yes. Drain them well and pat them dry with a paper towel so the dough isn't too wet. The inside comes out a little softer than with dried chickpeas, and if the mixture feels loose, add flour one tablespoon at a time.
Yes, if you're using dried. Soak them 12 to 24 hours at room temperature, then drain. Don't cook them first. They finish cooking inside the falafel, and that's what gives you the firmer, traditional texture.
Usually too much moisture. Make sure the sweet potato isn't watery and that canned chickpeas are patted dry, then add flour a tablespoon at a time until the mixture holds a ball without sticking to your hands.
You over-processed the dough. Pulse only 2 to 3 times, until the mixture is crumbly and just barely holds together. A smooth paste bakes up gummy.
Yes, as long as you use chickpea, oat, or gluten-free all-purpose flour. Everything else in the recipe is naturally gluten-free.
Yes. The falafel themselves are vegan. Just pick a plant-based dip if you're serving them with tzatziki.
Yes, and it's how I make them most often. 400°F for 10 to 15 minutes in a single layer, sprayed with oil.
More Mediterranean Recipes You'll Love
If you loved these crispy sweet potato falafels, here are a few more recipes to try next:
Did you make this recipe?
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📖 Recipe
Sweet Potato Falafel
Ingredients
- 1 large sweet potato
- 14 oz can chickpeas, drained (or 1 heaping cup dried chickpeas soaked in water overnight)
- ¾ cup parsley, roughly chopped
- ¾ cup cilantro, roughly chopped
- 2 large garlic cloves
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoon flour, chickpea, gluten-free all-purpose flour, or all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- Salt & pepper, to taste
- Olive oil or avocado oil spray, for extra crispiness
Instructions
- Choose your chickpeas: Canned or dried both work here. For dried, cover 1 heaping cup with water and soak 12 to 24 hours at room temperature, then drain. For canned, drain well and pat dry with a paper towel so the mixture is not too wet.
- Cook the sweet potato: Pierce the sweet potato several times with a fork. Microwave 3 to 5 minutes until very fork tender. Cool 5 minutes, then cut it open, scoop out the flesh, and discard the skin.
- Preheat: For the oven, preheat to 375°F and lightly grease a baking sheet. For the air fryer, preheat to 400°F.
- Make the Dough: Add the sweet potato flesh, chickpeas, parsley, cilantro, garlic, cumin, salt, pepper, and baking soda to a food processor or high-speed blender. Pulse 2 to 3 times until the mixture sticks together but is still coarse and crumbly. Do not blend to a paste or the falafels turn out dense.
- Add the flour: Transfer to a bowl and fold in the flour with a spatula. Folding by hand keeps you from over-pulsing the dough.
- Shape: Roll the mixture into about 15 balls using a meatball scoop or your hands.
- Bake in the oven: Place the falafels on the prepared baking sheet and spray or drizzle with oil. Bake at 375°F for 20 to 25 minutes, flipping halfway through, until crispy on both sides.
- Or air fry: Place the falafels in the basket in a single layer without touching. Spray the tops with oil. Air fry at 400°F for 10 to 15 minutes until crispy outside.
- Serve: Enjoy with hummus, tzatziki, in a gyro, over a salad, or on their own as an appetizer.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Recipe tested and developed by Tati Chermayeff, creator of Healthful Blondie. A former Division I rower, Ironman triathlete, and recipe developer based in Austin, TX - Tati creates high-protein and healthy recipes that actually taste like the real thing.
Hadley says
Great recipe! We love sweet potatoes in our house and these did not disappoint
Tati Chermayeff says
This made my day!! No joke. Happy you loved this recipe as much as me.