♪ ♪ (sizzling) ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ - This week on Milk Street, we hit the road in search of the very best falafel, and we ended up in Jordan.

We found something that's crispy on the outside, but light and herb-filled on the inside.

Now, we did taste falafel at a number of restaurants, like Hashem, and then also the Restaurant of Damascus Hill.

We ended up visiting Rawan Mohamed Abuead for a falafel cooking lesson.

We also learned to make baked kefta with tahini.

And then we traveled to Morocco for a very special carrot salad.

Please stay tuned.

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♪ ♪ (sizzling) ♪ ♪ (sizzling) ♪ ♪ - (speaking Arabic): ♪ ♪ (sizzling) ♪ ♪ (people talking in background, car horns honking) (sizzling) - (speaking Arabic): (whirring) (sizzling) (sizzling) ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ - So, falafel, I have two things to say about falafel.

First of all, a lot of falafel you get locally, it's heavy, right?

- Very.

- And it should be really crispy on the outside, light on the inside-- it should be fresh.

So we were in Jordan, and we came across a style that we really loved, which was all the things we just mentioned.

The second thing is, this is a good recipe for making at home.

- It really is.

And it's just crisp on the outside.

These ones from Jordan are particularly light, so you've got warm spices balanced with these really fresh flavors from fresh herbs.

- I haven't seen Lynn this excited in months.

So we're going to start with chickpeas.

You can also make it with fava beans, too, right?

- That's true.

We're going to make it with chickpeas.

And one thing that you may or may not know about falafel is, the chickpeas are not cooked... - Before they're fried.

- ...before they're fried.

So you really have to soak them, 12 hours at least, ahead of time.

We always soak chickpeas with salt, but in this recipe, we added a little bit of baking soda, too.

I know you have things to say.

- Can I do the science part now?

- You're just waiting.

- I love the science.

Sodium is in salt and obviously in baking soda.

Sodium bicarbonate.

Those ions replace some of the calcium and magnesium ions in the outer part of the bean, which softens them up, which means they're creamy, they absorb water nicely, and they don't burst apart, too.

- Right.

And since we're not going to cook these before we'd fry them, we do want to make them as ready to be broken down as possible when that frying happens.

So I'm going to take half of these chickpeas and put these into the food processor.

And then this is something that we learned when we went all over Jordan-- we had these everywhere.

A little bit of baking soda and a little bit of baking powder.

And that's sort of going to leaven these and make them really nice and light on the inside.

- But this is not something everybody does.

- No.

- Some people use it and some people don't.

- Yeah.

- But we really liked it.

- Yeah.

Salt and pepper, definitely.

And then we're going to use a Middle Eastern spice blend called baharat in here.

And this is something you can buy in Middle Eastern markets, but it's also really easy to make at home.

You probably have everything already.

This is our version of baharat.

Everyone has their own version.

- The two sort of core spices in a lot of these mixes is cumin and coriander.

That's sort of as a base.

A little bit of cardamom, as well.

Some sweetness with sugar.

Cinnamon.

It sometimes has cinnamon.

It has cloves and salt and pepper.

But it also has a little sumac, which is optional, but it has this sort of lemony zingy flavor to it, as well.

- Yeah, it's really nice in there with all of that warm spice.

So I'm going to process these for about a minute or so, just until they're roughly chopped.

(whirring) Okay.

Now I'm going to add a cup of water.

And then we'll process this half of the chickpeas until they're as close to smooth as possible.

(processor whirring) Let's take a look.

So it's mostly smooth.

This is probably as good as it's going to get at this point.

And now we can add the other half of chickpeas.

And we're adding these separately because we do want some of that texture still in there.

So we're going to process these a lot less than that.

And now the herbs.

We have parsley and cilantro here, and as you can see, there's a lot.

- But this really makes it very herby and also lightens up the interior texture, too, right?

- Absolutely.

This is a full bunch of each herb.

So now I'm just going to pulse.

It may take 50 pulses to do this, but you want to be really careful that you don't overprocess.

(processor pulsing) Okay.

- So how do you know when it's done?

- So we want this to be kind of broken down enough so that you're still left with some texture, but you don't have big pieces of hard chickpea in there.

- Okay.

- So they almost look like coarse, wet sand.

- Mm-hmm.

- So I'm just going to transfer this to a bowl, and then we're going to put it in the refrigerator for about an hour or so.

This is pretty soft, as you can see.

And we want to make sure these don't fall apart when we add them to this hot oil.

- Okay.

♪ ♪ - Okay, Chris, so to our chilled falafel mixture, I'm going to add a little bit of lemon juice and then a little bit more baking soda.

Mix that in.

All right, Chris, this is your big moment.

I'm going to have you do the frying.

So we have some oil here that should be heated up to 325 degrees.

- I'm ready.

- So scoop it.

- Yeah, it is...

It's wet.

- It is.

- Oh.

- But it's going to be so moist and airy.

- This is why you're letting me do it, I, I understand, okay.

- Once you add these falafel in, the temperature might drop, so just double-check to make sure you're still keeping that temperature.

So those should fry for about five minutes.

Okay, while you fry, I'm going to mix together what I think is just as important as the falafel themselves, our tahini yogurt sauce.

So I've got some tahini in the bowl.

I'm going to add three-quarters of a cup of boiling water.

(pan sizzling loudly) And then some whole milk yogurt.

Lemon juice.

And some salt.

And then some sesame seeds.

And I just whisk all of this together.

♪ ♪ - So I have one that's done.

- Good, take it out.

- Very exciting.

- Now it's ready.

Those look great.

Look at that craggly coating on the outside there.

- They do look crispy.

♪ ♪ That's it.

- All right, these look amazing.

We'll repeat with the second batch, and then we can come back and actually eat them with our delicious tahini sauce.

- Excellent idea.

- (chuckles) ♪ ♪ All right, great job on the frying.

- Incredibly crisp, though.

- They really are.

I think we should just build our own.

So grab a pita.

This is the best way to eat these.

Maybe three looks about right.

Some cucumber.

A little bit of crunch in there.

Tomato.

These are nice and fresh.

Certainly do not want to forget this tahini yogurt sauce.

♪ ♪ - Mm.

- (laughs) - It's messy, folks, but it's crunchy.

It's so crunchy.

Mm.

- These are so good.

Fluffy inside, and the outside is shatteringly crisp.

- And the really light and zingy tahini sauce, so it's got a little bit of everything, and you can make this ahead of time and just fry them off as you need them.

- Yup.

- Leave them in the fridge.

So we think the world's best falafel from Jordan.

Do you agree?

- I would agree.

- I agree.

♪ ♪ - Carrots are shapeshifters.

Have you noticed how they taste really different whether they're cooked or raw, and if they're raw, whether they're chopped, chunked, sliced, or shredded?

Well, this recipe, Moroccan carrot salad, uses a technique I really love to bring out the best flavor of carrots.

We're going to shred our carrots, which means we're rupturing the cells in a specific way, releasing all of that sweet starchy liquid that's going to flavor the salad.

Before I get started with my carrots, though, I'm going to build my dressing.

Let's get going.

In goes some lemon juice.

I have here some turmeric.

It's going to add a lovely flavor.

Pomegranate molasses are available in most international sections of grocery stores, as well as Middle Eastern groceries.

It has a lovely fruity, tangy taste that's going to make this dressing really pop.

I'm going to whisk this together and add some olive oil in a slow drizzle.

A little bit of salt.

Great, so my dressing is looking very emulsified.

The oil has come together.

I'm adding in some toasted cumin seeds.

And some sliced dried apricots.

This is going to add some wonderful fruity flavor to this dish.

Okay, my dressing is done.

I'm going to set this aside for about five minutes.

The apricots are going to get to soften.

I'm going to move on to my carrots.

So the secret to this dish is grating the carrots on the large holes of a box grater.

You can also use a food processor if you like.

Okay, so the last of my carrots are grated, and I just want to show you, these are the perfect size of shreds.

Anything smaller and it's going to be very limp and watery.

So the large holes in a box grater are ideal for this recipe.

In go my carrots.

Okay, and now I'm going to prep some mint.

♪ ♪ So, my mint is all chopped, and we're gonna move on to assembling the salad.

♪ ♪ So my carrots have been shredded.

My apricots are lovely and softened.

I'm ready to assemble this salad.

In go the carrots.

That gorgeous color.

And then I'm going to add a few ingredients that really make this very Moroccan in its nature.

I have some toasted chopped pistachios here for some crunch and color.

And then a rather unusual pairing, green olives, briny and meaty.

And that's going to add such a contrast of flavor and texture.

And last, the mint.

Save a little for the garnish.

Mix this up.

Okay, I'm going to taste this for seasoning.

That is really good.

This is a delicious salad.

I'm so excited to serve this.

♪ ♪ So here it is.

Some mint for a final garnish.

Our Moroccan carrot salad.

A sophisticated side salad.

It's a riot of color, taste, and texture.

You've got the shredded sweet carrots in there, the softened apricots, the earthiness of the cumin and the turmeric.

And then, of course, that unexpected pairing of crunchy pistachios and briny, meaty olives.

All brought together by that tangy, fruity pomegranate molasses dressing.

This is such a healthy and elegant side dish to serve at any party.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ - (speaking Arabic): ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ - During a recent trip to Jordan, we came across kefta in many forms.

Now, kefta itself is ground meat flavored with onions and spices.

Over here, we're most familiar with it shaped into small patties or meatballs.

In Jordan, we saw a very interesting use for it, where the kefta was pressed against the bottom and sides of a baking dish and baked together with a filling of potatoes, onions, and fresh chilies slathered in a rich tahini sauce.

So in our pursuit to learn more about this dish, we were particularly drawn to a version by a home cook in Amman named Tagreed Muhtaseb.

We will start with the tahini sauce.

This is a combination of tahini, yogurt, and lemon juice.

Tahini tends to clump and seize up whenever you add liquids to it.

So we learned a very handy trick of thinning the tahini down with a little bit of boiling water.

That hot water keeps it smooth and prevents it from clumping.

So we have a half a cup of tahini here.

We'll add about half as much hot boiling water.

So that's about a quarter-cup of water.

And we'll stir that until smooth.

There we go, okay.

Then we will add the lemon juice.

And then another quarter-cup here of the yogurt.

And this is a full-fat yogurt, not a low-fat or no-fat.

So we'll whisk that smooth.

It gets a lot lighter in color.

The texture becomes very creamy.

Good.

We'll add just a little bit of salt, about a half-teaspoon.

Whisk that in.

Okay.

You want a thick but pourable consistency.

We're going to use some of this in the dish as it bakes, and then save some to serve on the side.

Now, one of the adaptations we made was to the potatoes.

They take a lot longer to cook than the meat does.

So rather than have our kefta become overcooked, we're going to give the potatoes a head start in the oven.

And to do that, we will add some oil to them.

We'll add a little bit of salt to them, as well.

We'll give that a little toss to coat all the potatoes with a little oil.

Meanwhile, we have our oven set to a hot temperature of 450.

Okay, then we'll shingle the potatoes slightly so that they make an even layer.

We'll scatter the onions on top of that.

A little bit more oil.

And about a quarter-cup of water.

What the water does is create steam, which helps the potatoes cook a little faster.

This just needs a tight cover of aluminum foil.

This will trap the steam in.

So this goes into the oven for 30 minutes to give the potatoes that head start.

Then we'll take the foil off and leave it in for another ten minutes or so to get a little bit of browning on top.

Now that the potatoes have started, we'll make our kefta mixture.

We're going to begin with the aromatics that will flavor the meat.

We have some onion here.

We'll pulse them in the food processor to make them a little finer.

And some parsley.

A couple of cloves of crushed garlic.

And we have a whole jalapeño, seeds removed.

That's your choice, of course.

If you like hot and spicy, keep the seeds in.

Okay, close this.

(whirring) So we'll pulse this a few times, and then we'll let it go for about 30 seconds until everything is finely ground.

(whirring) Looks good.

Now we'll add a little bit of ghee to this.

Ghee, you might know, is clarified butter.

That's butter that the milk solids have been removed from during melting.

So it's a pure form of fat.

If you don't have ghee, it's perfectly fine to use regular butter.

We'll pulse this in.

(whirring) Okay, good.

So we have a really nicely, finely ground mixture of aromatics.

We'll add these to the ground beef in the bowl.

It's very traditional to use either lamb or beef in your kefta, and either is acceptable.

Now we'll season this with a little salt and pepper, of course.

And then we'll add a Middle Eastern spice blend called baharat.

It's a delicious spice blend that you can buy pre-mixed in the grocery store.

Okay, and we're going to mix this very thoroughly.

This is a richly flavored meat mixture.

The spices in it, as well as all those aromatics, bring about a lot of flavor added to the meat.

You might also notice we're not using any binder in this.

There's no breadcrumb, no egg, nothing of that sort.

It's a really nicely textured beef kefta.

All right, I'm going to rinse my fingers a little bit and use a moist hand to shape the torpedo-shaped meatballs.

We'll measure using a quarter cup.

We want nine of these.

Here we go.

And we have just removed our potatoes and onions from the oven.

They're about three-quarters of the way cooked.

So we'll shape our torpedoes and place these on top as we go.

♪ ♪ Okay, this is kefta number nine.

We'll add that right to the middle.

We'll now return this to our hot oven for about ten minutes.

That lets the beef just start browning on top, and some of the juices start releasing down into the potato.

And then we will slather on some of our delicious tahini sauce.

♪ ♪ Here we go.

Beautifully browned on top.

We opt to use 80% lean ground beef.

That means, 80% lean means 20% fat.

And all those delicious fat juices soaked down into the potatoes and onions and add a ton of flavor.

So we're going to use some of the tahini here on top of the beef, and then we'll use some of the tahini to serve this with after, and that gives it a layer of bright flavor.

Remember all the lemon juice we have in this and the yogurt?

This is a very tangy, delicious tahini sauce.

So we're coating the kefta completely with the tahini sauce.

And when we put it back into the oven, the sauce is going to deepen, and caramelize, and reduce, and the flavor is going to permeate throughout the entire dish.

So we're going to put this back into the oven.

It's still very hot at 450 degrees.

It will take another ten minutes or so before everything's ready.

And this is our baked kefta with tahini.

Simple and comforting.

We're going to add some bright spots of color with some chopped parsley.

This also adds a little bit of vegetal flavor to this, and then it is ready to serve.

Warm or room temperature, is good either way.

We serve it with a little bit of parsley, a little bit of pita bread, a squeeze of lemon, if you'd like.

And of course, a lot of that delicious, fresh tahini sauce we made earlier.

Yogurt and lemon with bright, punchy flavors.

(chuckles) This really is so much more than the sum of its parts.

The multiple textures in here, the flavors that come through with the lemony tahini sauce, and all those aromatics that we put in the kefta and the soft, warm potatoes.

It's a humble, homestyle dish that will pretty much keep you at the table for seconds.

You can get this recipe and all the recipes from our season at MilkStreetTV.com.

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- Funding for this series was provided by the following: - That meal.

You sautéed, you seared, and you served, cooking with All-Clad, bonded cookware designed, engineered, and assembled in the U.S.A. for over 50 years.

All-Clad: for all your kitchen adventures.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪