Falafel with creamy tahini sauce

Soak the dried chickpeas in the water at least 12 hours, preferably 24. Do not cook them.

Alternative quick soak: add the dried chickpeas to boiling water with the baking soda, kill the heat, lid on, and hold in a 180 oven for 90 minutes.

Drain the soaked chickpeas in a colander one to two minutes.

Pulse the drained chickpeas in a food processor about 25 to 30 times, scraping the sides after about 12 pulses, to a texture like chopped garlic.

Move the chopped chickpeas to a mixing bowl.

In the same processor jar combine red onion, garlic, jalapeno, salt, cumin, coriander, turmeric, parsley and cilantro.

Spin about a minute to a smooth herb paste.

Stir the herb paste into the chopped chickpeas. Squeeze a handful: it should come together and hold. If it is crumbly, return it to the processor for another 10 to 15 seconds.

Chill the mix in the fridge 30 minutes.

Divide into 15 to 17 balls of roughly 40 grams, passing each between the palms with a gentle firm squeeze and rounding it off.

Heat the oil in a large heavy bottom pot over medium to about 350F, filled no more than halfway.

For the sauce, combine tahini, lemon juice, salt and the chopped garlic clove; blend with an immersion blender until it thickens, then stream in the water.

Lower the balls into the 350F oil with a slotted spoon, away from the body, one at a time and spaced apart; fry in two eight-piece batches.

Do not touch them for two minutes, then agitate; fry about three minutes more, six to seven minutes total, to a dark reddish golden brown with no green showing.

Drain on a wire rack so they cool without steaming; repeat with the second batch.

Serve piled up under a generous squeeze of the tahini sauce.