Mung Bean Falafel Bowl with Pickled Rainbow Chard

April 28th, 2016

Mung Bean Falafel Bowl - Golubka Kitchen

Mung beans have been my legume of choice as of late. I love them for their versatility, good nutrition record (protein of course, manganese, potassium, magnesium, zinc, etc.), brief cooking time, and a very fair price tag. They work well for falafel, with very similar properties to chickpeas, albeit lighter in every way. Soaking the mung beans overnight and baking the falafel instead of frying makes them easy on the stomach – I say this because even though I love to get traditional fried falafel when out, it always makes me feel unwell.
These mung bean falafels are made with my favorite spice mix that goes well with their bright, lemony flavor.

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When I go to the farmer’s market, I often have the eyes bigger than the stomach problem, especially with greens. Last week, there was lots of beautiful rainbow chard at the stand, and I carried away more bunches than we could ever eat. Pickling was the next best choice and I was pleasantly surprised by the result. The marinade I came up with is very mild and simple, and the pickling only takes a day.

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It seems that in our little health food community, bowl format has become the default lunch format, and we are right there with everyone, happy to enjoy a veggie loaded and colorful lunch bowl, any time of day really.
As usual in spring, I can’t get enough of quickly sautéed, crispy and tender asparagus, which complements any grains or legumes. A base of quinoa, which can be substituted with any grain, tangy tahini sauce, crunchy nuts, herbs, and pickles complete this meal. All these components are, of course, suggestions, and dishes like these are highly customizable. I do very much recommend trying all the parts – the falafel, the pickles and tahini sauce – if not together, then independently, added to sandwiches, salads, and the like – you won’t regret it.

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Mung Bean Falafel Bowl with Pickled Rainbow Chard
 serves 4-6

for the mung bean falafel bowl
1 cup rainbow quinoa or other grain of choice – cooked
sea salt – to taste
1/2 tablespoon neutral coconut oil
about 20 asparagus – tough ends removed
freshly ground black pepper – to taste
mung bean falafel – recipe below
pickled rainbow chard – recipe below
large hadful baby spiach/other salad greens
handful cilantro leaves/pea shoots/other microgreens
tahini sauce – recipe below
sesame seeds – for garnish (optional)
chopped pistachios/other nuts – for garnish (optional)

to assemble the falafel bowls
Distribute quinoa between bowls. Warm coconut oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add asparagus to the pan, sprinkle with a pinch of salt and black pepper and cook, undisturbed, for 3 minutes. Flip and cook for another 3-4 minutes, until soft and bright green. Divide asparagus between bowls on top of quinoa. Arrange falafels on top, followed by chard pickles, if using. Add spinach or other salad greens, herbs/microgreens. Drizzle with tahini sauce, sprinkle with sesame seeds and nuts.

Mung Bean Falafel
makes about 18 falafels

1 cup mung beans – soaked overnight
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
juice of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons sesame tahini
2 tablespoons melted neutral coconut oil or olive oil
1/2 tablespoon cumin seeds – freshly ground
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
sea salt – to taste
freshly ground black pepper – to taste

1. Preheat oven to 375° F (190° C).
2. Drain and rinse mung beans and cook them in plenty of salted water for about 7 minutes, or until soft but not mushy. Drain over a colander and set aside.
3. Coarsely grind pumpkin seeds in a food processor. Add mung beans and the rest of ingredients. Pulse to combine.
4. Shape about 18 small falafels and arrange them on a parchment paper-covered baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes on each side. Keep covered and warm, if using right away. Otherwise, keep refrigerated in an airtight container and reheat in the 350° F (180° C) oven for about 10-15 minutes.

Pickled Rainbow Chard
1 large bunch rainbow chard – leaves and stems separated
4 garlic cloves – sliced
pinch red pepper flakes
roughly chopped dill and cilantro – to taste (optional)

Thinly slice chard stems and leaves into bite sized pieces. Place into a large water-proof bowl, and pour purified water over them to just cover. Drain water, reserving it, and measure it, as you will need to prepare the marinade according to these proportions:

5 cups water
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
2 1/2 tablespoons sea salt
1 teaspoon coconut sugar
2 bay leaves
3 whole cloves
1/2 teaspoon coriander seeds
1/4 teaspoon black peppercorns

to pickle
Combine measured water with other marinade ingredients in a medium saucepan. If you have more or less water than the recipe calls for, adjust the amount of vinegar, salt and spices accordingly – it doesn’t have to be exact. Bring the marinade to a boil over medium high heat, lower the heat to a simmer and simmer for 3 minutes. Meanwhile, add garlic, red pepper flakes and herbs to the chard, mixing to distribute evenly. Pour hot marinade over the chard and place a plate over it to keep all the chard emerged in the marinade. You can use a heavy object to weigh the plate down, such as a jar filled with water. Pickles will be ready the next day. Keep refrigerated. Best within 1 week.

Tahini Sauce
 1/4 cup sesame tahini
1/4 cup purified water
juice of 1 lemon
1 garlic clove – chopped
sea salt – to taste
tiny pinch red pepper flakes (optional)

Combine all the ingredients in an upright blender and blend until smooth. Keep refrigerated for up to 1 week.

Tags: asparagus, chard, falafel, lunch, lunch bowl, mains, mung beans, pumpkin seeds, quinoa, tahini, tahini sauce, vegan, vegetarian

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