Lebanese Pita with Falafel and Muhammara Sauce
Stuffed pitas layered with crispy pan-fried falafel, roasted red pepper muhammara, tahini sauce, cucumber, and red onion. The muhammara—a silky blend of charred peppers, walnuts, cumin, and sweet paprika—chills before assembly, while tahini paste is thinned to pour consistency with warm water and lemon juice.
Ingredients
Instructions
- 1
Wash red peppers, halve lengthwise, remove seeds and white membrane.
- 2
Place peppers skin-side up on a baking sheet and roast at 350°F for 30 minutes.
- 3
Cool peppers, peel off skin, and cut into pieces.
- 4
Combine roasted peppers in a food processor and blend; add garlic, walnuts, olive oil, ground cumin, sweet paprika, and lemon juice, then blend until smooth and homogeneous.
- 5
Refrigerate muhammara for 30 minutes.
- 6
In a bowl, whisk together tahini, lemon juice, and salt.
- 7
Gradually add warm water until desired consistency is reached.
- 8
Pan-fry falafel until golden.
- 9
Halve pita breads and layer with muhammara sauce, cucumber rounds, red onion slices, fried falafel, and tahini sauce.
Tips
Charring pepper skin deepens muhammara flavor; peel while still warm for easier removal.
Chill muhammara to allow flavors to meld and sauce to firm slightly before assembly.
Add tahini water gradually to reach pourable consistency without over-thinning.
Good to Know
Muhammara keeps 3-4 days refrigerated in an airtight container. Tahini sauce best made fresh. Assembled pitas are best eaten immediately.
Muhammara and tahini sauce can be made up to 1 day ahead. Roast peppers earlier in the day. Assemble pitas just before serving.
Serve pitas immediately after assembly while falafel is warm and tahini sauce is at room temperature.
Common Mistakes
Do not skip the pepper-chilling step; hot peppers are difficult to peel cleanly.
Do not over-blend muhammara; process only until smooth to maintain texture.
Do not add all tahini water at once; thin gradually to reach correct pouring consistency.