Editing Falafel (section)

=== Middle East ===<!-- NOTE: Pursuant to an Arbitration Committee ruling, editors who do not have the [[WP:extendedconfirmed]] user right may not edit portions of this article pertaining to the Arab–Israeli conflict. [[WP:ARBPIA4]] -->

Falafel is a common form of [[street food]] or [[fast food]] in Egypt, across the [[Levant]], and in the wider [[Middle East]].{{sfn|Roden|2008|p=62}}<ref>{{cite news|last=Kelley|first=Leigh|date=28 January 2010|title=Dining with a Middle Eastern flair|work=[[Times-News (Hendersonville, North Carolina)|Times-News]] |url=https://www.blueridgenow.com/article/NC/20100128/News/606056826/HT |access-date=1 May 2021|archive-date=1 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210501090256/https://www.blueridgenow.com/article/NC/20100128/News/606056826/HT|url-status=dead}}</ref> The croquettes are regularly eaten as part of [[meze]]. During [[Ramadan]], falafel balls are sometimes eaten as part of the ''[[iftar]]'', the meal that breaks the daily fast after sunset.<ref name="Vegetarian Journal 2001-04-01">{{cite web |url=http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-30704219_ITM|title=Falafel: healthy Middle Eastern hamburgers capture the West.|last=Habeeb|first=Salloum|date=1 April 2007|work=Vegetarian Journal|access-date=16 February 2010|archive-date=2 September 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190902204559/https://www.nelsonbrain.com/shop|url-status=dead}}</ref> Falafel became so popular that [[McDonald's]] for a time served a "McFalafel" in its breakfast menu in Egypt.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.wnewsj.com/main.asp?SectionID=43&SubSectionID=200&ArticleID=172473 |first=Jerry |last=Allison |title=Fast food – Middle Eastern style |date=6 January 2009 |work=[[The News Journal]] |access-date=6 February 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110718075130/http://www.wnewsj.com/main.asp?SectionID=43&SubSectionID=200&ArticleID=172473 |archive-date=18 July 2011 }}</ref>

Falafel is still popular in the [[Copts|Coptic]] diet, and as such large volumes are cooked during religious holidays.{{sfn|Roden|2008|p=62}} Falafel is consumed as part of the [[Lent]]en diet by [[Arab Christians]].<ref>{{cite book|title=Food and Everyday Life|first=Thomas|last= M. Conroy|year= 2014| isbn=9780739173114| page =73|publisher=Lexington Books|quote=}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=The Oxford Companion to Food|first=Alan |last=Davidson|year= 2014| isbn=9780191040726| page =295|publisher=Oxford University Press |quote=Falafel are made for religious festivals, especially among Christian communities during Lent when meat is forbidden.}}</ref>{{sfn|Raviv|2003|p=20}}{{sfn|Roden|2008|p=62}}{{sfn|Malouf|Malouf|2008|p=90}}

Chickpea-based falafel, common in many Levantine cuisines including Israeli and Palestinian, has become widely recognized as a national dish in Israel, where it is a popular street food.{{sfn|Raviv|2003|p=20}}{{sfn|Pilcher|2006|p=115}} <!-- END Arab–Israeli conflict-related portion -->