Chana Masala
Unable to go out and eat at restaurants during lockdown, my sister and I bombarded my mom with our favorite food requests. When she began getting overwhelmed, I took it upon myself to satisfy my various food cravings. With an online recipe and masalas at hand, I began my cooking journey by making chana masala. This is one of my family’s favorite dishes and it’s easy to make for those last-minute potlucks or simple get-togethers. Even my friends have added this dish to their party menus. This chana masala pairs well with both South Indian and North Indian dishes.
Desika Ingredients:
Peanut Oil
RECIPE FOR CHANA MASALA
Ingredients:
Cooked chickpeas - 3 cups
Tomato - 1
Onion - 1
Cumin Seeds - 1 tsp
Chana masala - 3-4 tsp
Peanut Oil - 1 tblsp
Salt as needed
Cilantro and onions for garnishing
Instructions:
Finely chop the onions and tomatoes and keep it aside.
Take 1/2 cup of the cooked chickpeas and grind it with 2 cups of the water used to cook the chickpeas and grind it coarsely. Keep this aside.
Heat up the oil in a kadai and add the cumin seeds.
When the cumin seeds sputter, add the onions and sauté until they begin turning golden brown.
Now, add the chopped tomatoes and cook for 1-2 minutes.
Add the chana masala and mix. Cook for another 4-5 minutes on medium flame.
Add the ground chickpeas from step 2 and allow the contents to start boiling in the kadai.
At this stage, you can add the remaining cooked chickpeas, salt, and needed water to adjust consistency. Cover and cook everything on a high flame for 3 minutes.
Garnish with chopped cilantro and onions.
Tips & Tricks:
I used kabuli chana (chickpeas) for this recipe but I have also tried this with kala chana (black chickpeas) and it turned out well.
I used the water I cooked the chickpeas in to add to the taste
I did not use canned chickpeas. I used regular chickpeas from our local Indian store and soaked it overnight. I pressure cooked 1.5 cups of dry chickpeas in 4 cups of water for 3 whistles.