A richer, spicier version of Chole Masala, a chickpea stew recipe from Northern India.
Total Time:50 minutes
Yield:4 people
Ingredients
1 can Chickpeas or Garbanzo Beans (skip the dried chickpeas if using canned)
3/4 cup Dried Chickpeas (skip the canned chickpeas if using dried )
1/4 cup Oil
Fresh Ingredients
1 tbsp Ginger (finely chopped)
2 tbsp Garlic (finely chopped)
1 Green Chili (slit)
1 medium Onion (finely chopped)
1 cup Tomato Purée
3 cup Water
Amla-Tea Brew
1 tsp Loose Black Tea Leaves
3 Pieces Dried Amla
2 cups Water (add more if required)
Spices
1/2 tsp Asafetida or Hing
1/2 tsp Turmeric
2 tsp Red Chili Powder (1 tsp in the dish and 1 tsp for garnish)
2 tbsp Chole Masala Powder
Garnish
2 tbsp Ghee (for garnish)
1/2 tsp Chaat Masala Powder
1/4 cup Coriander Leaves (chopped)
3 tbsp Lemon Juice
2 tbsp Onion (finely chopped)
Salt (to taste)
1 tsp Baking Soda
Instructions
Soak the Chickpeas
Soak dried chickpeas for 8-12 hours.
Make an Amla-Tea Brew
Bring 2 cups of water to boil in a small pot.
Brew tea leaves and amla in it for 1-2 minutes.
Cook the Chickpeas
Cook chickpeas and amla-tea brew in an Instant Pot for 4 mins on manual pressure, if using canned chickpeas.
Cook for 40 mins or bean setting on the IP for dried chickpeas.
Make the Pindi Chole
In a wok or kadai, add oil and 1 tbsp ghee.
When the oil is hot, add onions, ginger, garlic, and green chili. Brown the onions.
Add your spices – asafetida, turmeric, red chili powder, chole masala, and salt.
Cook for 1-2 mins until the spices are bloomed and cooked through.
Add the tomato purée and cook for 2 more mins.
Add your chickpeas and adjust the consistency by adding more water.
Let it simmer for 20-30 mins. The more you slow cook this, the better.
Make a red chili oil
In a small pan, add the ghee. When the ghee is melted and starting to get hot, add the red chili powder.
When the powder blooms, take off the heat and pour over your dish.
Garnish
Garnish with coriander leaves, chopped onions, chaat masala, and lemon juice.
Serve with Bhature or any flatbread, or even with plain basmati rice!
Notes
Do not skip blooming the spices as the failure to do so will cause the chole to taste bitter and raw.
I cook with canned chickpeas just because it is more convenient. The older dried chickpeas get, the harder they are to cook. If you cook frequently with chickpeas, dried chickpeas are the way to go.
Dried Amla is hard to find especially if you live in Western countries. Thank god for Amazon, we get a salted variant of dried amla in smaller chunks. I used these and adjusted the salt accordingly.
I blend 1 or 2 Roma tomatoes and use the strained puree. Canned tomatoes lend a slightly more acidic profile to the dish. But no harm in reaching for a canned one if that’s what’s available!
