Chana Masala

I got this recipe from a reddit post.

For cooking the beans:

• 1 cup dried Garbanzo beans OR 2 cans of Garbanzo beans.
• 1 tsp tea or 1 tea bag.
• 2 black cardamom pods, just crack them open a bit.
• 3 cloves
• ~1 inch cinnamon
• 2 bay leaves.
• 1/8th tsp baking soda
• Salt

For the “Gravy":

• 3-4 tbsp oil/ghee or a combination of both. I personally like using the combination.
• 2 medium size onions (you can use red/white/yellow)
• 3 tomatos
• 6 garlic pods
• 1 inch ginger
• 2 green chilies ( you can adjust as per your wish!)

Dry spices:

• 1 tsp red chilli powder
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp cumin powder
• 1 tsp coriander powder
• 1tsp garam masala
• 1tsp anardana (pomegranate seeds)
• 1/2 tsp rock salt
• A pinch of Asafoetida
• 1 tsp kasuri methi
• 1 tsp amchur/dried mango powder.
• 3 tsp EVEREST Chhole/chana masala. I have tried 5 different brands but this one works the best to get that nice tangy spicy taste. Mix all of these dry spices in a bowl and set it aside.

For tempering:

• Ghee 2 tbsp.
• 3 garlic cloves finely chopped.
• 1 tsp Kashmiri redchilli powder.
• 1 tsp cumin
• 10-12 thinly sliced ginger juliennes.

Prep:

• Take 2 medium sized onions. Boil them in water for 3-4 minutes and puree. I boil them because I have realized that onions seem to give a very bitter taste sometimes when pureed raw. I was told to boil them in the
• Puree the tomatoes. You can blanch them and remove the skin if you want to, I don’t do it because I m lazy.
• Grind the ginger/garlic in a nice paste with water and finely chop the green chilies, you can grind them with the ginger garlic too. I prefer chopped.

Procedure to cook the beans :

• Soak the beans overnight.
• Take 3-4 cups of water in a pressure cooker and add the baking soda.
• Take a small piece of cloth, put the whole dry spices and tea and tie it in a small bundle. If you are using a tea bag, just put it in the cooker separately. Put bay leaves separately in the water.
• Cook the beans for 3-4 whistles until the beans are cooked nice and soft. OR If you are using canned beans, do not use baking soda and just cook the beans for 1 whistle. We are doing this just to infuse the beans and the water with tea and spices but I personally dont prefer canned beans for this particular recipe.
• Separate the beans and the stock. DO NOT THROW THE STOCK AWAY. IT IS NECESSARY TO MAKE THE AUTHENTIC CHHOLE!

Making the gravy:

• Take the oil/ghee in a pan. Let it heat up.
• Add the pureed boiled onions, mix it properly with and then let it cook till its light brown on medium/medium-high heat, this takes 15-20mins or more and keep stirring once in a while.
• Once the onions are cooked, add the ginger garlic paste and chili, mix it. Let it cook for a couple of mins.
• Add the pureed tomatoes, mix it well and let it cook for another 15mins on medium/medium high heat and keep stirring once in a while.
• Once that’s done, add all the ground dry spices that we mixed in the bowl and let it cook for 3-4 mins
• Add the beans and mix well and cook it for a couple of mins before adding the stock, I have realized that doing this gives a nice subtle flavor.
• And then add the stock,add salt and let it simmer for 5-7mins more.

This next step is totally optional but it elevates the dish to the next level and highly recommend you try it.

Finishing the dish with tempering:

• Heat up a small frying pan or tempering pan, add the ghee, let it heat up.
• Add the garlic and cumin and ginger juliennes, Let it “fry”, don’t brown them but.
• And once that’s done mix the Kashmiri red chili powder and pour it carefully on the prepared chana masala. DONE :D
• Sprinkle some cilantro on top.