Punjabi chole/ Indian Style chickpea curry

Chole Kulche is a quintessential Punjabi dish but finds its followers all over the country. No Indian fast food menu can be complete without Chole Bhature or Chole Kulche. For the diet conscious this has to be reserved for the days when you decide to splurge on eating… However since the unhealthy part here is the bhatura/ Kulcha (made with maida) else you can replace them with whole wheat rotis or rice. We give you the recipe for just the curry here; do let us know what you combined it with!

Punjabi Chole/ Indian style chickpea curry

Preparation: 10 mins| Cooking Time: 30 mins + overnight soaking| Serves 3-4

Ingredients

1 cup chickpeas (you can also use canned chickpeas)

3 medium onions, chopped

4 medium tomatoes, chopped

1 green chilly, chopped

5 cloves of garlic, chopped

1 inch ginger piece, chopped

1 tbsp. Olive oil

A pinch of asafoetida

1 tsp. cumin seeds

2 tsp. coriander powder

1 tsp. cumin powder

½ tsp. turmeric powder

½ tsp. red chilly powder

1 tsp. garam masala (available at all Indian stores)

½ tsp. chaat masala

1 tbsp. tamarind paste

Salt to taste

4 cups water

½ onions and a couple of fresh coriander sprigs for garnish

Method

Wash and soak chole/ chickpeas in 3 cups of water overnight. Or else you can use canned chickpeas if you don’t have time to soak.

In a pressure cooker, add the soaked chickpeas with 3 cups of water, turmeric and salt.

Close the lid and pressure cook for 4-5 whistles. Afterwards leave on low flame for 10 minutes. Switch off the gas but open the cooker only after all the steam had escaped on its own. This would ensure that the chickpeas are very soft.

In a non-stick wok, add olive oil. Once the oil is hot add asafoetida and cumin seeds.

When the seeds start to crackle, add green chillies, ginger and garlic. Sauté for a minute and then add chopped onions. Sauté for about 5 minutes till the onions turn golden.

Add tomatoes and cook for another 5 minutes. Add all the spices, mix well and cook for another 10 minutes, till the mixture leaves oil on the side. That’s an indication that the masala is cooked.

Remove from heat; add a cup of water and mix well. Now grind this mixture to a smooth paste using a hand blender.

o   Tip: You could have from the beginning started with onions and tomatoes paste but in that case the oil required to cook them is much more as the onions when grounded leave a lot of water. So I always start with chopped onions and tomatoes and then grind the mixture after it is cooked.

Put back on heat and add the boiled chickpeas along with the water.

Mix well and cook covered for another 5 minutes.

Garnish with onion rings and fresh coriander and serve hot with bhaturas/ kulchas/ rotis or rice. 

-Ashima Goyal Siraj

Ashima loves to play around in the kitchen. While necessity forced her into kitchen, she soon made it her haven. The thrill of being able to create something new and sharing it with others is what fuels her passion for cooking. The fact that her husband is a big foodie is just an added advantage. She believes that food is never just food; it’s story telling; it’s conversation. She blogs about her adventures in the kitchen at http://www.myweekendkitchen.in/