Chana Masala

Chana Masala or Chhole Masala is a spicy tangy dish from Punjabi cuisine dish made using chickpeas and onion tomato gravy. In this post I am going to share Chana Masala (or Punjabi Chole  masala) recipe. Chhole masala can be eaten with chapati, paratha, poori or bhature.

Today is the festival of “Teej”. Wishing all the blog readers a very “Happy Teej”!! This festival celebrates the season of monsoon or “saawan”.  This is mainly celebrated by girls or women. Since childhood I have always been part of “Teej” enthusiasm. We used to put up Henna on our hands, ride on swings, singing, chatting and munching up all the fried and spicy snacks. I still remember the ‘swing’ which the house helper used to tie on a big hook in our verandah for the week of “Teej”. As we used to live in joint family with so many cousins and aunts, we sisters used to fix the turns for riding on swing. What days those were!! 

Although I am far from home now, but the memories of this day brings a smile on my face. I am not such a cooking expert who can fill up entire table with snacks and delicacies, still I tried to celebrate this day in my own way by making Chana Masala, Poori and Sooji Ka Halwa 😀 .

• White Chickpeas-4 cups
• Medium sized Onions-2
• Medium sized Tomatoes-3
• Green Chillies-2
• Ginger Paste-1 tsp
• Salt-3 tsp (or to taste)
• Red Chilli Powder-1 tsp
• Garam Masala- 1 tsp
• Coriander Powder- 2 tsp
• Mango Powder-1/2 tsp
• Chana Masala- 2 tbsp
• Tamarind Paste-1 tsp
• Ghee/Cooking Oil-2 tbsp
• Tea Bag-1 

Soak the 4 cups white chickpeas overnight i.e. 8 to 10 hours.

Discard the water in which chickpeas were soaked overnight. Put the soaked chickpeas in a cooker and fill it with water twice the volume of chickpeas. Add 2 tsp salt and tea bag to it. Yes, please do not get surprised by tea bag. The teabag imparts the blackish tint to the chickpeas. However, you can skip it if you do not want the colour of chickpeas to be dark. Boil these chickpeas in the cooker for at least 8-10 whistles. After this if the chickpeas have not yet softened, give 1-2 whistles more.

Before Boiling

Puree the onion and keep it aside. Puree the tomatoes and green chillies together and keep it aside. Heat oil in a pan. Add ginger paste and stir for few seconds. Add onion puree to it and let it cook till it turns golden in colour. Add tomato puree to it. Add salt, red chilli powder, garam masala, coriander powder, mango powder and chana masala to it. Cook this spice mixture well till it turns thick and leaves oil on the surface. 

Add the above spiced puree to the boiled chickpeas. Do not discard the water in which chickpeas were boiled. Add it too along with tamarind paste. Let the chickpeas cook on low flame for 15-20 minutes with intermittent stirring. 

This is the how the final colour and consistency of Chana Masala should be:

Yummy “Chana Masala” is ready. Enjoy with ‘Poori’ or ‘Bhature’ or any bread of your choice!! 🙂 For “Poori” recipe, click here.