Ghugni : Bengali Chickpeas Curry

Ghugni is a popular street food in Kolkata and other parts of Bengal. You can see street vendors wait with their enormous mounds of steaming yellow chickpeas curry by the roadsides. People usually eat ghugni with bread, bun or rotis. Even though it is famous as a street food, this Bengali recipe can easily be replicated at home. At its core, it is essentially a spicy chickpeas curry that is quite easy to make.

Ghugni is traditionally a dish that is made in the winters. This Bengali recipe was popular for group picnic and day outs. It is supposed to be very spicy but you can easily convert it into a healthy recipe by adjusting the amount of oil and spices you add to it. Like all other Bengali recipes, the flavour of ghugni comes out best when cooked with mustard oil. But if you do not prefer mustard oil, then you can use refined oil instead.

Serves: 6

Preparation Time: 20 minutes

Cooking Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

• Chickpeas- 100 grams (soaked in water overnight)
• Bay leaf- 1
• Cinnamon stick- 1/2 inch
• Cardamom pods- 2
• Cumin seeds- 1tsp
• Onion- 1+1 (chopped)
• Coconut scrapings or pieces- 5-7
• Ginger-garlic paste- 1tbps
• Green chillies- 4 (chopped)
• Tomatoes- 2 (chopped)
• Red chilli powder- 1tsp
• Turmeric- 1 pinch
• Garam masala powder- 1tsp
• Coriander leaves- 2 stalks (chopped)
• Mustard Oil- 1tbsp
• Salt- as per taste
• Lemon- 1

Procedure

1. Boil the soaked chickpeas in the pressure cooker for the duration of 5-7 minutes on medium flame. Drain away the water and keep aside.

2. Heat oil in a pan and season it with bay leaf, cinnamon stick, cardamom and cumin seeds.

3. Add half the onions and saute for 2-3 minutes on low flame. Then add the green chillies and coconut scrapings.

4. Cook for 2 minutes and then add the ginger garlic paste. Stir well and cook for another 3-4 minutes.

5. Then add the boiled chickpeas and tomatoes. Sprinkle salt, turmeric, red chilli powder and garam masala powder.

6. Stir the simmering gravy and cook on low flame for 7-8 minutes.

7. When the gravy starts oozing oil, it is done.

Remove the ghugni from flame. This dish is incomplete without the garnishing so garnish it with chopped onions, green chillies and coriander leaves. Squeeze a lemon into it.