Chana Masala Recipe: How To Prepare It At Your Home

When it comes to Indian recipes, Chana Masala needs no introduction. It is a spicy dish prepared using chickpeas in tomato puree along with some spices. The dish is widely served in Indian restaurants. It is a bit similar to Chola Masala but chana masala is prepared using some basic Indian spices. The best thing about this dish is its base of onion-tomato gravy that enhances the taste of the dish.

You can have Chana Masala with rice, pulao, puri and even naan and butter roti. To know how you can prepare Chana Masala, scroll down the article to read more.

Chana Masala Recipe

Prep Time

10 Hours0 Mins

Cook Time

30M

Total Time

10 Hours30 Mins

Recipe By: Boldsky

Recipe Type: Meal

Serves: 4

Ingredients

- 2 cups of soaked chickpeas
- 3 cups of water to boil the soaked chickpeas
- 2 tablespoons of mustard oil
- 4 green cardamoms
- 4 cloves
- 2 finely chopped tomatoes or its puree
- 2 finely chopped green chili
- 2 tablespoons of chopped cilantro
- 1 tablespoon of ginger-garlic paste
- 1 large finely chopped onion
- 1-inch cinnamon stick
- 1 bay leaf
- 7 peppercorns
- ¾ teaspoon of cumin seeds
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder
- 1 teaspoon crushed Kasoori Methi
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon cumin powder
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
- ¼ teaspoon garam masala
- Salt according to taste

How to Prepare

1. First of all, you need to soak 1 cup of chickpeas overnight to prepare delicious chana masala.

2. In the morning, drain the water and rinse the chickpeas. Now boil them in a pressure cooker with 3 cups of water and 1 teaspoon of salt. Boil the chickpeas for two whistles and then turn off the flame and let the pressure cooker release the steam.

3. Heat a pan and add 2 tablespoons of mustard oil and add whole spices such as cinnamon stick, bay leaf, peppercorns, cumin seeds, cloves and cardamoms.

4. Let the whole spices sizzle for 10-20 seconds on medium flame.

5. Now add finely chopped onions and chilies and saute until the onions turn translucent. Make sure you saute on medium flame.

6. Add ginger-garlic paste and saute for another 2-3minutes on medium flame.

7. At this point, add tomato puree or finely chopped tomatoes. It is advisable that you use the puree as this will enhance the taste.

8. Stir well and cook for 5-7 minutes.

9. Now it is time to add spices such as coriander powder, cumin powder, turmeric powder and garam masala. Cook the spices for 1 minute on medium flame.

10. Now add the boiled chickpeas in the pan and mix well with the spices and tomato puree.

11. You can also add chana masala and salt according to the taste.

12. Add 1½ cups of water to the pan or as per the consistency you want.

13. Cover the pan with a lid and let the chana cook for 15 minutes on medium flame.

14. After 15 minutes open the lid and stir the chana.

15. Now add the crushed Kasoori methi along with the chopped cilantro.

16. Serve the chana masala along with jeera rice, pulao, butter roti or naan.

Instructions

Always soak the chickpeas overnight as this would help you in preparing the dish in a better way.

Nutritional Information

Things To Keep In Mind

1. Always soak the chickpeas overnight as this would help you in preparing the dish in a better way
2. Always boil chickpeas for not more than 2 whistles as you will later cook it for 15-20 minutes.
3. If you are fond of eating spicy food, then you can add red chili powder as well.
4. Always cook the tomato and onion on medium flame.
5. Never cook the spices on high flame else you may burn them and this will ruin the taste.