Indian Chana Masala
Why I Love This Recipe
FEATURING: Fresh onions (or onions), garlic (or garlic scapes) and tomatoes.
This is a ever so slightly adapted version of one of our go-to recipes from Madhur Jaffreys, Indian Cooking, that is always popular around the dinner table at our house. It has wonderful tangy flavour that makes it great as a main course or as a side with other Indian dishes.
This goes great with your favorite Indian dish! We love to serve it with Saagwalla daal, mixed vegetable veggies, onion bhaji and/or Indian tomato/cucumber relish.
Ingredients You'll Need
1 can chickpeas, washed and drained (540ml - 19oz)
1/2 cup water
2 medium fresh onions (or onions - if using fresh onions, you can add both the bulb and the green leaves), peeled & finely chopped
2 tsp salt
1 jalepeno hot pepper, finely chopped
1 Tbsp ginger, peeled & finely chopped
4 Tbsp lemon juice
6 Tbsp sunflower oil
2 cups chopped tomatoes
1 Tbsp ground coriander
1 Tbsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground turmeric
2 tsp garam masala (you can find it in most Indian grocery stores or make your own)
1/2 teaspoon cayenne peppers (or you can add a bit more jalapeño or red pepper flakes) (optional)
Directions
Put 2 tablespoons onion, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, jalapeños, ginger and lemon juice in a small cup. Mix well and set aside.
In a heavy wide pot, heat the oil and fry the rest of the onions for 8-10 minutes until they develop reddish brown spots. Add the tomatoes. Continue to fry for another 5-6 minutes, stirring often and mashing the the tomato pieces with the back of a slotted spoon. Now put in the coriander, cumin and turmeric a cook for about 30 seconds while stirring. Add the chickpeas, the remaining salt, the garam masala and cayenne. Stir to mix and bring to a simmer for 10 minutes. Add the mixture from the cup and stir to mix. Serve warm over rice.
