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Cooking adventures in a small, closet sized, kitchen. - I came to realize that my meals were boring and that I had been eating the same few dishes over and over again for years. It was time for a change! I now spend my free time searching for, creating and trying tasty new recipes in my closet sized kitchen.

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Chickpea Curry (Chana Masala)

[heart_this] · Jul 22, 2011 · 15 Comments

Chana Masala (Chickpea Curry)

A quick, easy and tasty chickpea curry.

When I decided to make the butter chicken I had an idea about what I wanted to do with the leftovers but the butter chicken was only the first component that I required. Up next I wanted a bean dish and I immediately thought about doing a simple chickpea curry or a chana masala . Having made a few Indian curry dishes I noticed that chickpea curries have a lot of common ingredients so I was pretty familiar with the base of the recipe already. One things that did stand out was the use of amchoor or dried mango powder which I had never used before. Luckily I was able to track some amchoor down but if you cannot find it, some lemon juice should work as a substitute. (The amchoor adds a sour or tart note to the dish without adding any extra liquids.) Once again, despite having a long list of ingredients, this recipe is really easy to make and it takes very little time to do so. This chickpea curry is amazing by itself and it could easily served as a main or a side dish. I made sure to make and extra large batch so that I would have plenty of leftovers to use in my next dish.

Chana Masala (Chickpea Curry)

Chickpea Curry (Chana Masala)

Chickpea Curry (Chana Masala)

Prep Time: 10 minutes Cook Time: 20 minutes Total Time: 30 minutes Servings: 6

A quick, easy and tasty chickpea curry.

ingredients
  • 1 tablespoon oil
  • 1 large onion, finely diced
  • 1 tablespoon garlic, grated
  • 1 tablespoon ginger, grated
  • 2 green chilies such as birds eye or chilies de arbol, chopped
  • 2 teaspoons cumin, toasted and ground
  • 2 teaspoons coriander, toasted and ground
  • 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper or to taste
  • 1 teaspoon turmeric
  • 1 teaspoon amchoor powder (optional)
  • 2 teaspoons paprika
  • 1/2 teaspoon garam masala
  • 2 cups tomato, diced or 1 (15 ounce) can diced tomatoes
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 2 (19 ounce) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • salt to taste
  • 1/2 teaspoon garam masala
  • 1/2 lemon, juiced
  • cilantro (optional for garnish), chopped
directions
  1. Heat the oil in a pan over medium heat.
  2. Add the onion and saute until tender, about 5-7 minutes.
  3. Add the garlic, ginger, chilies, cumin, coriander, cayenne, turmeric, amchoor, paprika and garam masala and saute until fragrant, about a minute.
  4. Add the tomatoes, water and chickpeas and simmer until the sauce thickens, about 10 minutes.
  5. Add the salt, garam masala and lemon juice and remove from heat.
Option: For One-Pan: Make this a one-pan meal by adding 1 cup of rice and 2 cups broth or water (or 8 ounces of pasta and 2 1/4 cups broth or water) to the sauce in step 5 and simmer, covered, until cooked, about 20 minutes (or 12 minutes for pasta).
Use in:
Butter Chicken Burritos

Similar Recipes:
Cauliflower and Chickpea Curry
Curried Cauliflower Rice
Palak Dal
Butter Chicken (Murgh Makhani)
Chickpea and Red Pepper Paprika
Lemony Lentil Soup
Chicken Tikka Masala
Chickpea, Spinach and Herb Stew

30 Minute Meals, Food, Gluten-free, Indian, Main Course, One-Pan, One-Pot, Recipe, Side Dish, Vegetarian

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Rosa's Yummy Yums says

    July 22, 2011 at 6:04 am

    A beautifully healthy dish! so colorful and appetizing.

    Cheers,

    Rosa

    Reply
  2. Gayu says

    July 22, 2011 at 6:27 am

    You truly are on a roll Kevin..Yummy Indian food..Looks delicious and the colors are fantastic..

    Gayu
    http://ensamayalarangam.blogspot.com

    Reply
  3. Chiara "Kika" Assi says

    July 22, 2011 at 8:17 am

    What a great recipe, Kevin! I was looking for some good vegetarian Indian dishes to make for my best friend when she comes visit… this will definitely be on the menu!

    Reply
  4. daphne says

    July 22, 2011 at 9:53 am

    You are in an indian mood lately!! I do like this recipe- healthy and quick!

    Reply
  5. Joanne says

    July 22, 2011 at 10:08 am

    I love this abundance of Indian food! Forget side dish, I could eat this as a main meal!

    Reply
  6. Maggie Vee says

    July 22, 2011 at 12:40 pm

    When you say 2 cans and (28 oz), do you mean 28 oz total or 56 oz total? That is a lot of chickpeas!

    Reply
  7. Healthy and Homemade says

    July 22, 2011 at 6:27 pm

    This is actually one of my favorite microwaveable meals! Think Amy's brand has it as well as Trader Joe's. I would love to try making it at home =)

    Reply
  8. Prathima Rao says

    July 22, 2011 at 6:31 pm

    Im an indian & just got to have chana masal atleast once a month!! And I can say that ur recipe looksw authentic & tasty!!! I love it with mom`s fantastic bhaturas (deep fries indian flatbread) 🙂
    Prathima Rao
    Prats Corner

    Reply
  9. Kevin says

    July 22, 2011 at 9:54 pm

    Maggie Vee: Glad you caught that! It should be 2 19 ounce cans.

    Reply
  10. Avanika [YumsiliciousBakes] says

    July 26, 2011 at 11:56 am

    That looks delicious, Kevin. Chana masala is a regular meal at my home. Try it with phulkas or bhaturas next time, though rice is a good option too.

    Reply
  11. 2peas says

    July 26, 2011 at 4:15 pm

    cool post! great minds: we made this the other day, as we've been working our way through Yamuna Devi's veg Indian cookbook. Luckily we're in NYC so amchoor is available. Thanks

    Reply
  12. kathy says

    July 27, 2011 at 12:50 am

    Great recipe! Surprisingly easy and quick- thanks Kevin!

    Reply
  13. Deanna says

    August 4, 2011 at 5:35 pm

    I made this last night for dinner and really enjoyed it. Thanks for sharing!

    Reply
  14. Hallie Fae says

    September 25, 2011 at 7:05 pm

    Used this as an example to make my own curry dish. Came out great!

    Reply
  15. Anonymous says

    January 25, 2012 at 1:41 am

    We made this last night, and loved it! Thank you!

    Reply

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Kevin: I came to realize that my meals were boring and that I had been eating the same few dishes over and over again for years. It was time for a change! I now spend my free time searching for, creating and trying tasty new recipes in my closet sized kitchen.
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