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Punjabi Chole Recipe (Chole Masala)

Print Recipe
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Soaking Time 8 hours
Total Time 1 hour
Servings: 4
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Punjabi
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

For boiling the chickpeas:
  • 1 cup dried chickpeas kabuli chana, about 200 g, soaked overnight in plenty of water
  • 1 black tea bag or 2 dried amla pieces (for colour)
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 green cardamom pods
  • 1 small piece of cinnamon
  • Salt to taste
For the gravy:
  • 3 tablespoons oil or ghee
  • 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
  • 2 large onions ground to a paste (about 1.5 cups)
  • 1 tablespoon ginger-garlic paste
  • 3 large tomatoes pureed (about 1.5 cups)
  • 2 green chillies slit
  • 2 teaspoons chole masala or garam masala plus extra amchur
  • 1 teaspoon Kashmiri red chilli powder
  • 1 teaspoon coriander powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
  • 1 teaspoon amchur dry mango powder, if your chole masala is mild
  • 1 tablespoon fresh coriander leaves chopped
  • Ginger juliennes to garnish

Method
 

  1. Drain the soaked chickpeas and rinse them. Add to a pressure cooker with 3.5 cups of fresh water, the tea bag (or amla), bay leaf, cardamom, cinnamon and salt. Pressure cook for 5 to 6 whistles (about 18 to 20 minutes) until the chickpeas are completely soft and mash easily between the fingers.
  2. Discard the tea bag and whole spices, but keep all the cooking water — it becomes the gravy and carries the dark colour.
  3. Heat the oil or ghee in a heavy pan and let the cumin seeds crackle. Add the onion paste and cook on medium heat for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring often, until it turns a deep golden brown and the oil separates.
  4. Add the ginger-garlic paste and cook for a minute until the raw smell goes.
  5. Pour in the tomato puree and the slit green chillies. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes until the masala thickens, darkens and leaves oil at the sides.
  6. Lower the heat and add the chole masala, chilli powder, coriander powder and turmeric. Stir for a minute — dry spices burn fast at this stage.
  7. Add the boiled chickpeas along with their water. Mash a handful of chickpeas against the side of the pan with the spoon; this is what thickens the gravy naturally.
  8. Simmer uncovered for 12 to 15 minutes until the gravy coats the chickpeas. Adjust salt, and add amchur now if you want more tang.
  9. Rest for 10 minutes off the heat — chole always tastes better after a short rest. Garnish with ginger juliennes and coriander, and serve hot with bhature, lemon wedges and sliced onion.

Notes

  • Undercooked chickpeas ruin chole. If they are even slightly firm after pressure cooking, cook them longer before going ahead — they never soften in the acidic tomato gravy.
  • No tea bag? A spoon of strong brewed black tea or dried amla gives the same deep colour without any tea flavour.
  • A pinch of baking soda while soaking helps chickpeas cook soft and creamy, especially if your water is hard.
  • Leftovers keep 3 days in the fridge and honestly taste better the next day, as the chickpeas drink in the masala.