Chole Recipe (Punjabi Chole Masala)

Ingredients

• Chickpeas

  garbanzo beans, bengal gram, mature seeds, raw

  15 oz or 425g

• Water

  Plain, clean water

  2 cup or 473g

• Tea

  Instant, unsweetened, powder

  100g

• Bay

  Castella

  100g

• Cardamom

  Spices

  100g

• Cardamom

  Spices

  400g

• Cinnamon

  Spices, ground

  100g

• Cinnamon

  Spices, ground

  100g

• Bay

  Castella

  100g

• Oil

  Submarine Sandwich - Wegmans

  2 tbsp or 28g

• Onions

  Raw

  5 ½ cup, chopped or 880g

• Chili

  No beans, canned entree

  100g

• Sweet Ginger Garlic Seasoning, dry

  Simply Asia

  3 teaspoon or 1.2kg

• Tomatoes

  Orange, raw

  1 cup, chopped or 158g

• Salt

  Table

  1 tsp or 6g

• Chili powder

  Spices

  ⅝ tsp or 2g

• Nibble Notes Candy

  Cap Candy

  100g

• Curry Paste, Garam Masala

  Patak's

  ¼ tablespoons or 13g

• Coriander leaf

  Spices, dried

  1 tsp or 0.6g

• Turmeric

  Spices, ground

  ⅛ tsp or 0.3g

• oz Ghee

  Swad

  100g

• Ginger

  Spices, ground

  50g

• Chilli Dip

  Marks & Spencer

  300g

• Fresh cilantro

  Coriander leaves, raw

  2 tbsp or 2g

Directions

1. Preparation (skip this if using canned chickpeas)
2. Add chickpeas to a pot and rinse them well, at least thrice. Pour 3 to 4 cups fresh water and soak overnight, for a minimum of 8 hours. Next morning, drain the water and rinse them well.
3. Add to a pressure cooker along with water, bay leaf, cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, black cardamom and tea bag or dried amla or tea decoction (process mentioned in the post).
4. Pressure cook until soft for 5 to 6 whistles on a medium heat. If cooking in a Instant Pot, pressure cook for 16 minutes.
5. When the pressure drops, open the lid and discard the cinnamon, bay leaf & tea bag. Chickpeas should be soft cooked and not al dente. If they are undercooked cook, longer.
6. How to make Punjabi Chole Masala (stovetop)
7. Heat oil in a pan, add the optional whole spices - cinnamon, cloves, green cardamoms and bay leaf.
8. When they begin to sizzle, add onions and green chili. Fry them until golden on a medium heat.
9. Stir in the ginger garlic paste and saute for a minute, until it loses the raw flavor.
10. Next add tomatoes and cook on a medium high heat until they lose the moisture and raw flavor. Reduce the heat, stir in the red chili powder, turmeric and salt.
11. If using store bought chole masala, add chole masala powder, garam masala powder and coriander powder. If using homemade spice blend mentioned in the notes below, add the prepared powder (you won't add the coriander powder or garam masala).
12. Saute for 3 to 4 minutes until the masala smells good.
13. Add the pressure cooked chole along with chickpeas cooked water and 1 cup more water. Mix together and add more water if needed to bring it to a gravy consistency.
14. Bring it to a rolling boil on a high heat. Cover and simmer on a low flame for about 18 to 20 minutes until the chole absorb the flavors of masala & the gravy becomes thick.
15. Mix well and taste test. Add kasuri methi, more salt, amchur or garam masala if required.
16. Tadka
17. Heat ghee in a small tadka pan. Fry slit green chilies until blistered (use a splatter screen), and add ginger juliennes. Turn off and add hing. Pour this hing tadka over the Chole.
18. Sprinkle coriander leaves. Serve chole with basmati rice, naan, poori or bhatura.
19. Instant pot chole
20. Press saute button on the IP and pour oil. When the Ip displays hot, add the spices. Then the onions and green chili.
21. Saute the onions until golden to light brown. Then add in ginger garlic and saute for 30 seconds.
22. Next add the tomatoes and salt. Saute well until they break down a bit. Stir in red chili powder and turmeric.
23. If using readymade chole masala, add chole masala powder, garam masala powder and coriander powder. If using homemade powder mentioned in the post, add the prepared powder (you won't add the coriander powder or garam masala).
24. Saute well until the raw smell of the onion and tomatoes reduces.
25. Pour 2 cups water and deglaze the pot. Then add soaked chickpeas. If you want you may add a tea bag or 1 cup decoction in place of 1 cup water.
26. Mix well and secure the IP with the lid. Position the steam release handle to sealing.
27. Press cancel. Then press pressure cook (high pressure) and set the timer for 35 mins. If using canned chickpeas, then set the timer to 10 mins.
28. When the IP is done cooking wait for 18 to 20 mins for the pressure to release naturally.
29. Then open the lid. Add ghee, ginger julienne and kasuri methi. (Or make a tadka before serving). Taste test and add more salt, amchur or garam masala if required.
30. Press saute button and cook for a few minutes.
31. To thicken the curry you can take 3 to 4 tbsps chole to a bowl and mash them well. Add to the gravy. Garnish with coriander leaves.
32. Source: www.indianhealthyrecipes.com/chole/