Chana Masala
Jul 12, 2021
Simple Chana Masala made using everyday Indian spices. Raw chickpeas are soaked overnight and then cooked in a onion-tomato based masala. Vegan and gluten-free.
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Easy and simple Chana Masala is made using raw chickpeas which are soaked overnight and then cooked with onion, tomatoes and spices.
This popular Indian dish is vegan and gluten-free and pairs well with rice or naan.
Chana Masala needs no introduction. It is one of the most popular Indian dishes, whether its in India or in the western world.
In Delhi though, we usually make Chole, which is very similar to Chana Masala but uses a special blend of spices.
Both are made with white chickpeas but chana masala is made using basic everyday Indian spices.
Punjabi style chole is also usually darker in color and simmered for much longer time.
However, my mom made this simple Chana Masala often with poori or paratha and we relished every bit of it.
Why We Love This Recipe
- it is vegan and gluten-free.
- protein-packed dish for vegetarians and vegans.
- wonderfully spiced.
- freezes well and also great for meal planning.
The dish uses everyday Indian spices like coriander powder, cumin powder, paprika, turmeric and garam masala.
Often red chili powder is also used. I haven’t used it here since I am not a fan of heat but feel free to add it if you like.
The base of the dish is a onion-tomato masala which is made by cooking fresh onion and tomatoes along with ginger-garlic and green chili.
The spices are then added to the masala along with boiled chickpeas and them simmered until done.
Ingredients
This recipe is pretty basic and straight forward, if you cook Indian food often, then you will most likely will have all these ingredients in your pantry.
Chickpeas: I strongly recommend to start with raw chickpeas. Canned chickpeas are just not the same when it comes to making a good bowl of chana masala.
Onion-tomato: like a lot of Indian dishes, the base of this dish (masala) is also made with onions & tomatoes. There’s also garlic-ginger and green chilies to add to the depth of flavors.
Whole & ground spices: this recipe uses a bunch of spices. Whole spices like bay leaf, cardamom, cinnamon, peppercorns make the chana masala so fragrant and the ground spices like coriander, paprika, garam masala add to the flavor of the curry.
Tomato paste: I like using bit of tomato paste to really enhance that tomato flavor. If you don’t have it, you may skip it.
Step by Step Instructions
1- Soak 1 cup raw white chickpeas (200 grams) overnight in 3 cups (24 oz) water. In the morning, drain the water and transfer the soaked chickpeas to a pressure cooker along with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 2 to 2.5 cups (16 oz-20 oz) water. After soaking overnight, the volume of chickpeas increased to 2.5 cups (425 grams)!
Instant Pot: Cook on high pressure for 25 minutes with natural pressure release.
Stove-top pressure cooker: cook on high heat for 2 whistles, them lower heat to medium and cook for additional 10 minutes. Let the pressure release naturally.
2- Once pressure cooked, the chickpeas will break easily when pressed between your thumb and index finger.
If using canned chickpeas, you can skip these steps, use 2.5 cups canned chickpeas and directly move to cooking the chana masala in the pot.
3- Using a mortar and pestle, crush the ginger, garlic and green chili. Set it aside.
4- Heat a pot/pan over medium heat on stove-top. Once hot, add the oil and then add the whole spices- bay leaf, green cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, peppercorns and cumin seeds.
Let the spices sizzle for 30 seconds and become fragrant.
5- Add the finely chopped onion and stir. Cook for 3 minutes until the onions soften. Add 1/4 teaspoon salt here so that onions cook a little faster. Meanwhile puree 2 tomatoes using a blender and set aside.
6- Add the crushed ginger-garlic and green chili. Stir and cook for a minute or two until the raw smell of the ginger-garlic goes away.
7- Add the pureed tomatoes along with 1 tablespoon of tomato paste. Stir and cook for 5 minutes on medium heat, stirring often.
8- Then add the ground spices- coriander powder, cumin powder, paprika, turmeric and garam masala.
9- Cook the spices for 30 seconds. The oil should ooze out of the sides of the masala at this point.
10- Stir in the boiled chickpeas and mix. Also add 2 cups of water and stir. I used the same water in which the chickpeas were boiled. You can add more water here if you prefer more gravy in your chana masala.
Taste test and adjust the salt at this point, I added 1/8 teaspoon more salt here.
11- Cover the pot with a lid, set heat to medium-low and let it simmer for 10-15 minutes for the flavors to mix-in.
12- Stir in crushed kasuri methi and chopped cilantro. Garnish with more cilantro and serve Chana Masala hot. You may also squeeze some fresh lemon juice if desired before serving.
Serving Suggestions
The dish goes well with jeera rice or garlic naan.
You can also serve it with plain roti.
Using Canned Chickpeas
You can make this chana masala recipe using canned chickpeas.
Simply skip the steps of soaking and pressure cooking the chickpeas. Use 2.5 cups cooked (canned) chickpeas, around 425 grams.
A 15 oz can of chickpeas typically has 1.5 cups of cooked chickpeas so you would need around 1 and a half of those cans.
Follow all the steps as it is!
Freezing The Dish
Can this freeze well? Yes, chickpeas usually freeze well and this chana masala is no exception.
Let it cool down to room temperature and then store in a freezer safe container or ziplock and freeze. It should be good for up to 2 months.
Tips to Make Good Chana Masala
Here are some of my tips to make a good chana masala at home!
Use raw chickpeas: okay, I know there’s always a rush to have dinner ready and so we tend to use the canned stuff often.
However, if you can plan ahead I highly recommend using raw chickpeas for the recipe and soaking it overnight.
It does make a difference to the final taste of the chana masala. Take it from someone who grew up eating this dish very regularly, the canned version isn’t just the same.
Use fresh ingredients: like using fresh ginger-garlic in place of store bought ginger-garlic paste makes a difference to the final taste.
Simmer for 10-15 minutes on medium-low: once you have added the boiled/cooked chickpeas along with water to the pot, lower the heat to medium-low and let it simmer for 10 to 15 minutes. This helps the flavors to come together, do not skip this step.
Don’t skip on the kasuri methi & cilantro: Once the dish is ready, don’t forget to add some kasuri methi which are dried fenugreek leaves and impart a wonderful aroma to the dish. Also, a handful of cilantro is must!
Pro-tip: I haven’t done this in the recipe, but to elevate the flavors, you can do that extra-step of frying ginger julienne in ghee and adding it to the chana masala (see notes in the recipe card).
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, it’s usually vegan until and unless one uses butter or ghee in the recipe. This recipe is most definitely vegan.
It will be good for 2 to 3 days. If you want it to last longer, you can freeze it for up to 2 months.
Yes, please refer to the notes in the recipe.
If you don’t like biting into whole spices, put them in a muslin cloth and then add to the pan. That will you will have the aroma of the spices and won’t have to bite into them. Else you can pick them out before eating.
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This post has been updated from the recipe archives, first published in March 2020.
Chana Masala
Ingredients
- 1 cup white chickpeas raw, 200 grams, soaked overnight or use 2.5 cups canned chickpeas
- 3/4 + 1/8 teaspoon salt or as needed, divided
- 2.5 cups water to boil the chickpeas, skip if using canned chickpeas
- 1 inch ginger
- 3-4 large garlic cloves
- 1 green chili or more to taste
- 2 tablespoons oil 30 ml, I use avocado oil
- 1 bay leaf
- 4 whole green cardamoms
- 3 cloves
- 1 inch cinnamon stick
- 7-8 whole black peppercorns
- 3/4 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1 large red onion finely chopped
- 2 medium tomatoes pureed
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin powder
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1/4 teaspoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon kasuri methi crushed, dried fenugreek leaves
- 1-2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
Instructions
- Soak 1 cup raw white chickpeas (200 grams) overnight in 3 cups (24 oz) water. In the morning, drain the water and transfer the soaked chickpeas to a pressure cooker along with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 2 to 2.5 cups (16 oz-20 oz) water. After soaking overnight, the volume of chickpeas increased to 2.5 cups (425 grams)!Instant Pot: Cook on high pressure for 25 minutes with natural pressure release.Stove-top pressure cooker: cook on high heat for 2 whistles, them lower heat to medium and cook for additional 10 minutes. Let the pressure release naturally.
- Once pressure cooked, the chickpeas will break easily when pressed between your thumb and index finger.If using canned chickpeas, you can skip these steps, use 2.5 cups canned chickpeas and directly move to cooking the chana masala in the pot.
- Using a mortar and pestle, crush the ginger, garlic and green chili. Set it aside.
- Heat a pot/pan over medium heat on stove-top. Once hot, add the oil and then add the whole spices- bay leaf, green cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, peppercorns and cumin seeds.Let the spices sizzle for 30 seconds and become fragrant.
- Add the finely chopped onion and stir. Cook for 3 minutes until the onions soften. Add 1/4 teaspoon salt here so that onions cook a little faster. Meanwhile puree 2 tomatoes using a blender and set aside.
- Add the crushed ginger-garlic and green chili. Stir and cook for a minute or two until the raw smell of the ginger-garlic goes away.
- Add the pureed tomatoes along with 1 tablespoon of tomato paste. Stir and cook for 5 minutes on medium heat, stirring often.
- Then add the ground spices- coriander powder, cumin powder, paprika, turmeric and garam masala. Cook the spices for 30 seconds. The oil should ooze out of the sides of the masala at this point.
- Stir in the boiled chickpeas and mix. Also add 2 cups of water and stir. I used the same water in which the chickpeas were boiled. You can add more water here if you prefer more gravy in your chana masala.
Taste test and adjust the salt at this point, I added 1/8 teaspoon more salt here. - Cover the pot with a lid, set heat to medium-low and let it simmer for 10-15 minutes for the flavors to mix-in together.
- Stir in crushed kasuri methi and chopped cilantro.
- Garnish with more cilantro and serve Chana Masala with rice or naan! You may also squeeze some fresh lemon juice if desired (see notes).
Notes
- You can use a can of diced tomatoes if you don’t have fresh tomatoes. Just cook the tomatoes for 2 minutes only then compared to 5 minutes with fresh pureed tomatoes.
- If you prefer spicy food, add 1/4 teaspoon (or even more) of red chili powder for that extra-kick. You can even increase the green chilies in the recipe.
- I usually squeeze some fresh lemon juice in my chana masala once done, but here the tomatoes that I used were quite tangy so I didn’t feel the need. If your tomatoes aren’t that tangy, squeeze some lemon juice before serving.
- I haven’t done this in the recipe, but to elevate the flavors, you can do that extra-step of frying ginger julienne in ghee and adding it to the chana masala. Heat 1 tablespoon of ghee in a small pan on medium heat. Once hot, add sliced ginger julienne (from 1-inch ginger) to it. Fry until the ginger julienne starts changing color, then add this to the chana masala. Do remember though that the dish won’t be vegan any longer if you do this extra-step and add ghee.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This is the first recipe for chana masala I’ve made. It was good. I’ve been enjoying the leftovers the past few days. I will add more of some of the spices the next time, but that’s just my preference.
Thanks for trying!
This was great! 1st time I’ve made an Indian dish at home and very authentic. Used dried chickpeas and canned tomatoes. Simmered this for a few hours on low.
glad you liked it K!
This is a great recipe, and a nee favourite with my family. No pressure cooker, so I put the chick peas, water, and a little salt in my slow cooker in the morning on high. Even from late morning they cook soon enough for supper. And I put the whole spices in the slow cooker. I expect it changes flavours some, but it sure smells good as it cooks.
I’ve tried some other of your recipes too, and they’ve all been lovely.❤️
Thanks Anita!
This is the only recipe you need for Chana masala. There is a decent amount of prep work involved, but it’s all simple tasks.
I did go to the extra trouble of starting with dry chickpeas and I believe it was worth it. I don’t have a pressure cooker so I did some research online and followed a process involving an overnight soak and then 4 hours on high in the crockpot the next day with 6 cups water and 2t kosher salt (I did the whole bag of chickpeas which was ~2 cups or 400g). I’m not sure what the texture of the chickpeas is like using the pressure cooker method but I can tell you the texture was great with the crock pot method. I served this with some lazy rice cooker cumin rice (aka just cook your basmati rice like normal but throw some cumin seeds in there with the rice) and some roti I bought at the Indian store. It was the best Indian meal I’ve ever managed to make at home and better than A comparable meal at an Indian restaurant. Thank you so much for sharing it.
A couple of notes for those who are thinking they want to try this:
First of all don’t omit any of the spices. I put all of the whole spices in a cheesecloth satchel, except the bay leaf which can be fished out easily. I also didn’t put the cumin seeds in the bag because they’re so small and I like to eat them directly in Indian food like Chana masala, cumin rice (jeera rice) etc. I didn’t remove the satchel until the end and I let it cool for a few minutes before giving it a good squeeze over the pot like a tea bag. Got all the flavors without biting into whole cloves and whatnot.
Secondly, if you are thinking of omitting any spices because you don’t have them and you think it’s going to be expensive to buy them, go to an Indian grocery store if there are any near you. They will have all the spices at better prices and in larger quantities. I had to pick up all of the whole spices and it probably cost me less than $15 and now I can make many more recipes with them (including making this one again and again and again…). It is just SO worth purchasing these whole spices. They make such a difference even in small quantities.
Third, use dry chickpeas instead of canned like Manal says. And then definitely use the chickpea cooking liquid (aquafaba) as the liquid you add toward the end of cooking this recipe. I added half water and half aquafaba.
Lastly, look at the pictures she provided for each step, it’s very helpful to understand what the consistency should be like at each point during the cooking process so that you can adjust as needed. For example, I had bigger tomatoes (based on how much purée they made) and after simmering them for 5 minutes the masala was still very loose and full of liquid, so I just kept simmering and reduced it down until it looked like her picture, before I moved onto the next step of adding the ground spices.
Thanks for the lovely feedback!
So good! Full of flavor. I didn’t have fenugreek leaves, so I read online to use curry powder instead. That’s the only change I made. Because the recipe is perfect as is!!!
glad you enjoyed it Ruth!
I just made this and your palak paneer tonight (with some rice). I have some homemade lemon pickles to go with it and I’m starving; it all smells (and tastes) wonderful! thank you.
Welcome! Glad you enjoyed it Diane!
Sooo delicious! I cooked this for my boyfriend the other day and we both loved it. Thank you Manali.
Welcome Julia!
Is it normal to leave the original spices fried in oil, whole?
What if you get a large stick of cinnamon or a whole clove in your mouth
yes it is normal, we do that commonly in India. Just pick out the spices. If you don’t want to bite into them at all or don’t want to pick them up- add all spices in a muslin cloth and add to oil. they will release their aroma this way without being in the chana masala.
This was my favorite dinner for the whole week – and we’ve had some good meals. Loved the flavors and the textures and how everything worked together. Comfort food at its best. We both had seconds & I had to force myself to stop there. Really worth the time it takes – but in the future I’m going to prep everything ahead to cut down a bit. Thinking of prepping (because I just meant chopping & measuring ingredients) is there any reason I couldn’t pre-cook a few batches of the sauce, ending with cooking the tomatoes & tomato paste and store it in batches so it only needs the final steps?
you can definitely make the sauce ahead and freeze it!
Really tasty! My sauce came out a little watery though despite little it simmer for a long time. Is there are tips for getting a thicker sauce. Mine was more like a soup than a curry. Thank you!
mash the chickpeas while the curry simmer, it will thicken a lot as it cools!
This pregnant lady craves this dishso bad! Amazing recipe, you are my go to for all Indian recipes. Kadai paneer is my other fave.
Keep them coming!
Congratulations Kristen! 🙂
I don’t have instant pot & pressure cooker, how to cook the soaked chickpeas? Please advise. Thank you
It will take a lot of time, place in pan add water and then let it come to a boil. then cover and cook on medium heat until chickpeas are completely soft, around 1 hour for the texture we want for chana masala.
What are chickpeas?
please google 🙂
I’ve made this a couple of times now, without some of the hard-to-find Indian spices (haven’t made it to an Indian market yet). I like it, especially the fresh-cooked garbanzos (game changer) instead of canned. It’s good, but the sauce always seems to end up way too thick. Any recommendations for making a more fluid sauce aside from just adding water, which seems to dilute the flavor?
I don’t really have a substitute for water. In traditional home Indian cooking, we never use vegetable broth or stock, it’s always water. You can add more water and let it simmer on low for long. mash some chickpeas , it gives the sauce a lot of flavor. And thick is good in my opinion, we like our chana masala that way/
What is tomato paste? What is the substitute?
tomato pasta is just concentrated tomato. you can skip it here or use 2 tablespoons store bought tomato puree
I am a fresher… and it worked well with my friends and families that visited me.
Thanks and it helped save my time alot
Hi! When do you remove the whole spices? thank you!
you don’t, this is how it’s served. you can pick them out of the bowl if you want.
the flavors from the spices didn’t saturate the chick peas. Very tasty but is there a way to get the flavors into the peas? I used canned peas but they didn’t get soft.
Helen
Please mash some chickpeas with the back of a ladle, also you have to simmer for some time for flavors to infuse. Always tastes better the next day. And please use raw chickpeas next time, makes a world of difference.
Hi Manali,
Are there any alternative to using instant pot or a pressure cooker?
Thanks. 🙂
Soak overnight and then cook on stove-top in a pan. It will take a lot more time but eventually get cooked 🙂
Another great recipe!
Thank you from Israel.
welcome 🙂
Hello – I only have powder clove and cinnamon. How much should I use? Thank you!
skip, don’t use powder
Very good recipe. A spoon of sugar really enhances the flavour. It is worth adding to the recipe.
Loved it! Can I request more chole style recipes? Amritsari chane/pindi chhole, etc.
This one was fantastic and easy to put together—thank you!
will share 🙂
Followed recipe exact other than adding a white onion because I didn’t have a red onion.Was not a difficult recipe and I grudged paying $13:00 for an Indian take a way when chick peas are so economical .
Pressure cooker worked fabulous.
My question is , there is a bitter taste and I don’t know why ?
Thanking you!
hmm I am not entirely sure but it could be due to using old spices, they can lend a bitter taste. As such there’s nothing bitter in the recipe. Try balancing it with cashew cream or heavy cream now.
I think you may have fried the ginger garlic paste for far too long.
Dear Manali,
Your blog is amazing! I lived in India for over one year, and Indian is my favourite cuisine. Once I came back to Canada I was intimidated to cook Indian food at home. Then I found your blog, and now, at least once or twice I week I am trying different recipes that you have posted. Your instructions are very clear, specific, and easy to follow. I like that you post pictures to go along with the steps, and often provide different options. Thank you so much for all the effort you put into this food blog! I am a new loyal follower, and I have been recommending many of your recipes to my friends also.
Thank you Carolyn, I am so glad to know that recipes help! 🙂
I sort of mixed this recipe with a recipe for vegetable masala because I wanted chickpeas in that instead of potatoes and it worked relatively well except for one thing:
The garam masala I bought (Rani brand shipped from India) has a touch too much clove in it for my taste and is a tiny bit too sweet as well.
I’m unfamiliar with the India spice palette (although I’m working to learn it) and I don’t know how to offset that with another spice.
One site I saw said to add sweeteners (cinnamon, actual sugar or honey, like that) or dairy but cloves taste sweet to me to begin with, so I wasn’t sure about that.
Is there a trick you know of for when you maybe added a touch too much clove and need to balance the tastes a bit that you might share with me?
I am not sure any recipe of chana masala will have sugar or honey in it, not traditionally used. Try squeezing some lemon juice, add some chilies or jalapenos on top before serving.
See, that was my thought – heat against the aromatics and sweetness of the cloves.
It’s still very good. I just have little taste for cloves – always have – and my GF who is a big Indian food fan says that I’m right about there being a touch too much clove in it, but it’s a powder, already mixed, and I can’t adjust it directly.
I’ll get some serranos and maybe just cook a few in next time.
Thank you so much.
I doubled the garlic and added some additional cinnamon and it’s cooking right now.
It certainly SMELLS right but I’ve still got a few hours left on the cook.
I’ve been using this as a base for X Masala where “X” is whatever veggies I have in the fridge or freezer – culturally, it feels a lot like chili in the US. Something spicy and savory that is pretty flexible as to the exact ingredients.
Thank you again for the wonderful recipe.
Is there any reason you HAVE to cook the chick peas in an instant pot or pressure cooker?
I’ve got time to plan my meals and I don’t have either of those. I’m starting from dried chick peas.
How long to just . . . boil them on the stove?
In India, we use pressure cooker to cook lentils and beans because it does the job quickly. Sure you can boil them on stove-top. Soak the chickpeas overnight and then boil on stove-top next day until they are soft.
I live in the upper midwestern US and a “bean pot” on the stove provides supplemental heat. I prefer taking my time with that, but I completely understand why getting it done fast in a warmer climate makes sense. Thanks for the prompt reply.
really, its an “option” to remove the whole cloves, cardamom pods and cinnamon stick before serving? I have never been served any of those anywhere – not a restaurant or someone’s home. Cumin seeds and black peppercorns are fine, but this recipe is a bit sloppy in terms of instructions. Grind the whole spices with the tomatoes and other spices would be the best solution.
I don’t know where you are from but as an Indian , born and brought up in India.. having whole spices as such in the the dish is very very common, right from pulaos to biryanis to curries, we do use whole spices as such. It’s what the gives the dish flavor. For people who don’t want to bite them, there’s an option to tie the whole spices in a muslin cloth. And this is how authentic chana masala/chole is made. I don’t know how many Indian homes have you visited to make the claim that this is not the way to do it 🙂
Hi.
Should I leave the cloves and cardamom or take them out? I would suspect those might be a little tough to chew.
you can take them out
Hi Manali, can we cook overnight soaked chicken pea in slow cooker instead of pressure cooker?
sure
Your portal is my go-to place for all North Indian dishes. I’m a South Indian, so your tips to ensure the authentic taste and enhance the flavour helps me a great deal.
This one is my personal favourite. Although a paneer fan, you made me fall in love with channa like never before. Lots of love and cheers, keep up the great work!
I am so glad to hear that Jahnavi, I appreciate the support! 🙂
Do you remove the whole spices at any point during the preparation?
no but if you want, you can pick them out later before serving
This was absolutely wonderful! I had all of the spices including the methi leaves, which do make a difference (I adore Indian food, so I periodically drive to a nearby town with lots of good Indian supermarkets).
I served it with basmati and naan, and a side of cucumber-yogurt-tomato salad. This recipe has been added to my rotation – the whole family loved it!
glad to know Sara!
Hi Manali, I have been following all your recipes for quite a while now and recommend it to everyone to try it exactly as written. Love the special tips you give that make all the difference.
I have a different question for you, would you mind sharing (as a post) or in detail what cookwares you use to do indian cooking. I am getting away with non stick as fond these are not the best option. I am using instant pot steel cookware and also planning on buying a traditional Indian kadhai. Any other options? I find that the other non stick options available on market (especially overseas, I am in Canada) tend to not work well with Indian cooking n spices get stuck on surfaces. Your insight would be helpful….
I will try to do a post on it! But I use lodge cast iron pans, le creuset pots, all clad steel pans for a lot of my cooking. Also circulon for non-stick (but I don’t use a lot of non-stick in my everyday cooking).
Thank you for this wonderful, authentic recipe! it is full of great flavor and super easy. I gave it a 4 because of the difficulty in finding some ingredients and their high cost. I am registered Nutritionist so I cook for health and affordability with great flavor for a high value dish. If i were throwing a party I would add every tip you provided 🙂
Im going to pack up some spice blends for my kids who all live in different states and that way they can make this super easily by just grabbing the most common ingredients like the beans , tomatoes, and ginger. I also reduced the overall portions and it adapted well. ( 1 can of beans, 1 fresh tomato and 1 can diced, plus 1 clove garlic , etc..) The cardamom pods are the yummiest! Thank you again- Jennifer – MS RDN
glad you liked it. This is an Indian authentic recipe and I am an Indian so obviously it will use traditional spices. I don’t think they are hard to find, readily available on amazon , at all specialty and Indian grocery stores.
Wow, the first of your recipes I’ve tried and it’s fantastic. I added half teaspoon of cayenne chilli for a kick and it is perfect for my taste. Can’t wait to try more of your recipes! Excellent stuff!
awesome!
My husband made this and it is really tasty. He says it was easy to make. Doesn’t taste heavy or too oily the way it sometimes can in restaurants.
What kind of oil substitutes work well instead of avocado oil?
canola, vegetable
This has to be one of the most delicious and simple recipes ever! Since trying it a few weeks ago we have made it upwards of 5 times! Your recipes are always so well-written and easy to follow – thank you so much, Manali!
you are welcome Emily! 🙂
I do not have the whole spices that are put in first, but have all them in ground spices. Is there an amount to substitute, or should I really just go and get the real deal!? Thank you!
hmm whole spices give so much more flavor to the dish. You can try adding 1/4 teaspoon of cardamom, pinch of cinnamon and cloves powder and see how that goes.
I can now stop looking for chana masala recipes. This is the only one I will make from now on. Thank you so much.
glad to know 🙂
Your website is my go to each evening. I love your recipes. Thanks !
Thanks so much Samy!
My friend made this for me tonight and it is amazing. One question… what type of green chili do you use? I want to make this myself since my daughter enjoyed it so much!
here is US I use thai green chilies, if you don’t have them you can also use serrano. glad you liked the recipe!
This was SO GOOD!
I’ve been looking for vegetarian recipes to start adding into my regular weekly dinner rotation and this has made the cut!
Thanks so much and I can’t wait to try some of your other recipes!
Glad to know you liked it! 🙂
Seriously delicious! I don’t have most of the whole spices at the moment, but even without them, this recipe was packed to the gills with yummy, yummy flavour ? I reckon this’ll quickly become a staple of mine! Thanks, Manali ?
Hi Manaly!
Thank you for the recipe. It taste great :).
Have a nice day, looking forward to try more of your recipes :).
Michaela
Love this dish but be careful with canned tomatoes. A whole can (400g) seems to overwhelm the spices – half at most.
I used 1 cup of canned tomato puree, and it worked beautifully!
I’m a bit confused: are you just supposed to the put the soaked chickpeas in the pressure cooker without any water?
obviously that’s not possible, was a typo. fixed it. thanks!
I made this recipe last night for my mom, and I and we absolutely loved it. There was so much flavor in this dish, I will definitely be making it again. Happy to have found your website, I can’t wait to try other recipes!!
Hi Manali! This looks really delicious!! Is there a way to substitute fresh tomatoes for canned? I just don’t have any at the moment and really want to try this!
yes you may, add a can of diced tomatoes! hope it works!
Hi Manali, l love your blog. Thank you for sharing these wonderful recipes! I have a recipe request. Can you please share your recipe for garam masala?
Sure Sam, it is on my to-do list! will do 🙂
Thank you!! I hope you and your family are keeping safe 🙂