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

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This post has been updated from the recipe archives, first published in March 2020.