Chole Recipe (Punjabi Chole Masala)

chole served in a copper kadai and garnished with cilantro

4.98 from 114 votes

Chole Recipe (Punjabi Chole Masala)

Chole Masala is a popular North Indian curry made with chickpeas and a lot of spices including a special spice mix. This Punjabi chole is best enjoyed with rice, bhatura or parathas!

Prep Time15

Cook Time1

Total Time1 15

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Indian

Diet: Vegetarian

Servings:

Author: Manali Singh

Ingredients

To pressure cook

2 cups chickpeas raw, to be soaked overnight
2 bay leaves
5-6 green cardamom pods
1 inch cinnamon stick
4-5 black peppercorn
2 black tea bags for dark color of chole
1 teaspoon salt adjust to taste
5 cups water

For the chole masala

1 - 1 & 1/2 tablespoons oil use any oil of choice
2 whole cloves
3/4 cup grated onions or very finely chopped
2 teaspoons ginger garlic paste
2 & 1/2 cups pureed tomatoes from 4 medium tomatoes
3 teaspoons chole masala homemade (recipe above) or store-bought
1/2 teaspoon red chili powder or to taste, use Kashmiri red chili powder for less heat
1/2 teaspoon paprika powder
3/4 teaspoon cumin powder
1/2 salt adjust to taste

To garnish

1 tablespoon ghee
1 inch ginger cut into julienne
1/4 teaspoon garam masala
1/2 tablespoon crushed kasuri methi also known as dried fenugreek leaves
2 tablespoons cilantro chopped

Instructions

Soak 2 cups of raw chickpeas overnight (or for a minimum of 8 hours) in enough water to cover them. In the morning you should have around 5 cups of chickpeas (they increase in size overnight as they soak). Drain the water in which the chickpeas were soaked.
Then transfer the chickpeas to a stovetop pressure cooker and add the whole spices- bay leaves, green cardamom pods, cinnamon stick, and black peppercorns. Also add 2 black tea bags (for color), 5 cups water and 1 teaspoon salt.
Close the cooker and cook at high heat for 1 to 2 whistles. Then lower the heat to medium and let the chickpeas cook for another 10 minutes or so. Then remove the cooker from heat and let the pressure release naturally. If using an Instant pot, cook on high pressure for 20 minutes and let the pressure release naturally.
Once the pressure comes off, remove the tea bags and bay leaves using a pair of tongs. The tea bags are used for color only and don't have an impact on the taste of chole. Set this aside.
Heat 1 to 1 & 1/2 tablespoons of oil in a large kadai or pot on medium heat. Add 2 whole cloves and grated onions to the pot. Cook the onions until the raw smell goes away and they are light golden brown in color, this takes around 7 to 8 minutes.
Then add the ginger garlic paste and cook until the raw smell goes away, around 2 minutes.
Now, add the tomato puree and stir. Cover the pot and cook the tomatoes for around 15 minutes on medium-low heat, stir every 2 to 3 minutes in between. This step of cooking the tomatoes is important.
Once the tomatoes are done, add the spices- chole masala, red chili powder, paprika, cumin powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Stir and cook the spices for a minute or two.
Then add the boiled chickpeas, (along with the water in which they were boiled) to the pot and stir until the chickpeas are well combined with the masala. Add an extra 1/2 cup water here and then cover the pan and let the chole simmer on medium-low heat for 30 minutes. Simmering on how heat is what will give this chole so much flavor! Mash some of the chickpeas with the back of your spatula while they are simmering.
The gravy will thicken after 30 minutes, so if you prefer more gravy in your chole, add more water than what is mentioned in the recipe.
Then for the final step, heat 1 tablespoon of ghee in a small pan on medium heat. Once hot, add the ginger juliennes and fry until the juliennes are golden brown in color but do not burn them. Add the ginger juliennes to the chole, stir and switch off the heat.
Add garam masala, kasuri methi and chopped cilantro and serve the chole hot with rice, bhatura, parathas and more!

Video

Notes

Skip the ghee in the tempering to make this vegan.
To cut short the process of soaking chickpeas overnight, use canned chickpeas which are easily available at grocery stores. The canned ones can be prepared immediately and do not need to be soaked overnight.
Adjust the amount of red chili powder in the recipe to taste.
Patience is something you will need while cooking chole or any such Indian curry. Of course, I can make it in a quicker way by adding everything in the pressure cooker. But if you let the tomatoes and onions cook really well and then simmer the chickpeas with the spices for a longer time, the taste would be much much better.
I like to keep the chole masala gravy on the thicker side, for a thinner gravy add more water.
Chole masala actually tastes the best 1 day after you make it because the spices are then better incorporated into the chickpeas.
Chole freeze well. Let the curry come down to room temperature, store in an airtight container and freeze.

Nutrition