One-pot Chole or Chana Masala; a spicy Indian chickpea masala curry made easily in an Electric Instant Pot or Stove Top Pressure Cooker.!
Use already cooked (like canned or freshly pressure cooked), or even just soaked chickpeas and some simple pantry ingredients available in any Indian food lovers' pantry and this delicious, creamy, mouthwatering chole is ready to enjoy with rice, parathas, rotis etc.!
I have made it so many times and every time, the taste is absolutely spot on and lip smacking even to just gorge on just by itself!
What is Chole/Chana Masala?
Chana masala or chole using chickpeas/garbanzo beans is a very popular north Indian curry with a spicy onion-tomato aromatic thick gravy and the love of every Indian food lover!
But every corner of India has its own version.
My tried and tested recipe is this one-pot chole or chana masala which my family has enjoyed for decades!
It uses basic Indian pantry ingredients and spices like coriander, turmeric, ginger, garlic, tomatoes, onions etc.
But the spice or flavor that adds depth and flavor to this delicious curry is chaat masala powder (or even amchoor or dry mango powder); a tangy, salty curry powder used mostly in street foods like chaat!
It adds a lovely chatpata, lip smacking flavor profile to any curry but if you do not have this, you can omit it and substitute with a shower of freshly squeezed lime or lemon juice while enjoying the chole.
(See? It is absolutely a customizable and versatile recipe).
I also love to use roasted cumin powder as opposed to regular cumin powder (just roast powdered cumin powder until starting to brown) as it adds a lovely unique aroma to any dish!
All you need is to make the basic masala using onions, tomatoes, ginger, garlic some spices and pressure cook overnight soaked chickpeas/chana or even canned ones in it for 30 minutes if using a pressure cooker or just 10 minutes if using canned!
Easy peasy isn't it?
Do I need to soak the chickpeas?
If you forget to soak the chickpeas overnight as many often end up doing (and I normally decide to make chole when I have a sudden craving for it and this does not leave any room for soaking overnight!), there is another fast method.
Just add plenty of water to dry chickpeas, give it one boil and let soak for 1 hour. Drain and then use like overnight-soaked ones. Or if you are lazier, use canned chickpeas instead!
What do I serve this with?
Hey, of course crispy, puffy bhaturas, our family choice with chole or even puris (fried whole wheat bread).
Here, I served this mouthwatering Punjabi deliciousness with some fluffy multi grain flour METHI PURIS and a lip smacking spicy and tangy ONION GOJJU or chutney like they serve in the streets or stalls of Chandni Chowk the heart of street food delights in Delhi!
For methi puris, I just made a stiff dough using multigrain flour, salt and a tablespoon of crushed dry fenugreek leaves or Kasoori methi, rolled into discs and deep fried to a crispy puffiness!
But for those who do not like fried breads, enjoy a hot steaming bowl of spicy one-pot chole with any Indian flat bread like chapattis, parathas like Gobi Paratha, Mixed Vegetable Paratha or Methi Laccha Paratha, naan or even a bowl of hot steamed rice!
Of course, do not forget to shower the chole with finely chopped red onions (please, try to not use white onions for this!) and a dash of lime/lemon juice (fresh of course) before scooping it up with your bread!
You can use your stove top pressure cooker or even an electric one (INSTANT POT) to make this delicious favorite of many!
Serve these easy, tasty, spicy Chana Masala Curry with some hot, hot bhaturas, rotis, parathas or even hot steamed Basmati rice!
Enjoy and Happy Cooking!
Spicy Indian chickpea masala curry made easily in an instant pot or pressure cooker. Serve these up with some hot, hot bhaturas, rotis, parathas or even hot steamed Basmati rice!
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups dry chole chana/chickpeas
- 3 tbsp cooking oil
- 1 tsp cumin seeds/jeera
- 5 to 6 methi seeds/fenugreek seeds
- 5 cloves
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 1 tbsp ginger paste/grated
- 2 tsp garlic paste/grated
- 1 large onion
- 1large tomato
- 2 green chilies/jalapenos
- 1 tsp haldi/turmeric powder
- 1tbsp red chilli powder (preferably Kashmiri chilli powder0
- 2 tbsp dhania/coriander powder
- 1 tbsp roasted jeera/cumin powder
- ¼ tsp hing/asafetida powder (optional)
- 1 tbsp kitchen King/garam masala/chole masala powder/garam masala
- 1 tsp tamarind paste/1 to 2 tsp amchur/chaat masala powder
- 2 whole black caradmoms/badi elaichi
- Salt to taste
- 1 tsp Kasoori methi/dried fenugreek leaves, crushed/finely chopped coriander leaves or cilantro
- Finely chopped red onions
- Lime/lemon wedges
Instructions
- Soak 1 1/2 cups chickpeas/kabuli chana in plenty of water overnight.
- Next day, drain and keep aside.
- If you have forgotten to soak, no worries! Just give one boil to chickpeas in plenty of water and keep aside to soak for 1 hour. After one hour, drain and use as usual.
- Chop/grate or mince all the aromatics - onions, ginger, garlic and of course tomatoes.
- Make a fine puree of 1 large onion, 1 tomato and 2 green chilies or 1 serrano pepper.
- (You can add ginger and garlic to this and make puree with onions and tomatoes instead too)
- Now, lets make the chole.
- Press sauté button. Add 2 tbsp oil and once it gets hot, add the dry whole spices; 1 tsp jeera, 5-6 methi, 1 bay leaf and 5 cloves. Stir fry for a few seconds to bloom the whole spices.
- Tip in the onions (1 cup)and fry/sauté for a few minutes until they are slightly soft and light brown.
- Add the ginger and garlic pastes/grated and fry again for a minute (if you have not pureed them with the onions and tomatoes).
- Stir in the tomato-onion puree and cook for 1 to 2 minutes.
- Add the dry spice powders; 1 tsp turmeric, 1 tbsp Kashmiri chili powder, 2 tbsp coriander powder, 1 tbsp cumin powder, 1/4 tsp hing and 1 tbsp Kitchen King powder/garam masala powder/chole masala powder.
- Fry, stirring continuously until the oil starts to separate.
- Dump in the soaked and drained chickpeas and about 2 ½ cups of water.
- Add salt to taste, 1/2 tsp tamarind paste/amchur powder/chaat masala powder and 2 whole black cardamom.
- You can adjust the amount of tamarind/chaat masala later on to suit your taste if not enough.
- Mix well and secure the lid. Turn the pressure valve to seal, cancel the sauté button and cook on high pressure for 30 minutes or if you have the “bean” option, press that.
- Naturally release the pressure.
- Once you can open the lid, mix well, taste and add amchur/chaat masala or salt if needed and adjust consistency.
- Garnish with crushed kasoori methi leaves/cilantro or coriander leaves.
- Heat the pressure pan on medium high and add oil/ghee. Once it gets hot, add the dry whole spices; 1tsp cumin, 1 bay leaf and 5 cloves. Stir fry for a few seconds to bloom the whole spices.
- Tip in the onions (1 cup) and fry/sauté for a few minutes until they are slightly soft and light brown.
- Add the ginger and garlic pastes/grated and fry again for a minute.
- Stir in the tomato-onion puree and cook for 1 to 2 minutes.
- Add the dry spice powders; 1 tsp turmeric, 1 tbsp Kashmiri red chilli powder, 2 tbsp coriander powder, 1 tbsp cumin powder, 1/4 tsp hing and 1 tsp Kitchen King powder/garam masala powder. Fry, stirring continuously until the oil starts to separate.
- Dump in the soaked and drained chickpeas and about 2 ½ cups of water.
- Add salt to taste, 1/2 tsp tamarind paste/amchur powder/chaat masala powder and whole black cardamom.
- Mix well and close the lid of the pressure cooker.
- Cook on high for one whistle, lower the heat and cook for about 30 minutes.
- Once the pressure releases naturally, check to see if the chickpeas are soft and tender; if not pressure cook for a few minutes more (this depends upon each pressure cooker and the heat of the stove).
- Adjust seasonings.
- Garnish with crushed kasoori methi leaves/cilantro or coriander leaves.
- Serve hot, spicy, one-pot chole made in instant pot/pressure cooker with hot, hot puris, rotis, bhaturas, parathas, rice etc, sprinkled with lots of finely chopped onions and a squeeze of lemon juice!
- It goes so good with plain, jeera rice or any pulao too.
- Enjoy and Happy Cooking/Eating!
Notes
Adjust the amount of spices according to personal preference.
For a lovely, natural tang, instead of bottle tamarind paste, try and use fresh tamarind available in most Indian stores. Just soak in some hot water and squeeze out the juice and use that.
If you cannot find tamarind, just use chaat masala powder, amchur/dry mango powder or just squeeze in a splash of lemon juice just before enjoying.
If you are using canned chickpeas, drain, rinse well and then add. Reduce the cooking time in instant pot to 10 minutes and stove top pressure cooker to one whistle.
The curry thickens as it cools, so add water accordingly before serving.
To make a thicker curry, blend a portion of the curry and mix in.
To make roasted cumin powder, dry roast whole cumin for a few seconds in a small fry pan until it turns dark brown. Remove and place in a bowl. Once cool, pound or use a spice grinder to make a fine powder. Use this in chaats, curries, dry subzis etc.
Adjust the amount of spices to suit your taste.
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For more such curries, do try:
I am sharing this with:
Angie's FiestaFriday along with co-hosts this week Judi @ cookingwithauntjuju.com and Debanita @ Canvassed Recipes
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Have fun cooking, eating and sharing!!!!
This looks delicious! I can almost smell it through the photos. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you so much Karly 🙂 🙂 Do try and make these; easy to make and delicious!
Looks so delicious & mouthwatering. Thanks for sharing this recipe at Fiesta Friday!
Thank you so much Debanita 🙂 🙂 So happy to be part of Fiesta Friday!!!
I keep seeing recipes using Insta Pots and I still have not bought one. I do love curries (especially the Sambar recipe) but not so much chickpeas. Not sure why - I guess I could substitute something else. Happy Fiesta Friday and thanks for sharing...
Thank you so much!!! Even I was skeptical about Instant pots but after trying out a few recipes, am a fan of this, especially to cook beans and meat; so quick, easy, no worry about the pot exploding and the beans are cooked perfectly! Happy FF to you too!!!!!
Loved your chole masala; look so delicious and lip smacking with great flavours. Also liked the way you explained the recipe in such detail.
Thanks so much Anshu 🙂