Recipe Ancestor
← Go back
Chana Masala

Cooking now

Chana Masala

Online recipe · as published / commonly shared

Serves 6 - 8 · Prep 15 min · Cook 35 min

We wrote this recipe in the Joy of Cooking style. Every amount, time and step comes from the source's recipe card.

An Indian chickpea curry with tomato, spices and lemon.

Drain the chickpeas, add to a large pan with 400ml of water and season:

800g/1lb 12oz canned chickpeas or 720g jar giant chickpeas

Bring to the boil. Then turn off the heat and set aside to allow the chickpea flavour to infuse the water.

Blitz the onions with the garlic, ginger and green chillies:

3 onions quartered

3 garlic cloves

5cm piece of ginger

2-3 green chillies roughly chopped

Melt in a large saucepan:

1½ tbsp ghee

Then add the onion mix with a pinch of salt and cook for 8-10 mins, until softened.

Stir in the spices:

½ tsp ground coriander

½ tsp ground cumin

½ tsp chilli powder (Kashmiri if possible)

1 tsp turmeric

1 tsp garam masala

1 ½ tsp amchoor powder (optional)

Cook for 3 more mins, adding a splash of the chickpea water. That stops them sticking to the bottom. Add the tomatoes and another splash of water:

3 medium tomatoes (around 300g), roughly chopped, or 400g can chopped tomatoes

Cook for 5 mins, squishing the tomatoes with a spoon as they soften. Tip in the chickpeas, along with their cooking water. Cook for 10 mins. Season well, and add the lemon juice:

1 lemon juiced

For a looser curry, add a splash of water. Scatter with the coriander, to serve:

½ small pack coriander leaves, to serve

Reference: Madhur Jaffrey's Indian Cooking by Madhur Jaffrey (1982). Publisher: B E S Pub Co, 2003 edition, hardcover, ISBN 978-0764156496.

We put this together for personal use. See the citations. This is not a cookbook reprint.