Chole / Channa Masala

Chole (Punjabi style curried chickpeas/garbanzo beans) is perhaps the most popular Indian dish (second only to paneer gravies), especially in the West. It is a sacred dish to me, because I grew up loving chole (or channa masala, as we used to call it) and have ardently wished to learn the proper way of making it. Similar to the ubiquitous sambar, almost everyone makes chole, but only a few can prepare the authentic version. I didn't post this recipe for so long, because it felt sacrilegious for a lowly South-Indian to talk about a treasured recipe that has been honed and fiercely guarded by legions and generations of Punjabi women. When I had a Punjabi roommate, I was excited simply because I thought I could finally learn the authentic version of chole from her. She did graciously share her recipe with me (which was surprisingly similar to what I had been doing), but added with a disclaimer - "But it will not taste like my mom's, and I don't know what goes into the masala that my mom gave me". I was crestfallen. The secret is in the masala and the unique blend of spices that go into it!! Try asking a Punjabi if they would mind sharing their recipe for garam masala/chole masala spice-blend. You won't get anywhere with that request :). A quick flip through an Indian cook book or a google search will yield hundreds of sources that teach you how to make chole by making a standard onion-tomato-ginger-garlic gravy and stewing the beans with some store bought masalas, but there are perhaps just a handful of recipes that are close to the original, while still not the original. Unless I visit Punjab and befriend some Punjabi grandmas, I don't think I will ever learn the authentic-authentic version. But in the meanwhile, after much experimentation and discussions with many many different people, I prepare three different versions of chole. One is a quick fix, and an insult to the original. I just grind tomato, onion, ginger, garlic and whole spices together, and cook the beans with some masala powders - one homemade, and another store bought. The second version is this one (chickpeas instead of black-eyed beans), and the third, slightly more careful version is this one below.

Thank to Anita from A Mad Tea Party, I have been using her recipe to make Punjabi garam masala. I have never been a fan of black cardamom, but what an eye-opener when it is ground with cloves, cinnamon and bay leaves! It is an extremely potent masala, that just inhaling it would leave the back of your throat suffused with flavor. I am so grateful to Anita for helping me understand which blend of spices makes chole taste the way it does.  I personally think cloves and bay leaves (or tej patha) make the difference. Her Punjabi Chole recipe is also highly popular online and is rated as the most authentic version! But I lack the patience to roast and blacken whole spices every time I make this dish, so the below version is my middle-ground!

I try to make a small, fresh batch of the above Punjabi garam masala every time I make chole. Home made masalas taste manifold times better than store bought ones. And the freshly made ones taste even better than masalas that were prepared a few weeks before. Plus, there are no words to describe the way freshly ground spices perfume the house.

Ingredients (serves 6):

1. 1 2/3 cups uncooked chickpeas / garbanzo beans (I don't know why I withheld that last 1/3 cup and didn't round it to an even 2 cups)
2. 6 cloves
3. 2 bay leaves
4. 6 green cardamom pods
5. 2 inches cinnamon
6. 2 medium-sized onions, finely chopped
7. 1 tomato, chopped
8. 2 tablespoons tomato paste
9. 4 garlic pods + 2 inch block of ginger (The authentic version doesn't contain garlic, a shocker)
10. 1 teaspoon fennel seeds / saumph / sombu
11. 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
12. 1 teaspoon jeera powder / cumin powder
13. 1 teaspoon coriander powder 
14. 1/2 teaspoon anardhana powder (pomegranate seed powder)
15. 1/2 teaspoon amchur powder / dry mango powder
16. 2 teaspoons Punjabi garam masala / chole masala powder / garam masala powder
17. 1 teaspoon chilli powder or 2-3 green chillies (add both chilli powder and green chillies if you are a fan of spice)
18. 1/2 cup chopped coriander leaves / cilantro leaves
19. 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
20. 1.5 teaspoons salt or as needed
21. 1/4 teaspoon kala namak / Indian black salt (but the salt is usually pink colored)
22. A squeeze of lemon juice (optional because the addition of amchur and anardhana powder make the chole a little tart, and lemon juice might make it more tart.  But I think just a small hit of an acid at the end ties all the flavors together)

Preparation:

1. Soak the chickpeas for 8 hours or overnight. Drain the water, and add chickpeas to a pressure cooker along with whole spices (cardamom, cloves, bay leaves and cinnamon) and water that comes up to 1.5 inches above the chickpeas. Pressure cook for 5 whistles (on medium heat). Let the pressure settle down. If not using a pressure cooker, cook on stove top until you can mash the chickpeas between your fingers. When cooked, fish out the whole spices (as much as you can) from the water.  Do not discard the water. (Punjabis cook the chickpeas with a couple of tea bags and dried gooseberries to infuse color and a tart flavor. Since I prefer the addition of whole spices, I don't add tea or gooseberry)
2. Heat oil in a sauce pan. When hot, add fennel seeds and wait for it to sizzle slightly. Add onions and (and green chillies, if adding) and fry on medium heat until onions brown slightly.
3. Add ginger garlic paste and fry for  30 seconds until it is not pungent. 
4. Add spices - turmeric powder, chilli powder, salt, jeera powder, coriander powder, amchur powder, anardhana powder, and punjabi masala powder. Fry (with a little extra oil if needed) for a minute.
5. Add tomato and tomato paste and fry for 10-15 minutes or so until the tomato paste leaves the sides of the pan and the tomato is mushy. 
6. Add the cooked chickpeas along with the water in which it was cooked (the water has all the flavors of the whole spices). Add more water if needed to bring the gravy to desired consistency. Simmer the gravy on low heat for 15-20 minutes.
7. Add kala namak and mix well. Remove from heat and garnish with coriander leaves and a squeeze of lemon juice.

Serve hot with rotis or pooris. Or sandwich between two slices of bread, and press in a panini press/sandwich maker for "bread channa" a quick breakfast and all-round meal.