Pindi Channa or Rawal pindi chole is a curry made with chickpeas. The chickpeas are cooked with different spices. The tea leaves added while cooking the chickpeas gives it a rich colour. It is usually served with Indian flat bread like poori, tandoori roti, phulka etc.
I had the first taste of this curry in a dhaba (a road side small restaurant) during one of my road trips from Delhi to Chandigarh. I always love to stop in these local restaurants to taste the real food. Pindi Chole is very famous in Punjab and you might find yourself licking your fingers while eating this curry :).. So, sharing the recipe to make some spicy chickpeas curry today..
Rawalpindi Chole / Pindi chana
Recipe Type: Curry
Cuisine: Indian
Author:
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 4
Ingredients
- Kabuli Channa /Chickpeas / Garbanzo beans – 1 cup
- Tea bag – 1
- Black Cardamom/Badi Elaichi – 1
- Cinnamon – 1 inch stick
- Cloves – 2
- Ginger garlic paste – 1 tbsp
- Dry pomegranate seeds – 1 tbsp
- Cumin seeds – 2 tsp
- Carom seeds – 1 tsp
- Red chilli powder – 1 tsp
- Channa masala powder – 1 tbsp
- Amchur powder/Dry mango powder – 1 tsp
- Corainder powder/Dhaniya powder – 1 tsp
- Home made Garam Masala powder – 1 tsp
- Bay Leaf – 2
- Salt to taste
- Vegetable Oil – 2 tbsp
Instructions
- Clean and soak chickpeas overnight (minimum 6 hours) in water. Discard the water used for soaking and clean the chickpeas in water again.
- Take a muslin cloth and add cinnamon, black cardamom, cloves, bay leaf and tie it to make a potli(tied cloth) out of it.
- In a pressure cooker add 3 cups of water and chickpeas.
- When the water starts boiling drop the tied cloth and tea bag into it. Close the cooker and cook till chickpeas soft. I gave at least 4 whistles. You should be able to mash the chickpeas when pressed between your fingers. Remove tea and spice potli.
- Heat a frying pan and dry roast cumin seeds, pomegranate seeds for a minute. Coarsely powder it and keep it aside.
- Heat the same pan with 2 tbsp oil and add ginger garlic paste, carom seeds and saute.
- Now add red chilli powder, coriander powder, channa masala powder, Amchur powder, garam masala and mix well. Add the cooked chickpeas along with the water and salt and mix it well and bring it to a boil.
- Add the powdered cumin seed and pomegranate powder and mix well.
- Close the pan with a lid and let it cook over low flame for 5 minutes for all the flavors to combine together.
- Serve it hot with flat bread. You can garnish some chopped onions, ginger and also squeeze some lemon juice before serving.
I'm in absolute love with cardamom, but don't use it in many recipes and goes stale before I get the chance to use the whole bottle. I also love chickpeas- I can't wait to try this recipe!
Pindi Channa or Chickpeas Curry sounds fantastic. I adore anything with Chickpeas or Garbanzo Beans as we call them. I can not wait to try this recipe!
G'day You chickpea curry looks delicious and is now on my list Priya!
Cheers! Joanne
I am so much in love with spiced dishes! And your Rawal pindi chole looks bursting with flavor, Priya!