This is an awesome recipe for Amritsari chole which will remind you of the chole you get in the streets of Punjab and Delhi. It’s quite an easy recipe but needs a bit of patience for great results. This is a traditional recipe used in the streets and also in a few households of Amritsar. This authentic recipe gives you a rich dark colour and is delicious.
Ingredients
- 200g Chickpeas, Soak Overnight
- For Boiling the Chickpeas
- 1 Tbsp Tea
- 3 Cloves
- 3 Black Peppercorns
- 1 Inch Cinnamon
- 1 Tbsp Salt
- For the Amritsari Masala
- 30g Pomegranate Seeds
- 60g Coriander Seeds
- 20g Cumin Seeds
- 3 Cardamom
- 10g Black Peppercorns
- 3 Cloves
- 2 Inch Cinnamon
- 8 Red Kashmiri Chili, Deceased
- For the Chole
- 1 Bay Leaf
- 2 Onions, Chopped
- 2 Tomatoes, Chopped
- 2 Tbsp Ghee
- 2 Tbsp Ginger Garlic Paste
- 1 Tsp Turmeric Powder
- 1 Tbsp Red Chili Powder
- 1 Tbsp Coriander Powder
- 2 Tbsp Cholla Masala (Created Above)
- 1 Tsp Amchur Powder
- 1 Tsp Garam Masala
- 2 Tsp Kasuri Methi
- Coriander to Garnish
Preparation
Prep: 10 minutes
Cooking: 120 minutes
- Wash and soak the chickpeas for a minimum of 6 hours or overnight.
- Discard the soaked water and wash the chana again. Put the chana in a pressure cooker and add in 2 cups of water and salt. Take a muslin cloth and put in tea, cloves, black peppercorns and cinnamon and tie a tight knot. Put this in the cooker and give it 5-6 whistles until the chickpeas are soft. Let the cooker depressurize naturally. Discard the water.
- Take a pan and dry roast all the ingredients for the chole masala. Let this cooldown and grind it into masala in a mixer. Keep aside.
- Take a pot and add in the ghee. Heat it and put in the bay leaf. Add in the chopped onions and let them cook. Stir them occasionally to avoid burning. When the onions turn golden brown add in the ginger garlic paste. Let this cook and the pungent smell go away.
- Once the ginger and garlic are cooked and the onions have turned brown, add in the tomatoes. Cook this on medium flame until the tomatoes have become mushy and release the ghee.
- After the tomatoes are cooked, add in turmeric, the chole masala, red chilli powder and coriander powder and let the masalas also cook for some time. You can judge whether the masalas are cooked when the ghee is separating.
- Now add in the cooked chickpeas and a little water, salt, amchur powder and garam masala and bring this to a boil. Once this comes to a boil, lower the heat and let it simmer for about 30 mins. In intervals keep stirring and with your ladle mash in a few chickpeas to thicken the gravy.
- Finish it off with Kasuri methi and coriander leaves and serve it hot with parathas, roti or jeera rice.
