Punjabi chole | chickpea curry

Punjabi chole is a delicious curry made from chickpeas, freshly ground spices and a delicious onion-tomato masala. Chole actually means chickpeas in Punjabi! I love this dish as it comes together quickly, is really flavourful and uses freshly ground spices. Chole is often served with fluffy fried bread called bhature. These are similar to pooris but they a bigger and fluffier. Over the past couple of years I have really tried to improve on my recipe for chole. Here are some of my top tips

• Use dried chickpeas which have been soaked for at least 6 hours (overnight is even better). I find that cooking soaked dried chickpeas results in a softer chickpeas and they have a much better texture. Of course you can use tinned chickpeas, but then I still recommend to let them cook for at least 30 minutes to soften them. 
  
  
  
• Cook the chickpeas with a couple of tea bags! This imparts a delicious rich brown colour to the dish and gives a delicious almost smoky like flavour. Also cook the chickpeas with a pinch of baking powder or soda. This helps them become soft. 
  
  
  
• Let the final chole simmer on the hob for a good 20-30 minutes. This infuses all the flavours and gives a nice consistency to the dish. I sometimes add a tiny splash of cream - but if you let it simmer you really won't need it. 
  
  
  
• Don't overdo the quantity of the individual spices - you want a balance in this dish! I don't add a lot of chilli powder and I don't add any green chilies to this dish. Just let the chole simmer to infuse all of the flavours.

Ingredients
Serves 3-4
For the chickpeas
1 cup / 200g dried chickpeas soaked in plenty of water for at least 6 hours OR 2 x 400g tinned chickpeas
2 black teabags  
Pinch baking powder / soda 
Pinch salt

For the onion-tomato masala
3 medium tomatoes finely diced
1 medium onion finely chopped 
1 inch piece fresh ginger finely chopped
2-3 garlic cloves finely chopped 
Water as required 
Handful chopped coriander leaves to garnish 
Vegetable oil as required 
Salt to taste 
1/2 tsp kashmiri red chilli powder 
1/2 tsp turmeric 
1/2 tsp coriander powder 
1/2 tsp cumin seeds 

Spices for the chole masala (or you can buy this pre-made from a good Asian supermarket!)
3-4 green cardamom pods
3-4 peppercorns 
3 cloves 
1 tsp cumin seeds 
1 tsp coriander seeds 
1 tsp fennel seeds 
1 dried red chilli
Small piece cinnamon 

Method
Cooking time - 30-45 mins

Making chole masala

• Roast all the spices for the chole masala in a dry frying pan on low-medium heat until fragrant. Let cool down slightly and then grind to a fine powder in a masala or coffee grinder and mix in the cinnamon. Set aside.
  
  

Cooking chickpeas

• Drain the soaked chickpeas and then add them to a large saucepan or pressure cooker along with the teabags and pinch baking powder. Add enough water to cover by a few cm. 
  
  
  
• If using a pressure cooker: turn the heat to medium, seal the pressure cooker and cook for 7-8 whistles until soft. They should break easily when you press them between your fingers. If using tinned chickpeas: turn the heat to a medium and let the chickpeas come to a gentle boil. Cook until the chickpeas are soft, around 15-20 minutes. Although tinned chickpeas are cooked, you really want them to be a melt in the mouth consistency for this dish. 
  
  

Making the onion-tomato masala

• Whilst the chickpeas are cooking, make the onion and tomato masala. Heat a few glugs of vegetable oil in a frying pan and add the cumin seeds. Let them crackle and then add the chopped onion. Saute until golden brown and soft. 
  
  
  
• Next, add the garlic & ginger. Saute for a few minutes to release the raw aroma. 
  
  
  
• Next, add in the chopped tomatoes. Cook on a medium heat until the tomatoes have reduced and are completely soft. You should see oil releasing from the sides of the masala. 
  
  
  
• Add 1tsp of the chole masala, the kashmiri red chilli powder, coriander powder and turmeric. Add a splash of water if the spices catch, you don't want them to burn. 
  
  

Making punjabi chole

• By this time the chickpeas should be cooked. Discard the teabags and using a slotted spoon, add the chickpeas to the onion and tomato masala. Mix well. 
  
  
  
• Also add the chickpea cooking water (this has all the flavour from the tea in it!). Add enough of to make a light gravy consistency (it is up to you to decide the thickness here, I prefer it to be slightly thinner). 
  
  
  
• Season with salt to taste and then let the chole simmer now for at least 15-20 minutes. This will give a great consistency to the final chole. If you need to add some more liquid during the simmering process, feel free to add some more of the cooking water.
  
  
  
• When the chole has simmered, garnish with coriander and serve with rotis, rice or poori. You can also serve this chole with fragrant jeera rice and a spiced onion salad (this combo is really good!)