This hearty Indian chana masala curry, traditionally made with dried chickpeas, can be conveniently prepared with canned chickpeas without compromising flavour in 30 minutes.
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About Indian Chana Curry
Indian cuisine, known for its vibrant flavours and aromatic spices, boasts an array of delicious and nutritious dishes. Among these, chana masala stands out as one of the most popular vegetarian main courses. We make different variations of chana curry at least once every week either with spinach (chana saag) or with loads of spices truly Delhi-style chana masala.
Chana Masala is not just a dish; it’s an experience that brings the essence of North Indian style cooking to your kitchen – also known as chole or chana curry. It’s perfect for a weeknight dinner or a protein-packed vegetarian meal.
You can find more easy and tasty instant pot friendly curry recipes in my debut cookbook The 100 Best Curries for your Instant Pot.
Recipe Highlights:
- vegan
- gluten-free
- one pot recipe
- no nuts or sugar
- meal prep friendly
- requires basic cooking skills
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Chickpeas, you can make this chana masala recipe with canned or pre-cooked chickpeas. But if you like, you can soak dried chickpeas and use them to make the curry.
- Red Onion – chop it finely so that it melds into the rich sauce.
- Use ginger and garlic paste. You can finely chop fresh ginger and garlic, or grate them. It gives them a fine, paste-like texture that helps release flavour into the curry.
- Cumin seeds – add a wonderful depth of flavour to this curry recipe.
- Ground Spices – Turmeric, Chilli Powder, Coriander Powder and Garam Masala – an aromatic Indian spice blend.
- Canned diced tomatoes give the bright red colour and the sauciness to the curry. You can add finely chopped ripe, red, juicy fresh tomatoes also.
- For cooking use coconut oil, ghee or neutral-tasting vegetable oil.
- Cilantro – mix some into the chana masala and sprinkle more on top for garnish.
- Fresh lemon juice to balance the heat of spices.
- Sliced Green Chillies for that extra spicy kick.
How To Make Chana Masala
Prep Chickpeas (Chana):
- Begin by draining and rinsing the canned chickpeas thoroughly under cold water. This helps remove excess sodium and any preservatives used in the canning process.
- Let them sit on a colander. Gently pat with a kitchen paper towel.
Cooking the Curry Base:
- Heat the vegetable oil or ghee in a pan over medium heat.
- Add the chopped onions and sauté until they turn golden brown. This process takes about 5 – 6 minutes and is crucial for developing the base flavour of the curry.
- Add the ginger garlic paste, ground spices except garam masala, salt, and diced tomatoes.
- Sauté for an additional 2 – 3 minutes until the curry masala base comes together.
Introduce Chickpeas:
- Once the curry base is well-cooked, add the rinsed chickpeas to the pot.
- Stir to coat the chickpeas evenly with the spiced tomato mixture.
- Pour in the water. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pan, and let it simmer for 15 minutes. This allows the chickpeas to absorb the flavours of the spices. If the curry becomes too thick, add more water or coconut milk to get the desired consistency.
Finishing Touches:
After simmering, check the seasoning of the chana curry and adjust salt or spice levels as needed. Add the garam masala, sliced green chillies (optional), lemon juice, and half of the chopped coriander, and stir well.
Serving Suggestion
Chana Masala Curry is a hearty, wholesome, and vegetarian Indian main course dish. Serve it with steamed basmati rice, jeera rice, peas pulao or soft, pillowy naan bread.
To serve a complete Indian meal accompany it with side dishes like mint raita, kachumber salad or sliced onions, and chutney.
My Tried and True Tips
- Spiciness: This is a medium to high spicy curry. If you are not comfortable with the heat of spices, add a splash of thick coconut milk towards the end or reduce the quantity of ground spices.
- Consistency: Adjust the thickness of the curry by varying the amount of water. For a thicker curry, simmer it uncovered for a few extra minutes to reduce the liquid.
- Acidity Balance: The lemon juice at the end brightens the flavour and balances the spice’s heat. If you like a hint of sweetness, add a teaspoon of sugar to balance the acidity of the tomatoes.
- The garam masala is always added towards the end, to impart a deep, complex flavour to the curry.
More Indian Curry Recipes
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Chana Masala Curry Recipe
- stockpot or saucepan
Ingredients
- 1 can (approx 400g) chickpeas (chana)
- 2 tablespoon vegetable refined oil
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds (jeera)
- 1 medium size onion, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon ginger garlic paste (get recipe)
- ½ Cup canned diced tomatoes
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
- ½ teaspoon red chilli powder
- ½ teaspoon coriander powder
- 1 teaspoon cooking salt or to taste
- 1 ¼ Cup water
- ½ teaspoon Garam Masala (get recipe)
- 2 green chillies sliced (optional)
- handful of fresh coriander leaves, chopped
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
Instructions
- Begin by draining and rinsing the canned chickpeas thoroughly under cold water. This helps remove excess sodium and any preservatives used in the canning process.
- Let them sit on a colander. Gently pat with a kitchen paper towel.
- Heat the vegetable oil or ghee in a pan over medium heat.
- Heat the vegetable oil or ghee in a pan over medium heat.
- Add the chopped onions and sauté until they turn golden brown. This process takes about 5 – 6 minutes and is crucial for developing the base flavour of the curry.
- Add the ginger garlic paste, ground spices except garam masala, salt, and diced tomatoes. Sauté for an additional 2 – 3 minutes until the curry masala base comes together.
- Once the curry base is well-cooked, add the rinsed chickpeas to the pot. Stir to coat the chickpeas evenly with the spiced tomato mixture.
- Pour in the water. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pan, and let it simmer for 15 minutes. This allows the chickpeas to absorb the flavours of the spices. If the curry becomes too thick, add more water or coconut milk to get the desired consistency.
- After simmering, check the seasoning of the chana curry and adjust salt or spice levels as needed. Add the garam masala, sliced green chillies (optional), lemon juice, and half of the chopped coriander, and stir well.
- Serve chana masala curry with steamed basmati rice, jeera rice, peas pulao or soft, pillowy naan bread.
Recipe Notes:
- For cooking the chana curry you can use refined oil, coconut oil, or ghee.
- Canned or pre cooked chickpeas are fine for making this Indian curry.
- Instead of canned diced tomatoes you can use freshly chopped ripe, red juicy tomatoes also. They will give a better taste to the curry.
- If you are not comfortable with the heat of spices, add a splash of thick coconut milk towards the end or reduce the quantity of ground spices.
- The lemon juice and Garam Masala are always added towards the end and not while cooking the curry.
shiju sugunan says
Hi Hina, Long time! It’s great to be back here. Just wanted to say that your content is still top-notch, but the ads are a bit off-putting.
Hina Gujral says
Hello Shiju, thanks for your feedback. But you know ads are the bread and butter for a website so can’t get rid of them.