Curried potatoes and chickpeas (aloo chana masala)

Chickpea potato curry served in a bowl with rice, onion slices, cilantro, and a slice of lime.

Curried potatoes and chickpeas (aloo chana masala)

Curried potatoes and chickpeas, more commonly known as aloo chana masala is a flavorful, comforting, and delicious curry recipe from India that's vegan and gluten-free. Serve it with some basmati rice, naan, or any Indian bread or rice dish to enjoy a satisfying Indian meal at home.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Indian, North Indian

Diet Gluten Free, Vegan, Vegetarian

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 45

chickpeas soaking time 7

Total Time 50

Servings

Calories 220kcal

Author Vandana Chauhan

Equipment

Pressure cooker
Chutney grinding jar/ food processor

Ingredients

½ cup dried chickpeas
2 medium-sized potatoes peeled and cut into bite size cubes
1 medium-sized onion
1 large tomato
2-3 large garlic cloves
1 small piece of ginger finely chopped
1-2 hot green chilies adjust to taste
A handful of fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons lime juice adjust to taste
½ teaspoon cumin seeds
1 bay leaf
1 small stick of cinnamon
2-3 black peppercorns
2 cloves
½ tablespoon coriander powder
½ teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder adjust to taste
¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
½ teaspoon garam masala
1 teaspoon kasoori methi
Salt to taste
1 tablespoon cooking oil of choice
3-4 cups water

Instructions

Rinse chickpeas and soak in water for at least 7 hours or overnight.
After 7 hours, put the soaked chickpeas in a pressure cooker. Add 2 cups of water and salt. Put the lid on and cook chickpeas till around 6 whistles or until the chickpeas are nicely cooked.
While the chickpeas are getting cooked, roughly chop onion and garlic. Put them in a chutney grinding jar or food processor and make a paste. Take the paste out in a bowl and keep it aside.
In the same jar, put roughly chopped tomatoes and green chilies. Make another paste. Keep it aside too.
Heat oil in a cooking pot. Add all the whole spices and saute for a few seconds.
Add the onion-garlic paste and cook until it turns golden brown. Keep stirring in between and if the paste starts sticking to the pot, add a few tablespoons of water and continue cooking.
Once the onion gets cooked, add red chili powder, turmeric powder, and coriander powder. Saute for a few seconds.
Add tomato-green chili paste and salt. Cook until the tomatoes get nicely cooked.
Add potato cubes and saute for 2-3 minutes.
Add around 2 cups of water and cover the pot with a lid. Cook for around 20 minutes or until the potatoes are nicely cooked.
Add chopped ginger and cooked chickpeas. Mix everything. Mash some chickpeas and potatoes with the ladle.
Add around 1.5 cups of water and cover the pot again. Cook for another 5 minutes and then switch off the stove.
Finally, add kasoori methi, garam masala, chopped cilantro, and lime juice. Mix everything and enjoy with rice or any Indian bread.

Video

Notes

Don't discard the water in which chickpeas are cooked and use it along with water to make gravy.
You can also use canned chickpeas to make this curry. However, if using canned chickpeas rinse them properly to get rid of the metallic taste.
Instead of chickpeas, you can also use whole Bengal gram (kala chana) also known as black chickpeas.
The number of whistles required to cook chickpeas in a pressure cooker may vary depending upon the capacity of chickpeas, the quality of chickpeas, and even the altitude of the place where you live. So start with 6 whistles on medium and then if required, cook more.
More recipe tips and tricks are given within the post above, please follow them to make this dish.

Nutrition