Chickpea Masala
Preparation: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 25 – 30 minutes
Serves: 4
1 tbsp (15ml) olive oil
¼ tsp black mustard seeds
1 sprig curry leaves
½ yellow asafoetida
½ cup finely chopped onion
2-3 green chillies finely chopped
1 tsp (5ml garlic & ginger paste) optional
1 ½ cups boiled and softened chickpeas
1 tbsp (15ml) mild chilli powder
½ cup chopped tomatoes
1 tsp (5ml) salt
1 tsp (5ml) brown sugar
½ cup water
Pinch black salt
1 tbsp (15ml) ghee (clarified butter)
½ cup finely chopped fresh coriander leaves
Dry roast and pound following spices
1 tbsp (15ml) coriander seeds
½ tbsp (7.5ml) cumin seeds
1 tsp (5ml) fennel seeds
¼ tsp fenugreek seeds
¼ tsp whole black pepper corns
2 cloves
1 black cardamom pod
1 green cardamom pod
Let’s cook
• Roast spices in a pan until flavour starts to emanate. Cool down and pound into a powder with a spice grinder or pestle & mortar
• Heat oil in a pot. Toss in mustard seeds, curry leaves and asafoetida. Once seeds pop and leaves splatter – add onion & chilli – cook until onions are soft and translucent.
• Add garlic and ginger paste – cook for a few seconds
• Toss in chickpeas with dry roast spice powder. If you have a low threshold to spice just 1 tablespoon as well as chilli powder – give it a good stir
• Add tomatoes & salt and cook on medium heat or 10 minutes occasionally stirring.
• Pour in water as well as sugar and cook for a further 10 – 12 minutes
• Sprinkle black salt and spoon over in ghee.
• Garnish with coriander and serve with vetkoek or puri
Hot tip: if you want a curry more liquid add 1 – 1 ½ cups water and then smash some of the chickpeas with a spoon. This will form a nice consistency gravy.