Chana masala (or as the Doctor calls it, “chickpea stuff”) is an absolute staple at Redfort that gets requested at least once a month. Not bad for a recipe that I randomly found on Reddit! It’s rich and creamy, with a good amount of heat. The onion-mustard-coriander topping adds texture, and it’s drizzled with too much ghee for it to be “healthy”, even with all the spinach.
On the other hand, it’s because its so delicious that we always have chickpeas, coconut milk and frozen spinach in the house.
Ingredients
1 large onion
2 tablespoons ghee, plus another 2-4 tablespoons extra (if you use oil, this recipe becomes vegan)
400 gram can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
400ml can of coconut milk
1/2 can of water (use the coconut milk can)
2 medium tomatoes
2 long green chillis (substitute 1 1/2 teaspoons chilli flakes, or reduce to 1 chilli or 1/2 teaspoon if you don’t want it too spicy)
250 gram box of frozen spinach (or 3 bunches fresh, washed well and chopped)
1 teaspoon ground coriander seeds
1 teaspoon ground cumin seed
2 tablespoons yellow mustard seeds (optional)
Generous bunch of coriander leaves (optional)Cooking implements
Medium pot
Medium frying pan
Strainer
Knife and chopping board
Cut the onion in half, then dice one half and cut the other into thin slices. The slices will be for the topping, so put them aside.
Heat a couple of tablespoons of ghee (or oil) in the pot, then sweat the diced onions until they soften. I was running out of ghee today, so I used rice bran oil instead. Ghee adds so much flavour to this dish, so I’d prefer to have it in the topping rather than cooked into the dish.
Chop the tomato and chillis, and open the coconut milk.
Drain and rinse the chick peas. By now, the onions should be just about ready.
Add the chickpeas, chillis, tomatoes and spices (coriander and cumin seeds, plus chilli flakes if you’re using them).
Stir it around a bit before adding the coconut milk.
Add the coconut milk, and make sure to rinse down the sides of the can to make sure you get every last bit out, especially any cream that might have settled! Aim for a fairly thick sauce here, since the frozen spinach will add a lot of water later. You can always thin it out afterwards, so err on the side of adding as little water as possible.
Bring it to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer about 20 minutes, making sure you season with salt to taste. The chickpeas should be slightly softer and the tomatoes melted into the sauce. You don’t want the chickpeas to go completely mushy, so don’t over cook them.
Add the still-frozen spinach and simmer for about 5 more minutes. If using fresh spinach, check if you need to add more water to thin out the sauce to your liking.
Transfer the masala to a serving dish, and we’ll get started on the topping.
Melt a generous amount of ghee in a frying pan. I’ve never really measured how much, but I use enough to cover the bottom of the frying pan, and then some.
Add the sliced onions from earlier, and cook on medium heat until they are soft and the ends start to brown.
Turn the heat off, then add the mustard seeds and chopped coriander leaves. When the coriander has wilted, pour the topping evenly on top of the masala.
I used to just do onion and ghee for the topping, but nowadays I try to include the other stuff. The mustard seeds don’t add any heat to the dish, but they are tiny and crunchy, which makes the texture a lot more interesting.
The Doctor actually prefers to eat this on the next day (hence no pictures with rice), since the flavours meld a lot more and it’s easier to scoop. It tends to set up solid, but reheats perfectly in the microwave. Make sure you wrap it well if you’re not eating it all at once, as the smell can transfer to other things in the fridge.
Here’s the printable:
Ingredients
1 large onion
2 tablespoons ghee, plus another 2-4 tablespoons extra (if you use oil, this recipe becomes vegan)
400 gram can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
400ml can of coconut milk
1/2 can of water (use the coconut milk can)
2 medium tomatoes
2 long green chillis (substitute 1 1/2 teaspoons chilli flakes if you don't have any fresh, or reduce to 1 chilli or 1/2 teaspoon if you don't want it too spicy)
1 teaspoon ground coriander seeds
1 teaspoon ground cumin seed
250 gram box of frozen spinach (or 3 bunches fresh, washed well and chopped)
2 tablespoons yellow mustard seeds (optional)
Generous bunch of coriander leaves (optional)
Cooking implements
Pot
Frying pan
Strainer
Knife and chopping board
Method
- Cut the onion in half, dice one half and cut the other into thin slices. The slices are for the topping, so put them aside for now.
- Heat a couple of tablespoons of ghee (or oil) in the pot, then start sweating the diced onions until they soften.
- Chop up the tomato and green chillis, and open the coconut milk.
- Drain and rinse the chick peas. By this point, the onions should be just about ready.
- Add the chickpeas, chillis, tomatoes and spices. Stir it around a little bit before adding the coconut milk.
- Add the coconut milk, and up to half a can of water. Add as little water as possible at this point to make a thick sauce.
- Bring it to a boil, then lower the heat to a simmer. Cook for about 20 minutes, making sure you season with salt to taste. The chickpeas should be softened and the tomatoes melted into the sauce.
- Add the spinach and let it come back up to a simmer for about 5 minutes. If using fresh spinach, check if you need to add more water to thin out the sauce to your liking.
- Transfer chana masala to a serving dish.
- Melt a generous amount of ghee in a frying pan.
- Add the sliced onions, cook on medium heat until very soft and the ends start to brown.
- Turn the heat off, add the mustard seeds and chopped coriander leaves.
- Pour topping on the chana masala and serve, or let cool and refrigerate until the next day. Reheats extremely well in the microwave.
Notes
Serve with steamed rice, or with naan. The sauce should be thick and luscious, rather than soupy. Wrap well if keeping in the fridge.