serves
4-6
prep
15 minutes
cook
40 minutes
difficulty
Mid
serves
4-6
people
preparation
15
minutes
cooking
40
minutes
difficulty
Mid
level
Stream free On Demand
A Lot for a Little
Watch the full episode here
G
Watch the full episode here
G
Ingredients
- 2 cups dried chickpeas
- 2 tea bags
- salt, to taste
- 4 tbsp desi ghee (see Note)
- 2 tsp cumin seeds
- 2 small green chillies, slit
- 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste
- 1 tbsp ground coriander
- ½ tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground chilli
- 1 tsp chana masala (see Note)
- ½ tsp dried mango powder
- 1 tbsp dried pomegranate seeds (anardana), roasted and coarsely crushed
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 2 medium tomatoes, roughly chopped
- fresh coriander, to garnish
For the bhature (fried leavened bread)
- 2½ cups plain flour (maida)
- ½ tsp baking powder
- pinch bicarbonate soda
- salt, to taste
- 2 tsp icing sugar
- ½ cup yoghurt
- 1 tbsp oil, plus extra for greasing and deep frying
To serve
- mango pickle, sliced daikon or radish, sliced onion, green chillies, cucumbers, yoghurt or salted lassi (see Note)
Soaking time: overnight
Resting time: 20 minutes
Instructions
1. Begin this recipe one day in advance by placing the dried chickpeas in a large bowl and covering with plenty of cold water. Allow to soak overnight.
2. When ready to cook, drain the chickpeas, then place in a pressure cooker. Add tea bags, 2 litres of water and cook under pressure for 15-20 minutes, or until soft and cooked through. Drain the chickpeas, reserving the liquid. Discard the tea bags.
3. To prepare the bhature, sift the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate soda, salt and icing sugar into a large mixing bowl. Add the yoghurt and mix well to combine. Gradually add up to ½ cup water, as needed to form a soft dough. Add 1 tbsp oil and knead well, then set aside for 15 – 20 minutes.
4. To make the curry, heat the ghee in a large, non-stick frying pan. Add the cumin seeds and green chilli and sauté for 30 seconds. Add the ginger-garlic paste and sauté for a further 30 seconds. Stir through the ground spices with the chana masala, dried mango power and mix well to combine. Stir through the reserved chickpea cooking water and bring to the boil.
5. Add the chickpeas to the frying pan with ¾ cup water, then cook on medium heat for 8-10 minutes, then lightly mash the mixture. Stir through the dried pomegranate powder, garam masala, ¼ cup water and the roughly chopped tomatoes. Cook for 2-3 minutes, then remove from the heat.
6. To finish the bhature, heat enough oil to deep-fry in a deep saucepan. While the oil is heating, divide the dough into 8-10 equal portions and shape into balls. Grease a worktop with oil and roll the balls into thin rotis using a rolling pin. Deep-fry the discs in batches until light golden and puffed up. Transfer to a tray lined with paper towel.
7. Garnish the chole with coriander sprigs and serve hot with the bhature.
Notes
- Pressure cooking is the fastest method for cooking dried chickpeas. While you can opt for boiling in a saucepan, this method will extend the cook-time. Alternatively, use 1 tin (400 g) drained chickpeas, instead of employing the dried ones.
- You can locate the spice blend chana masala from your local Indian supermarket. This recipe used the brand MDH (in green packaging).
- Desi ghee is clarified butter from pure cow’s milk. To make a salty lassi; blitz 1 cup plain yoghurt, salt, pepper, ground cumin, dried mango powder using a hand blender.
Photography by Jiwon Kim.
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Cook's Notes
Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.
Stream free On Demand
A Lot for a Little
