How you can effortlessly cook Punjabi Chana Masala in less than 25 mins

Punjabi Chana Masala is another popular recipe from Punjab that is called by different names in India, such as Chole Masala, Chana Masala, and Chickpea Tikka Masala, which is not just tasty but very healthy.

This recipe is so popular that spice manufacturers blended new masala powders, especially for this one. They are available in the market as Chole Masala Powder and Chana Masala Powder, and they have printed different types of Chole Masala Recipe on the box with instructions.

This recipe stands in India’s top 10 healthy foods and is often consumed and served for significant occasions like birthdays, get-togethers, marriages, etc.

While this recipe has many variations, Chana Masala, cooked in Punjabi Style/north Indian style, steals the show. One cannot switch back to other recipe styles once they tried this authentic Punjabi Chole Masala recipe.

The beauty of the Chana is it can be cooked for breakfast, lunch, evening snacks, and dinner

• Chana Masala is cooked and served with roti, poori, bhature, and naan for breakfast.
• Chana Tikki Masala is cooked and served with Bharara rice, flavoured rice, roti, and pulka for lunch.
• Soaked and Boiled Chole is tossed with diced onions, capsicum, and cucumber and sprinkled with a dash of salt and black pepper for an evening snack.
• Plain Chole curry is cooked and served with naan and roti for a lite dinner.

One of my favourite recipes is Chana Chaat, which is very easy to make, keeps you full for 2 – 3 hours, and goes well as an evening snack.

We present the Punjabi Chana Masala recipe dhaba style, made at home. Of course, it will not give the rustic flavour of the wok used to cook in dhabas, but it will be a close match from the taste perspective and far better from the hygiene perspective.

Process of making authentic Punjabi Chana Masala:

Saute raw spices (shahi jeera, star anise, cinnamon, cloves, peppercorns, green chillies, and cardamom) along with onions and cook until they turn lite brown.

Add ginger, garlic paste, methi leaves, and turmeric, mix well, and cook on a medium flame for 5 mins.

Add 1 cup of tomato puree to the cooked onions and spices, 3 tablespoons of red chilli powder, 2 tablespoons of dry coconut powder, 1 tablespoon of coriander powder, a pinch of garam masala, and 2 tablespoons of salt.

Mix all the spices and cook on a medium flame for 5 mins.
After 5 mins: Add the overnight soaked chana/chole to it.
Mix slowly. Leave it on low flame for 5 mins.

Add 350 ml of water and mix well. Add some fresh coriander leaves and mix well. Cover and slow-cook chana masala for 3 whistles. The Chana is now properly cooked by absorbing all the spices we added.

Pro Tip:

Buy quality chana/chole/chickpea from the market. I prefer buying the organic ones available online.

Soak it for a minimum of 12 hours for better consistency and taste.
As we wanted to make this recipe authentic, we have0 not used chole masala powder/chana masala powder bought from the market. Instead, we used raw spices and made this recipe.

You can add chana or chole masala powder if you have no raw spices at home. You can saute the onions, ginger, and garlic paste, add Chole, red chilli powder, salt, chole masala powder, water, and pressure cook it. Your dish is ready to serve.

You will stop searching online for “how to make Chana Masala Punjabi Style” if you go through the instructions and steps in this article and the video below.

Health Benefits of Chana:

This recipe carries a lot of health benefits that help the human body in many ways.

• Carries important Minerals and Vitamins
• It is a filling dish with many nutrients to keep your stomach full and not crave munching.
• The fibre-rich quality helps the gut and keeps the digestive system on track.
• It is a good option for Vegans who want to supply plant-based protein to the body. It is a great source of protein. You will get 15 grams of protein with 1 cup of chickpeas.

Please watch the video below for a detailed step-by-step guide/instructions.

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How to make Punjabi Chana Masala Recipe with step-by-step photos

1. Wash and soak 1 cup of Chana overnight

2. Hand ground some ginger and garlic paste and keep it aside

3. Add 4 tablespoons of oil to the pressure cooker

4. Saute raw spices (shahi jeera, star anise, cinnamon, cloves, peppercorns, green chillies, and cardamom) along with onions and cook until they turn lite brown. 

5. Add a few slit green chillies

6. Add 1 cup of finely chopped onions

7. Cook on medium flame until the spices and onions turn golden brown, and then add hand grounded ginger and garlic paste to it and mix well

8. Add a few methi leaves 

10. Mix well and add 1 tablespoon of turmeric powder

11. Mix well and add 1 cup of tomato puree (sauce)

12. Add 3 tablespoons of red chilli powder 

13. Add 2 tablespoons of dry coconut powder

14. Add 1 tablespoon of coriander powder

15. Add 2 tablespoons of salt

16. Add overnight soaked chana/chole to it

17. Mix well and cook on medium flame until the spices absorb into the chole and become aromatic

18. Once you see the oil tops the curry, add 400 ml of water to it

19. Add some fresh coriander leaves

20. While the chana is already soaked, 3 whistles are good enough to cook, absorb the spices, and make a proper curry

21. After 3 whistles, release the vacuum and serve it in a bowl.

Authentic, flavorful, aromatic, delicious Punjabi Chana Masala is ready to serve

22. It goes well with roti, chapati, naan, and flavoured rice. But, the perfect combination is poori chole or chole bhature.