Spiced Indian Chickpeas was the very first Indian dish I learned to cook when I was 18. It is still one of my absolute favorites because not only is it easy to cook, but it boasts INCREDIBLE flavor. The flavor deepens over time, and it’s a warming, comforting dish.
You can enjoy this as a meal or a side dish or a snack. It’s a great one to bring to potlucks, and I also like making a huge batch of this and leaving it in the fridge for food-on-demand.
Ingredients
1 large onion
2-3 beefsteak tomatoes (or other slicing tomatoes)
1-2 green peppers
1/4 cup fresh ginger, minced
1/4 cup olive oil or avocado oil
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground coriander
2 tsp amchur powder, i.e. dried green mango powder
1 tsp black salt – NOTE: Black salt is actually a pale pink color
1 tsp anardana (pomegranate) powder
1-1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp ground cardamom
60 oz. of cooked chickpeas
1 bunch of cilantro
Okay, so I realized you might not have all of these spices. That’s okay. If you don’t have everything, don’t fret! You can use what you have. If you are missing the fruity notes of anardana (dried pomegranate seeds) or amchur (dried green mango powder), you can leave out those spices entirely or substitute something bright and fruity like a little bit of pickled lemon or something. If you’re missing that flavor, it’s fine. If you’re missing black salt, know that black salt is kind of sulfury tasting, like a hard boiled egg. You can buy all of these spices at an Indian market, and you can order them online from Pure Indian Foods (click here).
But like I said, if you’re missing those spices, you can skip them, and this will still taste great!
So first, dice the onion and green pepper and sauté in a little bit of oil until the onion is translucent.
Next, dice the tomatoes and add most of the tomato to the pan. Reserve about a cup to add later. The goal is to create a nice juice from the tomatoes for the onion and pepper to simmer in. But ultimately, we want the tomato juice to reduce down and leave us with a concentrated tomato flavor.
Next, stir in all the spices. If the mixture seems too dry, add a touch more oil or tomato.
After adding the spices, it’s time to add the cooked chickpeas. If you’re using canned chickpeas, drain them first. Stir to coat with the spices, and then simmer for at least 10 minutes on medium-low until it gets really juicy.
Add in the tomato you reserved from the beginning, and continue simmering until this last tomato is heated through. I usually let it simmer, covered, for 5 or so minutes to let everything meld together.
Lastly, add in chopped cilantro and stir to incorporate evenly.
You can serve over rice or eat it with tortilla chips. I know eating it with chips isn’t very Indian, but I swear it’s an amazing dip, and tortilla chips tastes great!
Let me know how you like this recipe!
- 1 large onion
- 2-3 beefsteak tomatoes (or other slicing tomatoes)
- 1-2 green peppers
- ¼ cup fresh ginger, minced
- ¼ cup olive oil or avocado oil
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 2 tsp ground coriander
- 2 tsp amchur powder, i.e. dried green mango powder
- 1 tsp black salt – NOTE: Black salt is actually a pale pink color
- 1 tsp anardana (pomegranate) powder
- 1-1/2 tsp mustard seeds
- 1 tsp black pepper
- ¼ tsp ground cloves
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp cayenne pepper
- ¼ tsp ground cardamom
- 60 oz. of cooked chickpeas
- 1 bunch of cilantro
- Dice the onion and green pepper and sauté in a little bit of oil until the onion is translucent.
- Next, dice the tomatoes and add most of the tomato to the pan. Reserve about a cup to add later. The goal is to create a nice juice from the tomatoes for the onion and pepper to simmer in. But ultimately, we want the tomato juice to reduce down and leave us with a concentrated tomato flavor.
- Next, stir in all the spices. If the mixture seems too dry, add a touch more oil or tomato.
- After adding the spices, it's time to add the cooked chickpeas. If you're using canned chickpeas, drain them first. Stir to coat with the spices, and then simmer for at least 10 minutes on medium-low until it gets really juicy.
- Add in the tomato you reserved from the beginning, and continue simmering until this last tomato is heated through. I usually let it simmer, covered, for 5 or so minutes to let everything meld together.
- Lastly, add in chopped cilantro and stir to incorporate evenly.
- Serve over rice or eat it with tortilla chips. I know eating it with chips isn't very Indian, but I swear it's an amazing dip, and tortilla chips tastes great!
