Baljinder Boparai, from northern India, shows us how to make channa masala (chickpea curry).
Baljinder Boparai and her family came to New Zealand about eight years ago.
Until this year they lived in Hawkes Bay, but moved to Dunedin because their two children are at university here.
Channa masala, a chickpea curry, is a popular dish at parties and familyget-togethers.
It is usually served with poori, a puffed fried bread, or chapati, a flat bread, and perhaps a dollop of plain yoghurt on the side.
With such a well-known dish there are many variations.
Channa masala
2 cups dried chickpeas
1 1/2 onions, peeled and roughly chopped
2-3 Tbsp oil or ghee (clarified butter)
1 1/2 Tbsp cumin seeds
2 cups canned tomatoes
1 Tbsp crushed garlic
1 Tbsp crushed ginger
salt
2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp garam masala
1/4 tsp asafoetida (hing) - optional
2-5 fresh or frozen green chillies, chopped
2 tsp ground fenugreek leaves
optional: lemon juice, red chilli powder, fresh coriander leaves
METHOD
Soak the chickpeas in cold water overnight, allowing room for them to expand. Drain and cook them in plenty of water for about an hour until tender.
Peel and rinse the onions, chop roughly then puree them in a blender with a little water, until it forms a paste.
Heat oil in a large, deep frying pan.
Add cumin seeds and stir until fragrant.
Stir in the pureed onion, cover and cook on medium heat until the onion changes colour and becomes translucent.
Add salt to taste, turmeric and the crushed garlic and ginger. Stir and continue to cook until the oil separates and floats on top.
Add garam masala, hing, and powdered fenugreek leaves, and lastly stir in the chopped fresh chilli.
Cover and simmer 5-10 minutes.
Serve with Indian bread.
Tips:
• For best results start with dried chickpeas, and soak and cook them yourself. In a pressure cooker they will cook in about 20 minutes, but it takes about an hour to an hour and a-half in a pot. However, tinned chickpeas will do if you are in a rush.
• It is best to use freshly crushed garlic and ginger, rather than commercial crushed garlic or ginger.
• If tomatoes are ripe and in season, you can use fresh instead of canned tomatoes.
• For a different flavour, dry-fry the cumin seeds and grind them instead of using them whole.
• Instead of powdered fenugreek leaves, use finely chopped fresh coriander leaves.
• Use chillies to taste. If you don't like it too hot, remove the seeds. If you can't get fresh or frozen chillies, use chilli powder. Red chilli powder will give a deeper colour to the dish.
• Hing or asafoetida is a spice used in some Indian dishes, and is said to be good for the digestion. Uncooked, it has a distinctive and mostly unpleasant aroma, but once it's cooked it adds a subtle, aromatic and savoury undercurrent to a dish, a bit like onion or parmesan cheese. It is always used sparingly. It's available in Indian groceries and supermarkets with a good international section.
- Thanks to Afife Harris and Mamma Mia.
