Spicy Indian Garbanzo Beans - Channa Masala

This is my take on a classic Indian dish – channa masala or garbanzo beans in a curry sauce. I use a Jamaican Curry Power (Blue Mountain) along with traditional Indian spices. The West Indian curry powder is a bit more mellow and has a different flavor compared to Indian curry powder, and gives the dish a different dimension. I found the Jamaican Curry Powder in one of the ethnic grocery stores in Phoenix. If you cannot find the Jamaican Curry Powder, use regular curry powder.

Ingredients

1½ cups: Dried Garbanzo Beans, soaked overnight. If you do not have a pressure cooker to cook the beans, use 2, 16-oz cans of Garbanzo beans instead
2 tablespoons: Peanut or vegetable oil
1 teaspoon: Cumin seed
6: Cloves
¼-teaspoon or 4 whole pods Cardamom
1, 2-in piece: Cinnamon
2: Bay leaves
1-inch piece: Ginger, finely minced. I prefer fresh ginger minced on a cutting board, but you can use store-bought ginger paste too.
3 : Garlic cloves, finely minced. I prefer fresh garlic minced on a cutting board, but you can use store-bought garlic paste too.
2 : Medium sized onions, finely chopped or ground
3 tablespoons: Jamaican curry powder. Use 2 tablespoons if using regular curry powder.
1 teaspoon: Coriander powder
1 teaspoon: Garam Masala
½-teaspoon: Hot red chili powder (this is ground red peppers, not the mix of spices that you use to cook up a pot of chilli). Add more if you like.
½-teaspoon :Amchur. This is powdered, dried mango and it adds a slightly sour taste. You can find this in most Indian grocery stores.
½-cup: Pureed tomato. I use canned diced tomatoes, and puree them using a hand-held electric blender.
2 tablespoons: Chopped fresh cilantro

Process the beans:

Soak the beans overnight

Drain the beans and add them to the pressure cooker

Add 4 cups of water and salt to taste

Add bay leaves, cloves, cardamom, and cinnamon. Or you can tie these spices in a piece of cheese cloth (bouquet garni) and then add to the pressure cooker.

Put the lid on the pressure cooker and cook until soft. This should be about 6 whistles of the pressure cooker, and about 30 mins.

Drain the beans and retain the liquid. Toss the bouquet garni.

Separate out about ½-cup of the cooked beans and mash them to a paste.

Pull it all together

Add 2 tablespoons of oil to a large cooking pot. I use a dutch oven or a deep fry pan.

Once the oil is hot, had 1 teaspoon of cumin seeds. Allow to heat up so that they turn brown, but do not allow them to burn.

Add the chopped or ground onions. Add the minced ginger and garlic. Sauté until the onions turn soft and translucent.

Add 3 tablespoons of curry powder, one teaspoon of garam masala, one teaspoon of coriander powder, and ½-teaspoon of amchur. Sautee until the spices release their fragrance, but do not allow them to burn.

Add the pureed tomato and the mashed beans, and cook over low heat for about 7 minutes. Stir frequently so that the mix does not burn.

Add the garbanzo beans along with 2 cups of liquid left over from cooking the beans in the pressure cooker.

Put a lid on the pan and cook on low for about 30 minutes. Stir every 5 or 6 minutes. Add more liquid if like the curry to be more runny, or cook with lid off to thicken the curry.

Adjust salt to your taste, and garnish with the chopped cilantro.


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