pindi chole recipe with step by step photos – pindi chana is one of the easiest and tasty chana recipe to make. as no grinding, no long frying or sauting (bhunaoing) is required and no making or powdering the chole masala.
all you need is readymade chole masala /chana masala. and the rest everything is easy and quick. since pindi chole is quick to prepare than the other chole recipes i have made, i have decided to make it regularly. i wonder why i did not make the pindi chana earlier.
i wanted to make from a long time and finally managed to make this a few days back. this was again an awesome and spicy chana recipe that is made for the indian taste buds.
have adapted this pindi chole recipe from cookbook – “1000 Great Indian Recipes, the Ultimate Book of Indian Cuisine” by Neeta Dutta. this chana recipe was one of the easiest and simplest recipes i have made.
before posting the recipe, i did some research on google for pindi chana and i found some facts mentioned below:
- the chana recipe is from rawalpindi in punjab, pakistan, hence the name pindi chana.
- the recipe does not have onions and tomatoes added to it hence its dry unlike punjabi chole. onions are served in raw form.
- dry mango powder and dry pomegranate seeds powder is added to the chana for sourness.
- the chana has a brown tinge to it made by using tea bags/tea leaves or gooseberry (amla).
i have not added any pomegranate seed powder as the chole masala already has it. though i added some dry mango powder towards the end just to increase some sourness. the chole masala has all the spices which one normally finds in chole recipes. here a peek into the list of ingredients in the chole masala.
serve the pindi chana with sliced or chopped onions, lemon slices, julienned ginger and green chillies along with bhatura, naan, tandoori rotis or poori.
if you are looking for more chole recipes then do check:
pindi chole recipe
INGREDIENTS FOR pindi chole recipe
For cooking chole (chickpeas)
- 250 grams dried white chickpeas (kabuli chana or safed chole)
- 3 cloves (lavang)
- 2 sticks cinnamon (dalchini) each of 1 inch
- 2 black cardamoms (badi elaichi)
- 2 green cardamoms (choti elaichi)
- 2 tej patta (indian bay leaf)
- 1 black tea bag
- 1 teaspoon black salt
For making pindi chole
- 3 teaspoons ginger-garlic paste or crushed ginger-garlic
- ½ teaspoon red chili powder (lal mirch powder)
- 2 teaspoons coriander powder (dhania powder)
- 1 teaspoon garam masala powder
- 2 to 3 teaspoons chole masala (chana masala powder)
- 1 teaspoon dry mango powder (amchur)
- 2 tablespoons oil
- salt as required
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice or add as required
HOW TO MAKE pindi chole recipe
For cooking chole (chana or chickpeas)
- soak the chole for 8 to 9 hours
- boil the soaked chole with the whole spices, black salt and tea bag/bags in a pressure cooker for 10-15 minutes. if the chole are not cooked completely than pressure cook them for a few more minutes.
- you could also tie all the spices in a muslin and make a bouquet garni and add it to the chickpeas.
- drain the chole. remove the spices and tea bag.
For making pindi chole
- in a pan heat oil and saute the crushed ginger-garlic or ginger-garlic paste.
- when the raw aroma of the ginger-garlic disappears. then add all the spice powders.
- saute the spice powders for a minute on a low flame.
- add the boiled chickpeas and mix it well with the masala.
- add salt and check for seasoning. adjust the seasoning if required by adding more salt or powdered spices.
- let the chana cook for 5 to 7 minutes in the masala on a low flame.
- lastly add lemon juice to the chana and mix it well. instead of adding lemon juice at this step, you can also serve lemon wedges with pindi chana.
- serve pindi chole hot with onion rings, green chillies and lemon wedges accompanied with naan, bhatura, puri or even roti.
how to make pindi chole or pindi chana recipe
1. first start with soaking the chole/chickpeas overnight for 8-9 hours. the next day boil the chole in enough water in a pressure cooker with cloves, cinnamon, black cardamom, green cardamom, bay leaves, black salt and tea bag/bags. i think i should i have used one more tea bag to get a darker hue on the chole. drain the chole and remove the whole spices and tea bag. here’s the cooked chole with the spices and tea bag.
2. heat oil in a pan and add crushed ginger-garlic or ginger-garlic paste.
3. saute the ginger-garlic till the raw aroma disappears.
4. now add all the red chili powder, coriander powder, chole masala and garam masala.
5. saute the masala for a minute on a low flame taking care not to burn it.
6. add the cooked chana.
7. mix the cooked chana with the masala so that the chana gets coated with the masala. add salt too.
8. saute for 5 to 7 minutes on a low flame, occasionally stirring in between.
9. the last part is the addition of fresh lemon juice to the chana. i chose not to add it to the chana and instead serve the lemon with the pindi chana. garnish with coriander leaves (i did not have them).
serve the pindi chole with sliced or chopped onions, lemon slices, julienned ginger and green chillies along with bhatura, naan, rotis or puri.
I must try this. However i dont have chole masala in my kitchen and unable to buy it, but i do have sambar and garam powders.
Would the taste be very different if using sambar powder instead of chole?
thanks ela. with sambar powder, the taste will be very different and may not taste good in this recipe. just overall add 1.5 to 2 teaspoons garam masala powder.
Must try..Till now i used to make onion n tomato gravy. But this looks tastier n faster to make.
thanks soma. do try this recipe. it tastes good.
Super delicious and cozy with jeera rice! A true home-cooked Punjabi dinner 🙂
I am a huge fan of your recipes, they have taught me so much about getting the right intuition in my cooking.
Thanks Hania for your kind words and positive feedback.