Chana masala

A vegan, Instant Pot version of this classic Indian chickpea dish. This is how I like to make it, but there are more versions of this dish under the sun than a person could taste in a lifetime.

Ingredients

• 1 pound dry chickpeas
• 3 1/2 cups water
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil (I like peanut oil for dishes like this)
• 2 yellow onions, diced
• 2 serrano peppers or Indian green chilies, seeds removed and finely chopped
• 2 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
• 4 to 6 plum tomatoes (depending on size)

• 1 tsp whole cumin seeds
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 stick cassia cinnamon, broken in half
• 1 tbsp chole masala
• 1 tbsp garam masala
• 2 tsp ground coriander
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper powder, or less to taste

• salt to taste, about 1 1/2 tsp
• 2 tbsp lemon juice, more or less to taste
• 1/4 cup cilantro leaves, chopped
• 2 tbsp dried fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi)

Directions

Soak dry chickpeas in cool water for at least 2 hours, up to overnight. Fresher chickpeas will need less soak time. Drain soaked chickpeas.

Turn Instant Pot to sauté mode. Add oil, onions and chilies and saute until onion is translucent. Add ginger-garlic paste and sauté for 2 minutes more. Add cumin seeds, bay leaves, cinnamon stick, chole masala, garam masala, coriander, black pepper and cayenne pepper and sauté for another minute or two, until spices are very fragrant. Add tomatoes, sauté for one minute to deglaze the pot, and turn off Instant Pot.

Add soaked and drained chickpeas and 3 1/2 cups water. Set Instant Pot to manual mode, high pressure for 40 minutes. Allow pressure to naturally release when cooking is complete (about 20 minutes). Add salt and lemon juice to taste, then stir in cilantro and fenugreek leaves. Serve with basmati rice, jeera rice, naan, or even roll it up in a roti.