Instant Pot Chana Masala recipe – Delicious , Indian Spiced Curry made with Dried Chickpeas or Garbanzo Beans. Vegan, Meal prep friendly Punjabi Chole Masala Recipe.
Chana Masala or Punjabi Chole is a very versatile Indian dish.It works well with a number of sides – simple rotis, parathas, pooris and rice.
Frankly, there are many ways of making Channa Masala- You could make is elaborate like this Pindi Channa or a new age Chickpea and Cauliflower Pumpkin Curry or you could make this Instant Pot Chana Masala with minimal ingredients.
How to make Channa Masala in Instant Pot
Ingredients
Ingredients for this Channa Masala are pretty simple.
Dried White Chickpeas
Vegetables- Onions, Tomatoes,Green Chilli,Garlic & Ginger
Spices- Coriander powder, Turmeric ,Garam Masala and a few whole spices.
How to make One Pot Punjabi Chole in Instant Pot
Step 1: Soak the Dried Chickpeas/Garbanzo beans in water for 6 hours or overnight.If want, you can make this instant pot channa masala without overnight soaking too.All you have to do is soak the beans in just boiled water for 1 hour before proceeding or you can cook the beans in PRESSURE COOKER for 20 minutes on HIGH pressure with triple the water and proceed as per the recipe.
Step 2:Heat the instant pot in SAUTE mode.Add Oil and the whole spices.
Step 3:Add Sliced onions and cook them till they turn golden brown.This takes 15-18 minutes depending on the thickness of the sliced onions.Thinner the slices, faster the browning.
Step 4:Add the tomatoes and cook till mushy.Another 4-5 minutes.
Step 5: Add the powdered spices- turmeric, garam masala and coriander powder, soaked chickpeas(discard the soaking water) and 2.5 cups of water.Select the PRESSURE COOK setting, for 30 minutes on HIGH pressure with the vent in SEALING position.Let the pressure release naturally.
Step 6: Open the lid.Using the end of the ladle or potato masher, mash a few chickpeas.If the gravy is too thin for you, you can reduce it by cooking for more time in saute mode.
Step 7: Garnish with coriander and serve hot.
About Indian Spices and Herbs
Spices
Indian food relies heavily on spices. While Spices are an important part of the recipe, you can skip them if you are new to Indian cuisine or just do not have them at hand.
Curry Powder
Coriander powder, Turmeric Powder ,Cumin and Chili Powder are 4 pillars of Indian cooking. Usually, store bought Curry Powder is a pre of these 4 spice powders. You can make Simple recipes like – Dal, Basic Chicken Curry, khichadi, with just curry powder.
Garam Masala & other Spice Mixes
Garam Masala is usually a mix of other spices like black pepper, cinnamon, cardamom, star anise, Cumin etc. You could buy a ready made garam masala and use instead of making a mix for every recipe.
Whole Spices
In addition to the 3 pillars and Garam Masala, we also use whole spices in elaborate Indian recipes like Chicken Korma,Laal Maas and Chicken Biryani.These add an unmistakable aroma and flavor to these dishes.They are easily available online or on big retail stores. Buy small quanities of these and keep refrigerated if not using often.
Herbs
Main Indian herb which is used across almost all recipes is coriander or cilantro. It is used as a garnish on almost all Indian recipes. It adds a much-needed freshness to otherwise spice heavy stewed food. The other Herb that is used while cooking is Curry Leaves.
How to Serve Channa Masala
Serve it along with Rice or rotis.It’s also very popular with pooris and often served on top of samosas.
I use a 6 qts instant pot and I love it! If you are in India and are looking to understand how I use it here, you should read my post on instant pot in India.
Here are some Super Easy Instant Pot Indian Recipes for you!
Ingredients
- 1 Cup Dried Chickpeas* Channa
- 2.5 Cup Water
- 1 Cup Onion- finely chopped about 1 large onion
- 1.5 Cups Tomato- finely chopped 1 large tomatoes
- 1/4 Cup Tomato Puree** Optional
- 1 tbsp Coriander Powder
Spices***
- 1 tsp Garam Masala
- 1 Bay Leaf
- 1 Black Cardamom
Instructions
- Wash and Soak the Chickpeas overnight.Alternatively, Soak the chickpeas in Hot(just boiled) water for 1 hour.
- Heat the instant pot in SAUTE Mode.Once hot, add the oil.
- Add the whole spices- black cardamom and bay leaf.
- To this, add the onions and saute for about 10-12 minutes till they are brown.(Chopped onions will brown faster than sliced onions)
- Tip in the chopped tomatoes and cook till the masala is mushy- about 6 minutes.
- Dump in all the powdered spices- turmeric, garam masala, chilli powder and coriander powder.
- Add the tomato puree and give everything a good mix.Scrape the bottom of the inner pot so the pan is deglazed.
- Add Water, drained soaked chickpeas and salt.
- Close the lid and select PRESSURE COOK/MANUAL for 30 minutes**** on HIGH pressure.Let the pressure release naturally.
Notes
Do not let the list of spices ,stop you from making the biryani.If you don’t have them or do not want to buy them, I suggest you use 1 tbsp of Curry Powder or Biryani powder of your choice instead. Instant Pot Time**** 30 minutes is a lot for anything to be pressure cooked. Usually soaked chickpeas can be cooked within 15 minutes.But in this recipe, we add the chickpeas along with the tomatoes which slow down the cooking of the chickpeas.
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