Recipe- Himachal Style Chana Madra

Chana Madra is a vegetarian dish from the Himachali cuisine. Chickpeas are cooked in a mildly spiced thick & creamy yogurt gravy. Serve it with bread/rice.

Ingredients

2 cups boiled chickpeas
1.5 cups yogurt
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tbsp chilly powder
1/2 tbsp coriander cumin powder
1 tsp oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
Pinch of asafoetida
4-5 cloves
1 tsp peppercorns
1 cinnamon stick
2 cardamon
5-6 cloves garlic
1 inch ginger
5-6 beet leaves optional
1 tbsp rice flour
1 dollop ghee
cilantro as required
salt as required

Method

- You need cooked/boiled chickpeas for this recipe. The best way is to first soak chickpeas overnight and then boil them in salt + turmeric water.

- Alternatively, you can also cook them in an Instant Pot where you need not soak them the night before. Simply add the dry chickpeas, cover it with 3-4 inches of water above it, then add salt and turmeric powder and cook in manual mode for 24 minutes with natural pressure release.

- Once the chickpeas are cooked, strain (use the water to make aquafaband keep them aside for now. In a bowl add yogurt, all-purpose flour or maida, chilly powder, turmeric powder, coriander and cumin powder. Whisk it all together until smooth.

- Heat oil in a pan and fry cumin seeds along with asafoetida for 30 seconds. Then add cinnamon, peppercorns, cloves and cardamon along with minced ginger and garlic.

- Continue to fry for another minute. The actual Chana Madra recipe doesn't call for any greens in the recipe but since I had some beet leaves, I decided to add that as well in my curry to make it more nutritious. You can skip this step if you wish to.

- Also add half of the chopped cilantro along with the beet leaves and cook it for 2 minutes or until the leaves turn soft. Then lower the flame and add the prepared yogurt mixture to the pan.

- Mix it immediately. This is an important step, you have to make sure that you stir continuously and do not allow the yogurt to curdle.

- Cook this curry for 4-5 minutes on low flame. Then add the boiled chickpeas along with salt. Mix and continue to cook for another 3-4 minutes.

- To thicken the curry, make a paste of rice flour and water and add to the pan. Stir and garnish with chopped cilantro and ghee.

- Chana Madra is ready. Serve with any Indian bread/rice.