Delhi Style Chole - Chickpeas Curry is a delectable recipe made in a deep dish by adding boiled chickpeas with lots of spices in a masala. This is the same as Amritsari Chole but in Delhi style.
There are many varieties like Pindi Chole, Amritsari Chole, Restaurant Style, Delhi style, and many more. They are pretty much the same with some variations. Being a Punjabi, this dish has always been on top of my list. This is a favorite weekend brunch with naan or kulcha. This chickpeas curry goes great with some Garlic Naan.
You can enjoy this amazingly tasty dish with Kulcha, Bhature, Poori, Bread, or even add it in some Chaats. This is one recipe which is served as a street-food as well as the main course meal in all the restaurants. And it is also one of the main dishes served at weddings in North India. It is relished by everyone.
CHICKPEAS CURRY INGREDIENTS
1. Amla/Gooseberry: Adding gooseberry gives a nice tart flavor to the overall recipe. When gooseberry is added to chickpeas with tea leaves, it gives a nice brown color.
2. Black Tea Leaves: These are added only to give brownish color to the chickpeas. Chole
3. Chickpeas: Of course for making this recipe, Chickpea is the main ingredient. The best flavor comes when chickpeas are perfectly boiled. Some add baking soda while boiling to get extremely soft chickpeas. But it's best to soak them in water for 6-8 hours and then boil it.
4. Whole Spices: Adding whole spices when boiling chickpeas gives a nice extra layer of flavoring to the dish. I usually add Black Cardamoms, Cinnamon, Black Peppercorns, Bay Leaf and Kashmiri Red Chilies.
5. Masala: This gives the texture to the recipe. It is basically onion-tomato masala with some Indian spices like Anardana Powder (Pomegranate Seeds), Kasuri Methi. Adding Anardana gives color and a sour taste to Chole, this is a secret ingredient used by Punjabis to make the recipe so special.
6. Ghee: To get authentic Delhi style taste, ghee is added to the recipe. Ghee elevates the taste of the recipe. I add Oil & Ghee to the dish but for a vegan option, you can eliminate Ghee.
7. Ginger: Complete the dish by adding
WHAT MAKES DELHI-STYLE CHOLE SO SPECIAL
With making Kidney Beans or Black Chickpeas or Pinto Beans, you just add boiled beans in masala with some spices. But with Chickpeas (Chole) you add so many different flavoring to give it a unique flavor altogether. I make Chole or safed chane in 3 different levels.
First Level: I boil chickpeas (chole/safed chane) with some whole spices with Amla and tea leaves.
Second Level: I make masala with some spices.
The Third Level: Mixing and stirring the chickpeas at low heat and later garnish with some julienned Ginger.
Garam Masala
I use my Homemade Garam Masala in the recipe, but if you don't have freshly made Garam Masala then I recommend making one. Adding fresh masala makes a big difference in the taste. Mentioned below is a smaller quantity for Garam Masala. For that, you just need a spice grinder and some whole spices.
- 1 Tbsp Coriander Seeds
- ¼ Tsp Green Cardamons
- 1 Tbsp Cumin Seeds
- ¼ Tsp Black Cardamons
- 1 Tbsp Cinnamon
- 1 Tbsp Black peppercorns
- ¼ Tsp Cloves
Toast all the spices in a pan on the stove and grind it finely using a spice grinder. Or you can also grind using a mortar pestle.
HOW TO COOK CHICKPEAS FOR CHOLE KULCHE
I prefer to cook chickpeas on my own rather than using canned chickpeas. I always have dry chickpeas at home, so it is cost-effective for me plus free of any preservatives. First, I soak dried chickpeas overnight in at least 2 qt of water. Then drain out the water and cook the chickpeas by adding them in an Instant Pot or any other pressure cooker with a quart of water and some salt.
If you don’t want to soak them overnight, then add chickpeas in boiling water for 1 hour. Then add them with a quart of water in an instant pot and pressure cook for 30 minutes.
Delhi Style Chole - Chickpeas Curry
Equipment
Ingredients
Boiling:
- 1 Cup Chickpeas soaked & rinsed
- 1 Tbsp Ginger- Garlic Paste
- 2 Whole Amla/ Gooseberries
- 1 ½ inch Cinnamon
- 1 Tsp Black Tea Leaves
- 2 Black Cardamoms
- 2 Cloves
- 1 Kashmiri Red Chili
- 2 Cups Water
- 8- 10 Black Peppercorns
Masala
- ½ Onion chopped
- 2 Tomatoes chopped
- 2 Tbsp Oil + Ghee
- 1 Bay Leaf
- 1 Tbsp Coriander Powder
- 2 Tbsp Garam Masala Powder
- Red Chili Powder
- 1 Tsp Roasted Cumin Powder
- ½ Tsp Caraway Seeds Shahi Jeera
- ½ Tsp Anardana Seeds Dried Pomegranate Seeds
- ½ Tbsp Kasuri Methi
- Salt
For Serving
- ½ Onion sliced
- 1 ½ inch Ginger julienned
- 2 Tbsp Mixed Pickle achaar or Green Chutney - optional
Instructions
HOW TO MAKE CHOLE IN INSTANT POT
- Wrap Black Cardamoms, Cinnamon, Tea Leaves, Amla, Cloves, Kashmiri Red Chili & Black Peppercorns in a muslin cloth and tie a knot.
- Press Saute in Instant Pot and add oil & ghee to it. When the oil is hot, add Bay Leaf and let it fry for 1-2 minutes, and then add onions.
- When onions start to change color, add tomatoes and let it cook for 3-5 minutes.
- When the tomatoes turn mushy, add Ginger- Garlic Paste and cook for 1 minute. Now add all the spices (Coriander Powder, Garam Masala Powder, Red Chili Powder, Cumin Powder, Caraway Seeds, Anaardana Powder) and cook for 1-2 minutes.
- Cancel Saute and de-glaze the pot. Add water and salt to the pot and stir. Add the muslin cloth bundle in the pot and sprinkle Kasuri Methi over the Chickpeas.
- Close the lid, at the vent in the sealing position pressure cook using Bean setting for 30 minutes.
- Let pressure release naturally using NPR. When the valve goes down, open the lid. Give it one last stir so that everything gets combined.
- For Serving: Mix Onions with some Achaar/Pickle or with Green Chutney and serve them as a salad with the chickpeas. Add julienned Ginger over Chickpeas and enjoy your delicious Chole with some Kulchas/Bhatura/Poori.
STOVE- TOP COOKING
- Wrap Black Cardamoms, Cinnamon, Tea Leaves, Amla, Cloves, Kashmiri Red Chili & Black Peppercorns in a muslin cloth and tie a knot.
- Take a pressure cooker and add Chickpeas with Salt, Water, Ginger- Garlic Paste, and the muslin cloth bundle. Close the lid and pressure cook on medium heat for 3 whistles and then medium-low heat for 20 minutes. When the pressure is released, open the lid and set it aside.
- Take a Wok/Kadai or any deep-dish and put it at medium- heat. Add oil & ghee to the pan. Once the oil is hot, add Bay Leaf and fry for 1 minute.
- Add chopped onion and fry for 2-3 minutes. Once they start to change color, add chopped tomatoes. When they turn mushy, add all the spices (Coriander Powder, Garam Masala Powder, Red Chili Powder, Cumin Powder, Caraway Seeds, Anaardana Powder) and cook for 1-2 minutes.
- Once the masala is done, add Kasuri methi and let it cook for 1 minute. Transfer the boiled Chickpeas in the pan and mix it with the masala. Let it boil till you get the desired consistency.
- For Serving: Mix Onions with some Achaar/ Pickle or with the Green Chutney. Serve these onions as a salad with the chickpeas. Add julienned Ginger over Chickpeas and enjoy them with some Kulchas/Bhatura/ Poori.
Notes
- I usually soak Chickpeas for 6- 8 hours or overnight. If you don't have that much time you can add them in the Instant Pot and boil for 40 minutes using bean setting with a pinch of Baking Soda.
- You can also use canned Chickpeas to enjoy this recipe - just wash it well and pressure cook in an Instant pot for 5 minutes.
- 1 Tbsp Coriander Seeds
- ¼ Tsp Green Cardamons
- 1 Tbsp Cumin Seeds
- ¼ Tsp Black Cardamons
- 1 Tbsp Cinnamon
- 1 Tbsp Black peppercorns
- ¼ Tsp Cloves
- For Vegan option, don't add Ghee while making Chickpeas Curry and instead use Oil as needed.
- I have made this recipe using my Instant Pot 6 QT Duo60 7-in-1 Multi Cooker
After reading this I think I should leave my phone and run towards kitchen because you explained everything amazingly. .........
Thank you so much..
I absolutely love Chole but I usually put store-bought Chole masala to make it more convenient. The spices you use are inspiring me to make this recipe from scratch. I'm sure there is going to be a world of difference in the taste! Thank you for the recipe. Will try it soon!
Thanks for such nice words.....I'm sure you are gonna love the flavor from using fresh masala in the recipe.
I love love chole so much, especially this style.This turned out perfect - thank you!
I'm glad you like. Thank you so much 🙂
Once you've used fresh masala there is no going back! This is one for the books. Thanks for the clear instructions, it turned out perfectly 🙂
That...fresh masala does makes a difference
We have recently fallen in love with curry recipes! Will try this chickpeas curry for sure! Thanks for sharing.
thanks I'm glad
This recipe was spot on! Took me back to my shani bazaar chole bhature days in Delhi.
wow....that's such a big deal. Thank You so much 🙂
What’s amazing about all of these incredible flavours is that the chickpeas truly soak them all up! But to add on to this, the chickpeas themselves will also be loaded with flavours! We’ll be cooking our chickpeas with fragrant whole spices including bay leaf, cinnamon, and clove. At the end, we reserve our cooking water so that it’s infused with our masala to create an extremely flavourful gravy!
yeah it indeed is a flavorful recipe of chickpeas & leaving a curry sounds more amazing. Thank you
The recipe looks yum and I can’t wait to try it. Brings back my memories of Delhi chole kulche.
On a side note can you tell which pickle is featured in your post. If you can share the Brand it will be much appreciated
Thank you so much. I have used Shan's Hyderabadi Mixed Pickle and have added some sliced onions in the pickle.