Cholley (Chickpea Curry)
Photo: Simon Law (sfllaw) from Montréal, QC, Canada, CC BY-SA 2.0
Cholley is a spiced chickpea curry from northern India and Pakistan, built from dried chickpeas, onion, tomato and a handful of whole and ground spices. Soaking the chickpeas overnight and cooking them from scratch gives a firmer, nuttier bean than the canned kind. The seeds are fried in oil until they crackle, which flavors the whole pan. It is a traditional breakfast in Punjab, and it works equally well with puri, roti, naan or plain rice.
Instructions
Rinse the chickpeas and cover them with plenty of water, leaving several inches above them because they swell a great deal. Leave them to soak overnight.
Drain the soaked chickpeas and put them in a pressure cooker or a large pot with the 500 ml of fresh water and salt to taste. In a pressure cooker, cook for 10 minutes at 15 psi. In an ordinary pot, bring the water to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 60 to 90 minutes, until the chickpeas are tender.
Heat the oil in a heavy-bottomed pan and add the coriander, cumin and nigella seeds. Cook them for a short time, until they crackle.
Add the onion and garlic right away, turn the heat down to medium, and sauté until the onion turns translucent.
Stir in the garam masala, tomatoes, turmeric and a little salt, and cook for 1 minute.
Add the cooked chickpeas, lower the heat and simmer for about 15 minutes. Take the pan off the heat once the gravy has thickened.
Spoon the cholley into a serving bowl, scatter fresh coriander leaves over the top, and serve with rice or bread. Coconut flakes and black pepper make a good optional addition.
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