Chana Masala
2 15.5 ounce cans low-salt garbanzo beans
1 tsp cumin (I didn't have the cumin seeds. Recipe calls for cumin
seeds)
1 c onions
2 tsp ground corriander
1/8 tsp ground tumeric
1 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp salt (optional)
2 tsp garlic, minced
2 tsp ginger, minced (grated finely)
1 cup water
3 tbsp tomato paste
1 15.5 ounce can tomato puree
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp red chili powder (optional)
To prepare:
Rinse garbanzo beans in cold water and drain. In a saucepan, "fry"
cumin seeds (I skipped this step since I had powdered cumin). Add
onions, (cumin), and fry until they turn brown (translucent). Lower
heat and add coriander, tumeric, garam masala, salt, ginger, and garlic.
Mix and cook for 30 seconds, stirring all the time. Add 1 cup water,
tomato paste, and pureed tomatoes. Mix and bring to a boil. Add
garbanzo beans, lemon juice, and red chili powder. Mix well, cover and
cook over medium heat for 15 minutes, or until garbanzo beans are soft.
Stir occasionally. If the mixture gets too dry, add a little water.
Serve garnished with green chilies, onions, tomatoes or cilantro.
I left the garnish off and ate the mixture over rice. It was an
excellent chana masala. Flavorful and slightly spicy. I just purchased
some cumin seeds so next time, I make this recipe (some time this week),
I'm going to try the cumin seeds at the beginning. I'm thinking of
"frying" the cumin seeds in a few drops of water or broth.
I found this recipe in the book "Indian Recipes for a Healthy Heart."
The author is Mrs. Lakhani and she boasts 140 low-fat, low-sodium,
low-cholesterol dishes with 104 vegetarian recipes. I've made five
recipes in this book and I'm quite impressed. She does recommend frying
onions or spices, but I just leave out the oil. She has a nonfat paneer
recipe for making mutter paneer and other recipes. I'm going to try it
this week and I'll let you know the results (paneer recipe and the
mutter paneer recipe).
Kathy
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