Do you really know your chickpeas? Here's a vegan surprise bowl stacked with worldly riches
Inspired by a humble ingredient that is actually a superfood
Do you really know your chickpeas?
I think it’s safe to say that most people know about the white chickpeas (aka garbanzo beans). It is basically a vegetarian kitchen’s staple. But, have you ever heard of it’s over-achieving cousin, the black chickpea? My guess is probably not. Let me introduce you to this winner! It’s also known as kala chana (black chickpea) but as you can see it’s mostly various shades of brown.
The black chickpea is not only versatile for north Indian style cooking, it is also packed full of nutrition (nearly 10g protein and 10g fiber in 1 cooked cup!). This humble brown-looking seed is the basis for many nutritious dishes in this cuisine, partly because it’s used in many forms: whole, split, ground. The whole kala chana makes a wonderful curry/soup that claims to have healing powers (a dry version with cinnamon and brown sugar takes it to another level). The de-skinned split chana daal generates the most scrumptious, creamy lentil soup that is begging to be married with rice (as I do so below). The ground besan is used in so many ways (I swear the Indian cuisine would die without it) like crunchy fried pakoras, velvety kadhi soup, or an Indian roux that can thicken curries. I am literally in love with this ingredient, I kid you not.
Chana Daal with Spinach
Here’s one way I like to enjoy this ingredient: palak chana daal. It requires just a handful of ingredients and once the lentils are softened, I follow the basics to turn this yellow beauty into a delectable dinner.
I softened the raw chana daal in an instant pot, which took ~13 mins of pressure cooking. Next, I performed the proper dance routine in a pan with hot oil.
I tempered seeds and spices (cumin seeds, mustard seeds, whole red chilies (not that spicy), asafetida powder) and added aromatics (onion, ginger, garlic, green chilis - they look like cubes because of my hack).
Once this was cooked down, I added the tomatoes, then the powdered spices (not pictured: coriander powder and turmeric powder), and transferred all this aromatic goodness into the instant pot.
I next added chopped spinach, mixed it all up, and cooked it at high pressure for about 5 mins (looking back 2 mins would’ve been enough, longer time overcooked the spinach a bit).
These yellow beauties basically turned into liquid gold. All that remains is to enjoy it with basmati rice. In my view, this is what worldly riches are all about: a comforting plate of simple and nutritions food using powerhouse ingredients.
I beg you to buy some black chickpea-ingredient (whole, split, ground) and try a few dishes with it. I promise, you will not be disappointed! This ingredient is inexpensive, super nutritious, and the versatility will blow your mind. In future posts, I plan to share more of my favorite methods of incorporating this ingredient, stay tuned and get hungry!
Dish Debrief:
Is this my winner or disaster? 100% a win
How would I rate this dish out of 10? 9 out of 10
What would I change next time? don’t overcook the spinach
Would I make this again? Yes Yes Yes