Chana Masala
Adapted from Food.com

It seems like a lot of spices to get (if you don’t have them) but I highly recommend investing especially if you want to cook more Indian food at home. The spices on their own are versatile and will add to other dishes as well. I didn’t have amchoor powder on hand the first time I made this, but I looked it up and it’s dried unripe green mango powder used in Indian cooking. It smells faintly of honey and has a sour flavor. I wound up upping my lemon juice for tartness, but if you want to get amchoor powder (and it’s awesome!) you can find it here or here.

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 medium onions (peeled and minced)
1 clove garlic (peeled and minced)
1 tablespoon ground coriander
4 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/2 cup chopped tomatoes
4 cups cooked chickpeas or 2 (15-ounce) cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 tablespoon amchoor powder, optional
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon garam masala
1/2 teaspoon salt
Juice of 1 lemon, plus more to taste
1 fresh, hot green chili peppers, minced
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger

Preparation:

1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until lightly browned for 3-5 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook, until fragrant, 1 minute.

2. Reduce the heat to medium-low and add coriander, 2 teaspoons cumin, cayenne, and turmeric. Give everything a good stir, then add the tomatoes cooking them until they are slightly browned.

3. Add chickpeas and 1 cup water and stir to mix everything well. Next, stir in the rest of the cumin, amchoor powder, paprika, garam masala, salt, and lemon juice. Cook, covered, for about 10 minutes. Remove the cover, add the minced chili and ginger stirring to combine. Cook for 1 minute, taste tand add more lemon juice if you like, or if you don’t have amchoor powder on hand. Serve over steamed basmati rice.

Serves 4.