What’s for Dinner: Channa Masala

Published 02/07/2012

I am going to deem my first attempt at cooking Indian food a blazing success. Blazing hot and blazing good. As I’ve mentioned, Mr. Zoom loves anything and everything he eats to be spicy. The jar of diced jalapenos in our fridge is used nightly as he tops most meals with a couple of spoonfuls. Naturally, he loves Indian food. So when I began my meal plan for the week, I thought I’d give Channa Masala a shot. I try to cook at least one vegetarian meal a week, so this fit perfectly into that category.

A masala is a term generally used to describe a mixture of spices. Indian food recipes can be overwhelming because the ingredient lists typically include a number of spices. I’d urge anyone interested in cooking this type of food to check your pantry! The only spice I didn’t currently have in my kitchen this morning was garam masala.

Onions make the world a better place.

Add some tomato paste and pince.

Throw in your diced tomatoes and chickpeas and you’re set.

We served this over rice and with a side of store-bought naan bread. Tomorrow we’ll have the leftovers with some spiced roasted potatoes. This is a great way to incorporate a filling, flavorful, vegetarian meal into your week!

Channa Masala
Serves 4-5

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 onion, chopped

1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

3 tablespoons tomato paste

1 tablespoon coriander

1 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon garam masala

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon tumeric

2, 15 ounce cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed

15 ounce can of diced tomatoes

1/2 lemon

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat until melted. Add chopped onion and stir to coat. Let onions brown and caramelize for 15 to 20 minutes. Add chopped jalepeno and garlic and heat until fragrant, another two minutes. Next, add tomato paste and pince (stir to combine, flatten in skillet, and let cook until tomato paste begins to form a bit of a crust). Add spices, chickpeas, and diced tomatoes and heat thoroughly. Finish with the juice of half a lemon.

So easy, so healthy, so flavorful, and only 30 minutes in the kitchen!

(Recipe, very very slightly adapted, from Eat, Live, Run)

Posted in Recipes

What’s for Dinner: Channa Masala

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