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4.9 from 216 votes

Black Chana Masala (Black Chickpea) Recipe

This delicious Black Chana Masala is an easy to make chickpea curry made with black chickpeas. It's bursting with flavor and is a healthy Meatless Monday vegetarian dinner recipe.

Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
10 mins
Total Time
1 hr
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 339 kcal
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients

  • 2 cups dried black chickpeas or 6 cups cooked black or regular chickpeas
  • 2 tablespoons cooking oil
  • 1 large onion finely minced
  • 1 pinch baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon EACH: mustard seeds and cumin seeds
  • 2 tablespoons finely minced ginger
  • 4 cloves garlic minced
  • 1-2 serrano chilis finely minced - remove seeds for a less spicy curry
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 2 teaspoons EACH: coriander and garam masala
  • 1 teaspoon Turmeric
  • 28 ounce can diced tomatoes
  • 1 cup chopped cilantro
  • Juice of 1 lemon

Instructions

    Cup of Yum
  1. Place the dried chickpeas in a large pot and fill it with water. Let it sit overnight on your counter, or for 8-24 hours. Drain the chickpeas and add fresh water to the pot. Bring the pot to a boil over high heat then reduce the heat and simmer for 1 ½ hours, or until the chickpeas are soft. Drain and set aside.
  2. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and let it cook until it's soft, about 5 minutes. Turn the heat down to medium and add the baking soda to the pan. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is dark brown, about 10 minutes. Add the mustard seeds, cumin seeds, ginger, garlic, and chilis to the pan and cook until a dark brown paste forms, about 5 minutes more. (See the pictures in the post to see what it should look like.)
  3. Push this onion paste to the side of the pan and add the tomato paste. Let it caramelize until is smells sweet and darkens slightly, about 3 minutes. Add the coriander, garam masala, and turmeric to the pan and let it cook for 1 minute more.
  4. Add the diced tomatoes to the pan and gently break them up with a potato masher or the back of a wooden spoon. You want some texture here, just not big chunks of tomatoes. Add the cooked chickpeas, sea salt, and a ½ cup of water to the pan and let it simmer for a half hour. If you're serving this with rice, now is the time to start cooking it.
  5. Season with extra sea salt if needed and then stir in the cilantro and lemon juice just before serving.

Notes

  • Prep time does not include the time you'll need to soak the chickpeas. 

Nutrition Information

Serving 1 serving = ⅙ of the recipe Calories 339kcal (17%) Carbohydrates 53g (18%) Protein 15g (30%) Fat 9g (14%) Saturated Fat 1g (5%) Polyunsaturated Fat 3g Monounsaturated Fat 4g Trans Fat 1g Sodium 322mg (13%) Potassium 993mg (28%) Fiber 15g (60%) Sugar 13g (26%) Vitamin A 470IU (9%) Vitamin C 30mg (33%) Calcium 133mg (13%) Iron 6mg (33%)

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 6servings

Amount Per Serving

Calories 339

% Daily Value*

Serving 1 serving = ⅙ of the recipe
Calories 339kcal 17%
Carbohydrates 53g 18%
Protein 15g 30%
Fat 9g 14%
Saturated Fat 1g 5%
Polyunsaturated Fat 3g 18%
Monounsaturated Fat 4g 20%
Trans Fat 1g 50%
Sodium 322mg 13%
Potassium 993mg 21%
Fiber 15g 60%
Sugar 13g 26%
Vitamin A 470IU 9%
Vitamin C 30mg 33%
Calcium 133mg 13%
Iron 6mg 33%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.