Punjabi Chole

I have never tried making Punjabi Chole at home and had always eaten it in restaurants or at get together parties. I still do not know the reason why I had not tried it at home though I have made chole in other method. Last month when I tasted chole in of the get together party I realized it had something missing in it and the very next day I googled for the recipe to try it at home and found this recipe in which she has given separate masala for the chole. It is a fool proof recipe and I tried it the very next day and Boy it was a success or say super yum dish. So now on no regrets and i will make this atleast once in a while.
This is how to make Punjabi Chole:

Ingredients

Ingredients for the chole

1 and half cup chickpeas (Garbanzo Beans, Kabuli Chana)
2 medium sized onions chopped
3 medium sized tomatoes chopped
1 tsp ginger paste or coarsely ground ginger
½ tsp garam masala
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp amchur powder/dry mango powder
2 slit green chillies
1 tbsp oil
salt

Spices used for the Punjabi chole masala:

4-5 black cardamoms
1 inch cinnamon
5-6 peppercorns
3 cloves
1 bay leaf
1 and half tsp cumin seeds (jeera)
1 and half tsp coriander seeds (dhania)
1 and half tsp fennel seeds (saunf)
2 red chillies

Lets Start Making Chole

For The Chole masala powder

In a pan, dry roast all the spices mentioned above till brow on a medium flame. Make sure they only get roasted and not burnt.

Keep on tossing them to get all the spices roasted evenly.

Once they are cooled, grind them into a fine powder.

For the Curry:

v Wash and soak the chole (chickpeas) in enough water overnight.

v Add enough amount of water as the chole increase in size after soaking it.

v In a pressure cooker add the chole, along with the soaked water (Amma tells me not to throw water as the essential nutrients of the skin goes in the water) and pressure cook for 5-6 whistles. The chole should be soft but not overcooked.

v Now in a pan, add oil. Once the oil is hot, add the chopped onions. Fry till they become transparent.

v Now add the ginger paste.

v Once the raw smell of the ginger goes off, and add the chopped tomatoes.

v To this add the powdered chole spice, red chili powder and green chilies. Sauté for a minute.

v Now add the cooked chole with a very little quantity of its broth. You can add more broth if you want a more gravy in your dish.

v Add salt as per taste; Keep the dish on sim for around 8 minutes.

v At last, add the amchur powder and mix well.

v Switch off the Flame and Serve with kulchas, bhatura, poori, and rotis. Its tastes good with simple rice too.

Note:
The Recipe actually tells to add salt while booking channa in pressure cooker… but somehow My Amma or even her mom had taught not to add salt while cooking any legumes or beans as it would not get cooked well. So I was a bit skeptical about adding salt. You can add it while cooking or later.

Sometimes the channa takes more than 6 whistles in that case once the cooker is cooled and you open check if they are soft if not keep it on flame again for 1-2 whistles.

You can double the amount of Masala Powder and store the remaining in an Air tight container. And it use it twice like I did.