Instant Pot Chana Masala

With this easy Chana Masala recipe, one can quickly create the dish in his or her instant pot.  Because of the great taste, this dish is one of the most popular dishes in Northern India. 

In this dish, use chickpeas (also known as garbanzo beans and kabuli chana), potatoes, tomatoes, onions, and other complementing herbs and spices. You can serve Chana Masala with rice, naan, puri, or bhatura.

What is Chana Masala?

Chana Masala is extremely popular in the state of Punjab in India. Chhole is another name for Chana Masala. Main ingredients in Chana Masala are chickpeas, potatoes, tomatoes, onions, and a potpourri of Indian Subcontinent spices.

One can serve Chana Masala with rice, bhatura, puri, or naan.  One uses a pressure cooker to cook Chana Masala quickly. One can also employ a slow method of cooking upon a stove with a pot.

Ingredients & Substitutions

One uses the following ingredients in this recipe along with possible substitutions described:

• Garbanzo beans: One may utilize either the large chana or the small chana for chole, another name for this dish.
• Potato: Depending on the style of the chana masala, potatoes can be left out.
• Tomato: Use whole diced tomatoes with tomato sauce or strained tomato liquid.
• Water: Depending on if one wants very thick, creamy sauce for the chana masala, you may alter the amount of water.
• Ghee: Use ghee or other oils such as avocado, grapeseed, safflower, or even olive oil.
• Coriander powder: Put this ingredient in the beginning saute of the cumin seeds with the spices and leave more for later to sprinkle on top of the dish to make it flavorful.
• Turmeric powder: In order to get the yellowish look of chana and the saucy and watery liquid of the masala-laden curry, you must this ingredient.
• Ginger powder: While one might use ginger sauce or whole, freshly-cut ginger instead, one might use the finely-grained ginger powder to enhance the taste of the curry inside the chana masala.
• Sea salt: Depending on if you have any issues with salt in your dish, one might use salt alternatives instead of sea salt with iodine.
• Black Pepper: While one could use a lot of cayenne, chilli, or green pepper instead, black pepper is really beneficial to your sauce in the chana masala.
• Cilantro: Once this dish is done, one can add this part of the dish to make the texture more heterogeneous with the leaves of cilantro to enhance the taste of the chana masala.
• Lime (or lemon): In order to produce a tangy taste from the chana masala, one may add this ingredient to make the chana masala super interesting.

How to Make Instant Pot Chana Masala

Here’s how to make it in an hour in your pressure cooker:

1. Soak the chickpeas: Wash and soak the garbanzo beans overnight (12 hours) in the water at room temperature. In the morning, drain and rinse the soaked garbanzo beans.

2. Saute: Put the instant pot in saute mode, add ghee or oil and cumin seeds, and let it brown it. Once the cumin seeds turn brown, add the sliced onions and stir until they turn golden brown and appear translucent.

3. Add remaining ingredients: At this point add the turmeric powder and immediately put the tomatoes, garbanzo beans, water, and all the remaining spices except the fresh/dry cilantro and lemon/lime juice. Mix it really well with a ladle.

4. Pressure cook: Set the instant pot to High Pressure Cook mode and time 35 minutes. Close the Instant Pot lid and the pressure valve and let it cook and let the pressure release naturally. Let the pressure release naturally before you carefully open the lid.

5. Check consistency: Mix the cooked garbanzo beans with a laddle. If there is too much water left at the bottom then keep the Instant Pot on for a few minutes until most of the water evaporates – be patient to ensure that there is the right amount of water.

6. Garnish and serve: Squeeze fresh lime or lemon and mix it. Make sure to stir the chana masala fully so that the lemon or lime is everywhere in the dish. Sprinkle fresh or dry cilantro leaves and some freshly sliced onions. Do the same to ensure that the mixture is carefully homogeneous with cilantro and onions.

Serving Instructions

Here are a few of my favorite ways to serve rajma:

• A side of rice. Similar to a curry, you can also mix the rice into the chana masala.
• With warm naan, either plain or garlic naan.
• Scoop it up with roti. Roti is an Indian flatbread made with whole wheat flour.
• Enjoy it with all kinds of parathas.
• And most preferred method is eat with Bhature.
• Enjoy it as a soup, on its own.
• Serve it with other side dishes.

Commonly asked questions

Do the garbanzo beans need to be soaked overnight?

It’s recommended that you soak the garbanzo beans overnight, however, it’s not required.

What if you forget to soak the garbanzo beans overnight?

If you forget to soak the beans overnight, here are a couple of options:

• Canned garbanzo beans: If using canned, use 2 cans. The cooking time will be only 5 minutes at high pressure.
• Dried garbanzo beans: With an increased cooking times and more water. If you are going to use dry/unsoaked beans, increase the cooking time to 60 minutes. Use 2.5 cups of water.

How do you know when the chana masala is done?

If the garbanzo beans are fully cooked through, chana masala is done. Otherwise, close the Instant Pot and cook for another 5 minutes.

Can you freeze chana masala?

Yes, store in a freezer-safe container for up to 1 month.

How do you reheat chana masala?

On the stove-top at low-medium heat.

More Indian Instant Pot Recipes

If you want to save a few more Indian main dishes, the recipes below will satisfy your cravings anytime.

• Instant Pot Rajma

If you tried this Instant Pot Chana Masala recipe or any other recipe, be sure to rate the recipe and let me know what you think! Follow me on Pinterest, Instagram, and Facebook for more delicious recipes.