Palak Chole Recipe (Spinach & Chickpea Curry)

Palak Chole is nothing but Chickpeas cooked with spinach in spicy gravy. Chickpeas are a great source of protein for vegetarians and spinach is a storehouse of iron. During winter fresh bunches of spinach are available in every nook and corner of the cities in India and this dish makes a delicious combination of the two wholesome foods.  With adding spinach in this dish both health and taste dimension are intensified. Palak Chole can be relished with your choice of Indian breads for dinner or in the for lunch along with Jeera Rice.  Course : Lunch Ingridients : 1 cup Kabuli Chana (White Chickpeas) , soaked overnight 1 cup Spinach Leaves (Palak) , washed and roughly chopped 1 Onion , finely chopped 1 Tomato , finely chopped 1 Green Chilli , slit 1 inch Ginger , grated 2 cloves Garlic , grated Salt , as per taste 2 teaspoons Garam masala powder 1 teaspoon Turmeric powder (Haldi) 1 teaspoon Red Chilli powder 1 teaspoon Coriander Powder (Dhania) 1 Bay leaves (tej patta) 2 Cardamom (Elaichi) Pods/Seeds Instructions To make Palak Chole Recipe first clean, wash and soak chickpeas in water overnight or atleast 5 - 6 hours.While chickpea is soaked make puree of tomato and green chili using 2 - 3 tablespoon of water in blender.Heat a teaspoon of oil in a pan; add in the chopped spinach and sautee until the spinach is soft and tender. Keep this aside.Note: We cook the spinach separately from the chola, as the cooking times for the chickpeas and spinach are very different. Spinach takes a couple of minutes, while the chola/ chickpeas take 20 to 30 minutes.In a pressure cooker heat oil over medium heat, once oil is heated add in the bay leaf and cardamom pods; saute for 1 minute or until spices start releasing aroma.Now add in chopped onion, ginger and garlic and saute over medium heat until onion turn light brown in color.Once onion is ready add tomato puree, salt, turmeric powder, garam masala, coriander powder, red chili powder until you see the mixture coming together and thickening a little bit. Add the chickpeas along with the water it was soaked in into the masala and stir well. Add in additional water so that the water level is atleast 2 inches above the soaked chola/ chickpeas.Give it a good stir and cover the pressure cooker and place its weight on. Cook the chola in the pressure cooker until you hear 4 to 5 whisles. After 4 to 5 whistles, turn the heat to low and simmer the chola for another 15 minutes and then turn off the heat.Allow the pressure to release naturally. This will take another 15 minutes. Once the pressure releases naturally, open the cooker, add in the sauteed spinach and give it a good stir.Check the salt and spice levels and adjust to suit your taste. Gently mash the chickpeas little bit with the back of the ladle to thicken the gravy little bit and the Palak Chole is ready to be served.Serve the Palak Chole (Spinach & Chickpea Curry) along with a choice of Indian breads for dinner or in the for lunch along with Jeera Rice.