Easy & Delicious Chana Dal made in the Instant Pot (Pressure Cooker). Split Chickpeas cooked with ginger, garlic, onion, tomato and flavorful spices, to make a comforting soup. Vegan & Gluten free.
Looking for dinner ideas for Meatless Monday? Enjoy this delicious & Healthy Chana Dal. It is perfect with a side of steamed broccoli and basmati rice. If you want to pair with an Indian style vegetable curry, Aloo Gobi or Saag Paneer are great options.
For vegetarians in Indian, dal (lentils) is the main component of the meal. A typical meal includes dal, vegetable curry (subzi), roti (flatbread) and/or rice with some salad. And there are enough varieties of dals to prepare a different one each day of the week. If you are curious, check out my this collection of 15 Lentil & Bean Recipes in the instant pot.
If you don’t have Chana Dal at hand, you may want to check Dal Fry with Toor Dal, Green Moong Dal or Brown Lentil Curry recipe.
What is Chana Dal?
Chana Dal are dried brown chickpeas that have been split and skinned. It is also called Split Chickpeas or Bengal Gram. These wonderful little beans pack a powerhouse of nutrients as well as protein into the dish. Chana Dal is also rich in fiber, and has a low glycemic index.
The best part about lentils are that they are budget friendly and affordable by all. Chana Dal is usually used as lentil curry in North India and for tempering in South India. But there are other dishes that can be made such as Chana Dal Pilaf or Halwa (sweet pudding).
How to cook Chana Dal in Pressure Cooker?
Chana Dal takes a bit longer to cook compared to other split lentils such as Toor Dal or Moong Dal. I prefer to soak chana dal for about 30 minutes before cooking. Although they will cook just as well with a few extra minutes in the instant pot without soaking.
Traditionally Chana Dal was boiled in a pressure cooker and tempering was prepared separately in a pan. Then the boiled dal was added to the tempering and simmered to infuse flavors. However now with the instant pot, I like to make this as a one-pot dish. Hence in this recipe, I prepare the tempering with ginger, garlic, onions, tomatoes and spices in the instant pot. Then add the chana dal, water and cook at high pressure.
Once cooked, sprinkle in some lime juice and garnish the chana dal with cilantro. If you like to make this even more nutritious, then add some spinach right after the dal is cooked. Stir and let it sit for 5 minutes. Spinach Chana Dal is ready to be enjoyed.
Looking for more easy Instant Pot Recipes? Here are 29 Best Instant Pot Vegetarian Recipes for you to try!
Instant Pot Chana Dal Recipe (Split Chickpeas Soup)
Ingredients
- 1 cup Split Chickpeas (Chana dal)
- 2 cups Water for soaking
- 1 tbsp Oil
- 1 tsp Cumin seeds (Jeera)
- 1/4 tsp Asafoetida (Hing) (optional)
- 3/4 cup Onion diced
- 1/2 tbsp Ginger minced
- 3 cloves Garlic minced
- 3/4 cup Tomato chopped
- 2 cups Water for cooking
- 1 tbsp Lime juice
- Cilantro
Spices
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1/4 tsp Ground Turmeric (Haldi powder)
- 1/2 tsp Red Chili powder (Mirchi powder)
- 1 tsp Coriander powder (Dhaniya powder)
Instructions
- Soak Chana dal along with the water for soaking for 30 minutes. Then drain the water and keep aside. (This step is optional)
- Start the instant pot in sauté mode and heat oil in it. Add cumin seeds and asafoetida.
- Once the cumin seeds start to change color, add the onions, garlic, ginger and saute for 2 minutes.
- Add tomatoes and spices and stir them well. Add chana dal and water for cooking. Stir it all up. Pressure Cancel and close the lid with vent in sealing position.
- Change the instant pot setting to manual or pressure cook mode at high pressure for for 12 mins. If you skipped soaking, cook for 15 minutes at high pressure.
- After the instant pot beeps, let the pressure release naturally. Add lime juice and give a good stir.
- Garnish with cilantro and serve chana dal over rice.
Notes
- Chana Dal foams, so if you double/triple the recipe make sure to only fill up to half of the pot.
- Make Spinach Chana Dal - Add spinach after opening the instant pot, right after pressure cooking. Cover and let it rest for 5 minutes.
- Vegan Variation: To keep this recipe vegan, don't use ghee.
- Gluten free Variation: Use gluten-free asafoetida or skip it.
Note: Nutrition values are my best estimates. If you rely on them for your diet, use your preferred nutrition calculator.
Peter Farrell says
May 5, 2019 at 5:07 pmLet me add my 5-star rating to all the other 5-star ratings! I used a spice mixture I bought at an Indian grocery, so I can’t vouch for the spices in the recipe. But after 15 minutes in the Instant Pot the chana was done exactly right! Not too soft.
Meeta Arora says
May 9, 2019 at 9:40 amHey Peter – Glad to hear the Chana Dal cooked perfectly. Thank you for sharing back your experience 🙂
Melody Ferrer says
March 26, 2019 at 1:05 pmI’d never made Chana Dal before but decided to try it out since I bought an Instant Pot. WOW! This recipe is AMAZING! My daughter (major fan of chick peas) is going to love it! I followed the recipe exactly and added some chopped spinach at the end. I’m definitely going to make a double batch next time. Thank you so much for sharing this healthy and delicious recipe!
Meeta Arora says
March 26, 2019 at 3:51 pmHi Melody – So happy to hear you enjoyed the dal. I am looking forward to hear how your daughter likes it 🙂
Anna says
January 7, 2019 at 3:31 pmI made this last night && it was delicious. Added a bit more salt & a tsp or so of garam masala. And I cooked the dal for 20 mins instead of 15 for extra tender dal.
Meeta Arora says
January 8, 2019 at 10:22 amHey Anna – Glad you enjoyed the Chana Dal. Thank you for sharing back your review!
Neha Goyal says
January 3, 2019 at 8:45 pmhi, thanks for the recipe. i have a question. what do u mean by release the pressure naturally? i only see 2 options venting and sealing.
Meeta Arora says
January 4, 2019 at 10:00 amHey Neha – When the instant pot beeps, let the pressure release by itself. Do not turn the knob to venting manually. If a recipe says quick release, you need to manually move the knob from sealing to venting after the beep. Here is a post with all instant pot terminology which you might find useful – https://pipingpotcurry.com/instant-pot-terminology/
Denise Mills says
November 17, 2018 at 7:11 pm15 minutes was absolutely perfect for unsoaked! It was fantastic and easy!
Meeta Arora says
November 21, 2018 at 9:57 amHey Denise – Glad you enjoyed it. Thank you for sharing back your review!
Bee Jackson says
November 5, 2018 at 9:51 pmThank you so much for this! I was looking for something I could make to take with me for lunch, with ingredients I already had, and your’s came up via Google. It is so delicious! I took it to work in a flask, and only wish I had taken more with me. Love it.
Meeta Arora says
November 6, 2018 at 12:00 pmHello Bee – So happy to hear you enjoyed the chana dal. Thank you so much for sharing back your review!
Chamu says
August 5, 2018 at 5:24 pmI tried this recipe today and liked it with plain rice… Very easy to prepare too… thanks for the recipe…
Piping Pot Curry says
August 6, 2018 at 8:59 amHey Chamu – So glad to hear you enjoyed the Chana Dal with rice. Thank you for sharing back your rating!
kelli says
August 2, 2018 at 6:22 amDelish!!!! This was super easy and so tasty! We added carrots to the onions as well, and some frozen cauliflower at serving time to cool it off and add an extra nutritional boost! Thanks for the excellent recipe, this is a keeper!
Piping Pot Curry says
August 2, 2018 at 7:09 pmHey Kelli – Love the addition of veggies, definitely great for the extra nutrition. Thank you for sharing back your experience!
Sheri says
May 6, 2019 at 10:06 amI am so disappointed. The recipe says two cups of water for soaking the dal. Then it says to save that. Doesn’t specify to add to the instant pot. Then recipe states 2 more cups of water for cooking. I added all four cups. My Chana dal is watery and flavorless. Don’t know what to do with it now. How much water in total was I supposed to add?
Meeta Arora says
May 6, 2019 at 5:59 pmHi Sheri – For cooking, 2 cups of water works great for Chana Dal. In step 1, I specifically ask to drain the soaking water. It is optional to soak the dal and I have specified the cooking time for unsoaked Chana Dal in step 5. I would love to hear if this was confusing in any way.
lisa davey says
July 16, 2018 at 7:52 pmSo good ! I just pulled it out of my insta pot . The flavors are so well balanced!
Piping Pot Curry says
July 17, 2018 at 10:38 amSo glad to hear, Lisa. It is such a comfort food for me. Thank you for sharing back your review!
Pat says
July 16, 2018 at 1:44 pmThank you Meeta for a good recipe. The consistency of the dal was perfect. I found that the lime juice was too strong in the dish, so next time I make this recipe I will reduce the lime juice and increase some of the spices to suit my taste better.
When I bought the asafoetida at the spice store here in the US, the store owner was convinced that I must be a brilliant chef to need this “obscure” ingredient! She was obviously not familiar with Indian cooking. So your recipe makes me look like a better cook than I really am!
As someone who strives to eat vegan all the time, I really appreciate your recipe. Tasty and healthy.
Piping Pot Curry says
July 17, 2018 at 10:40 amHey Pat – Thank you so much for the kind words. Please do adjust the spices and lime juice to your taste. Love the story about you buying the asafetida. I am sure you are a good cook and a foodie to understand the nuances in taste. I love to hear back from readers and your comment did bring a smile on my face 🙂