Kala Chana Chaat is a nutrition-packed Black Chickpea Salad made with black chickpeas, crunchy onions, tomatoes, avocado, and spices. This refreshing salad has fresh and tangy flavors and can be enjoyed as a great protein-rich breakfast or snack. Vegan & gluten-free.

Kala Chana Chaat in a bowl with tomato, onions and lime on the side
Want to save this recipe?
Just enter your email and get it sent to your inbox! Plus you’ll get new recipes from us every week!

It takes just 10 minutes to prepare this delicious salad with pre-cooked chickpeas. This salad is perfect to make with leftover chickpeas.

Whenever I make Kala Chana Curry or Sookha Kala Chana, I cook some extra chickpeas to make this salad.

Why You’ll Love this Kala Chana Chaat?

√ This is a no-oil, no-sugar recipe

√ It is high in protein and fiber

√ Black chickpeas are low in carbs

√ Vegan & Gluten-free recipe

What is Kala Chana (Black Chickpeas)?

Kala chana is an Indian black chickpea, also called Bengal gram. They are smaller in size, have a rough exterior, and have a nuttier flavor than light brown chickpeas. However, they can be used in the same way as the lighter chickpeas.

Black Chickpeas are a powerhouse of nutrients. They are rich in protein, fiber, and vitamins and have a low glycemic index which helps to regulate blood sugar. They are an important part of the vegetarian diet of many Indians.

In the US, black chickpeas are available at Indian grocery stores or on Amazon. You can also substitute them with white chickpeas (garbanzo beans) in this recipe.

What is Chaat?

Chaat is basically a savory snack served as hors d’oeuvre or snacks from stalls or food carts in India. Chaat is usually crunchy, spicy, and tangy all at the same time. There is usually a base, spices, chutneys, and garnishes added to a chaat.

Ingredients

  • Black Chickpeas: also known as kala chana in hindi. Kala Chana can be canned or cooked. If using canned, drain and rinse it first. You can also cook dried chickpeas in the instant pot. If you don’t have these, you can use regular chickpeas too.
  • Avocado: I used peeled, pitted, and chopped avocado in this recipe. This is not traditional, but we love the extra nutrition.
  • Tomatoes: Use firm, ripe tomatoes. Roma or cherry tomatoes either can be used.
  • Onion: I used red onions because they work best in the salad. They add a lovely color, crunch, and sweetness to the salad.
  • Herbs: Cilantro and mint taste best for Indian-style salads
  • Lime juice: I used the juice of half of a lime. Feel free to increase or decrease according to your preference.
  • Seasoning: salt, black salt, red chili powder, and Chaat masala – the star ingredient that gives the tangy, zingy flavor. If you don’t have chaat masala, you can skip it and add some roasted cumin powder.

How to make it?

This Kala Chana Chaat is easy to make with the basic ingredients you might have at home. The only main ingredient is black chickpea, which I use pre-boiled in this recipe.

I like to boil them in the instant pot or pressure cooker. See the recipe notes for details on how to boil black chickpeas.

Kala Chana Chaat. Black Chickpea Salad ingredients in small bowls

Gather all the ingredients and chop the green chili, onions, tomatoes, and avocados.

Mix in the onions, tomatoes, green chili, and spices. Green chili and red chili powder are completely optional, so feel free to skip them to make this salad non-spicy.

I like to add kala namak (black salt), chaat masala, and amchur powder (dry mango powder) to this chaat. You can also add roasted cumin powder for extra flavor.

Kala Chana Chaat. Black Chickpea Salad - Start mixing the ingredients by adding to black chickpeas

Now add the avocado, mint, cilantro, and lemon juice.

Kala Chana Chaat. Black Chickpea Salad - Add avocado on the top with some cilantro

Avocado is completely optional but a delicious addition to make this chaat even healthier.

Kala Chana Chaat. Black Chickpea Salad in a bowl with avocado, tomato, onion, mint and lime pieces

Tips to make perfect Kala Chana Chaat

√ You can add veggies of your choice to this salad. Some people like to add boiled potatoes and cucumbers, or if mango is in season, add some chopped raw mangoes to make it more tangy.

√ Adjust spices to your taste.  Skip green chili and red chili powder to make it non-spicy, especially for kids.

√ This salad can be made with boiled white chickpeas, green chickpeas, or sprouts too.

√ You can also add some green chutney and tamarind chutney and top with thin sev to make this a perfect tangy, spicy chaat.

Kala Chana Chaat. Black Chickpea Salad in a bowl with avocado, tomato, onion, mint and lime pieces

Storage Suggestions

This Kala Chana Chaat tastes best when freshly consumed. It can be refrigerated for up to 1 day in an airtight glass container. But beyond that, the salad will lose its crunch, and the vegetables will be soggy.

You can make it ahead of time by keeping everything ready in the refrigerator and mixing the ingredients just before serving.

I hope you enjoy this healthy vegan Kala Chana chaat. You might also enjoy the below recipes:

4.88 from 32 votes

Kala Chana Chaat Recipe (Black Chickpea Salad)

A nutrition packed Black Chickpea Salad made with black chickpeas, crunchy onions, tomatoes, avocado and spices. This refreshing salad has fresh and tangy flavors, and can be enjoyed as a great protein rich breakfast or snack. 
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
Servings: 1

Ingredients 

  • 1 cup Kala Chana (Black Chickpea), boiled
  • 1/4 cup Red Onion , diced
  • 1/4 cup Tomato , diced
  • 1 green chili, optional
  • 1/4 cup Avocado , chopped, optional
  • 1 tablespoon Mint leaves
  • 1 tablespoon Cilantro leaves
  • 1 teaspoon Lemon juice

Instructions 

  • Add the boiled black chickpeas to a bowl. Add green chili, onions, tomatoes and spices to it. Stir well. 
  • Add avocado, mint leaves, cilantro leaves and lemon juice. Stir well. 
  • Taste and adjust salt as needed. 

Video

Notes

Variations:
  • You can add veggies of your choice in this salad. Some people like to add boiled potatoes, cucumbers or if mango is in season, add some chopped raw mangoes to make it more tangy.
  •  This salad can be made with boiled white chickpeas, green chickpeas, kidney beans or sprouts too.
Make it less spicy: Adjust spices to your taste. Skip green chili and red chili powder to make it non spicy. 
How to boil black chickpeas: Wash and soak 1/2 cup black chickpeas in water overnight. Discard the water. Pressure cook with fresh 1.5 cups of water in instant pot for 30 mins or on stovetop pressure cooker for 2 whistles on high and 30 mins on low heat. Let the pressure release naturally. Drain the water and use the black chickpeas in this recipe. 

Nutrition

Calories: 261kcalCarbohydrates: 38gProtein: 10gFat: 9gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gSodium: 1205mgPotassium: 610mgFiber: 13gSugar: 5gVitamin A: 778IUVitamin C: 21mgCalcium: 90mgIron: 3mg

Additional Info

Course: Appetizer, Salad, Side Dish, Snack
Cuisine: Indian
Diet: Gluten-free, Nut-free, Vegan
Tried this recipe?Mention @pipingpotcurry or tag #pipingpotcurry!

About Meeta

I strongly believe that each one of us has a chef inside us, we just need to explore the ingredients and create great food. My passion is to share easy, healthy, and wholesome recipes made using Instant Pot & Air Fryer, that are well tested, so you can cook with confidence.

You May Also Like

Get new recipes sent to your inbox!
Don't miss out! Subscribe and get all the new recipes first.

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




23 Comments

  1. This was terrific!!! My wife lioved it — but I modified the recipe a little to suit what I thought she would like best. Less heat, very little cilantro (coriander leaf), and no black salt. I did not use a hot green chilli pepper, but diced up a cubanelle pepper instead (no seeds).
    So…. my wife loved it! And my co-workers loved it the next day.
    I didn’t use all the chana, and I used double the tomato, onion, a whole avocado.

  2. I stumbled across this Kala Chana Chaat recipe when I was simply looking for some guidance on how long to cook kala chana in the Instant Pot. I ditched the recipe I was planning to make so I could try this one instead and WOW! I made my own chaat masala and skipped the cilantro, but otherwise followed the recipe exactly. This is definitely a keeper that I will enjoy time and time again.

  3. It’s so easy to cook and healthy at the same time. Followed all your instructions and it turned out so yummy.