Punjabi Chole Masala / Chana Masala / Chickpeas Curry is a favorite Indian dish. This one-pot recipe for the authentic Chana Masala can be made in the Instant Pot or stovetop Pressure Cooker. A healthy protein-rich vegan and gluten free chickpea recipe.
Chole with bhatura or naan was a favorite weekend meal growing up. This restaurant style Chana Masala is such a delicious and healthy dish. Chickpeas take very long to cook, hence they are perfect for pressure cooking.
Usually chole is pressure cooked separately and then mixed in the onion-tomato gravy. However to make this a true one-pot one-shot recipe, I first made the onion-tomato gravy in the pot and then added soaked chickpeas and cooked them along with the gravy. They come out perfectly. With the instant pot, the best part is that you can set it on a timer to pressure cook and forget. This is one of the most popular Instant Pot Indian Recipe.
If you like indian food, check out this amazing list of 29 Instant Pot Indian Vegetarian Recipes. If you are new to the instant pot, check out my Instant Pot Beginners Manual.
Chole Masala Powder
One of the most important ingredients is Chole Masala powder. I have used simple ingredients easily available. Traditionally amla or dried Indian gooseberry is added to get the color and tangy flavor. People also use teabags to get the dark color. However I have skipped both of them and just added dry mango powder to get the tangy flavor. I use the Everest brand Chole Masala to prepare chole. If using store-bought chole masala, I recommend to always use “Chole Masala” and not chana masala. They taste very different. In a crunch, you could still use the chana masala you have at hand. If you don’t have chole masala, you can also replace it with a blend of the below ingredients. Just grind them in a spice grinder to a powder and use in this recipe.
- 2 black cardamom
- 5 cloves (or Laung)
- 1/2 inch Cinnamon stick
- 1 tsp Coriander powder
- 1/4 tsp Turmeric powder
- 1/2 tsp Cayenne or Red Chili powder
Curious about Indian Spices? Check out my detailed guide for Indian Spices & Herbs.
How to make Chana Masala in Pressure Cooker / Instant Pot?
Let’s go through the step-by-step recipe to make Chole in pressure cooker. It is important to start with soaking the chickpeas overnight or at least for 4+ hours. After the soaking time is complete, drain the water from the chickpeas and set them aside. (see frequently asked questions if you forgot to soak chickpeas)
- When you are ready to cook the chole, start the instant pot in sauté mode. Add in the whole spices – cumin seeds, bay leaves, black peppercorn – and ginger, garlic and green chili.
- When the ginger garlic turns golden brown, add chopped onions and sauté for about 3 minutes. Then add the tomato and spices. Stir in the chickpeas and add 1.5 cups of water.
- Change the instant pot setting to manual mode for 35 minutes with vent in sealing position. When the instant pot beeps, let the pressure release naturally. If the pressure does not release in 20 minutes, you can manually release the pressure.
- If you like a thicker gravy, use a hand masher to mash the chole a bit. Now add the dried fenugreek leaves (kasoori methi) and dry mango powder (amchur). If you dont have dry mango powder, replace with lemon juice.
- Garnish with cilantro. Serve this delicious Punjabi chole with naan, bhatura or parathas. They also taste great with plain or jeera rice.
How to make set-and-forget Chana Masala?
Lately, I have been trying making Chana Masala my just adding all the ingredients to the pot and pressure cooking (often called dump-and-go method). You will be surprised, that works like a charm. The chole are cooked really well and have almost the same taste as when onions and tomatoes are sautéed to make the curry.
If you are short on time and want to skip the effort to saute, give this method a try!
This method works great for Rajma, Chickpea Spinach Curry and Coconut Chickpea Curry too.
Frequently Asked Questions for Pressure Cooker Chana Masala
In an ideal world, you want to soak chickpeas for 4+ hours or overnight, which makes them absorb water and easy to cook. However if you forget, the first option is to cook them in the pressure cooker for longer, about 50 minutes at high pressure.
Another trick is to soak the chickpeas in hot water for about an hour. Then use them in the recipe.
Yes, canned chickpeas can work well in this recipe. The only changes would be to pressure cook for only 10 minutes in the instant pot and for 2 whistles in a stovetop pressure cooker. Drain the canned chickpeas and rinse them before using. Reduce the amount of water you add while cooking to one cup.
No, the same cooking time works even if you half or double the quantity.
You can skip the green chili pepper and cayenne. To reduce heat further, you can reduce the quantity of chole masala blend.
Yes! Brown rice take about 25-35 minutes to cook pot-in-p0t, so they would work perfectly when cooking Chana Masala in a pressure cooker. See my Dal Makhani with Rice recipe for detailed instructions.
Other recipes for you to try in your Instant Pot:
Instant Pot Chana Masala / Punjabi Chole Masala Recipe in Pressure Cooker
Ingredients
- 1 cup Chickpeas (Chole/Garbanzo beans), washed (250 ml)
- 3 cups Water, for soaking
- 1.5 cups Water, for cooking
- 1 tablespoon Ghee or Oil
- 1 Green Chili Pepper, chopped (optional)
- 5 cloves Garlic, minced
- 1″ inch Ginger, grated
- 1.5 cups Onion, diced
- 3/4 cup Tomatoes, chopped or 1 tbsp Tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon Dried Fenugreek leaves (Kasoori Methi)
- Cilantro, to garnish
Spices
- 1/2 teaspoon Cayenne or Red chili powder
- 1 teaspoon Coriander powder (Dhaniya powder)
- 1 tablespoon Chole Masala
- 1 teaspoon Salt, adjust to taste
- 1 teaspoon Dry Mango powder (Amchur)
Whole Spices
- 1 teaspoon Cumin seeds (Jeera)
- 2 leaves Bay leaf (Tej Patta)
- 1/2 teaspoon Black Peppercorns
- 1 inch Cinnamon (Dalchini)
Instructions
- Wash and soak chickpeas in 3 cups of water overnight or at least for 4+ hours.
For Instant Pot Chana Masala:
- Start instant pot in sauté mode. Add oil, whole spices (cumin seeds, bay leaves, black peppercorn, cinnamon), ginger, garlic and green chili.
- When the ginger and garlic turn golden brown, add onions and sauté for 3 minutes
- Add tomato and all spices except dry mango powder. Drain the chickpeas soaking water. Add chickpeas and water for cooking. Stir well.
- Change the instant pot setting to bean/chili mode for 35 minutes with vent in sealing position. (This is the same as pressure cook on high pressure for 35 minutes)
- When the instant pot beeps, let the pressure release naturally. If the pin does not drop in 20 minutes, you can release the pressure and open the instant pot.
- If you like a thicker gravy, use a hand masher or the back of your ladle to mash the chole a bit. Add the dried fenugreek leaves and dry mango powder. Change the instant pot setting to sauté mode and let it boil for 2 minutes.
- Garnish with cilantro. Chole Masala is ready to be served with naan or bhatura.
For Stovetop Pressure Cooker Chana Masala
- Heat oil in the pressure cooker on medium-high heat. Add whole spices (cumin seeds, bay leaves, black peppercorn, cinnamon), ginger, garlic and green chili.
- When the ginger and garlic turn golden brown, add onions and sauté for 3 minutes
- Add tomato and all spices except dry mango powder. Drain the chickpeas soaking water. Add chickpeas and water for cooking. Stir well.
- Pressure cook for 6-7 whistles or till the chana can be broken easily between two fingers. Let the pressure release naturally.
- If you like a thicker gravy, use a hand masher or the back of your ladle to mash the chole a bit. Add the dried fenugreek leaves and dry mango powder.
- Adjust water if chole are too thick. Adjust salt to taste. Bring to a quick boil if you add more water.
- Garnish with cilantro. Chole Masala is ready to be served with naan or bhatura.
Video
Notes
- 2 black cardamom
- 5 cloves
- 1/2 inch Cinnamon stick
- 1 tsp Coriander powder
- 1/4 tsp Turmeric powder
- 1/2 tsp Cayenne or Red Chili powder
Meeta, I’ve been following you for a long time to learn to cook Indian for my husband who grew up in Mumbai. He loves this chana masala and says it’s the best indian thing I cook. Thanks so much for sharing 😊
Hi – So good to hear that. Thank you so much for sharing it back 😊
Your recipe is the best that I have found. I have been using it for a couple of years now. Even my mother-in-law, who is an excellent cook, approves! Many thanks for making this otherwise difficult to prepare dish a possibility for me!
Hi Michelle – So good to hear that. Thank you for sharing it 🙂
your website is too busy. give me one recipe, one set of ingredients, and one video/pictures per recipe. there’s way to much going on and I don’t like having to scroll through a lot of information I don’t need at that time. SIMPLE. have a home page with a list of all the recipes and let me pick and choose.
Hi Tom – Thanks for your feedback. I try to share more details, as sometimes readers are beginners at cooking and would love the extra details and step by step photos. Every recipe has a jump to recipe button, so feel free to go directly to the recipe if the extra details are not important for you. You can also easily search from all the recipe by clicking the search icon. Hope that helps!
Made this last night. Excellent flavors. Easy to make. Needed a bit more amachur for my taste. Next time I will try the tamarind paste in hot water as suggested by another.
I was wondering about your chole masala powder vs Everest powder. I read the ingredients of the Everest brand and it doesn’t even remotely have the same makeup of your masala recipe. I made your masala and used it and it was great but how different would the taste be if I used the Everest masala? Do you have a different chole masala recipe the imitates the Everest brand? I prefer grinding my own masalas. Thanks
Hi Neelam – Glad you enjoyed the Chole Masala. I looked up the ingredients of the Everest masala, and would say mine is a simplified version. I don’t have another recipe for Chole Masala at this time. But please do adjust to add more ingredients and try if you like the taste.
I want to make this tomorrow. I think I only have green cardamom pods, will those work instead of black seeds?
Hello – The flavor profile is a bit different, but I think it will still be as delicious with green cardamom pods. Hope you enjoy the Chana Masala!
Success on the first try! I like this recipe. I will try putting the whole spices in cheesecloth next time. Substituted 1 tsp dried fenugreek seeds because I didn’t have the leaves, and I followed the directions to make the chole masala. Added a little bit of fresh lemon juice I had in the fridge at the end. Served with rice, yogurt, and Naan. Tasty!
Hi Jaya – Glad to hear you enjoyed the Chana Masala. Just as a suggestion for next time – fenugreek seeds are not a direct substitute for the leaves. You can skip the leaves if you don’t have. Thank you for sharing back!
Ooh thank you. About to make it again and will follow your suggestion.
Is there a way to make rice in the same pot?
Hi Nidhi – Do you mean cooking rice pot-in-pot along with the Chana Masala? Or you mean to cook the rice along with the chickpeas without an additional bowl? I have not tried cooking rice and chickpeas together in the instant pot steel insert, but there are some chickpea biryani recipes if that is what you are looking for.
This recipe has never failed me and always taste great. I do adjust the spices to our spicy taste buds but that is the same with any recipe!
My son who is a senior in college also made in his apt. First time, He forgot to mash the chick peas so was not as think as he likes. But second time all good! I appreciate these recipes so kids like my son who enjoy Indian food away can make their favorite dishes even when Mom is too far away. Thanks for all of your effort to document the process!
So happy to hear you and your son have been enjoying the Chana Masala. It is always wonderful to know that kids are able to make the food they love with my recipes! Thank you for sharing back.
Really watery, like a thin soup. Ratio of beans to water seems off.
Hi Stewart – Can you share a little more details. Did you use canned chickpeas? I ask as they need less liquid, as mentioned in the recipe notes. I wonder if you tried mashing some chickpeas as mentioned in the recipe. That helps to thicken the sauce. I would love to figure out the issue if you can share more details.
Can I use ginger-garlic paste instead of fresh? If so, how many tsp? Thanks for this great recipe!
Hi Andrew – You can add 1 tablespoon of ginger garlic paste in this recipe. Hope you enjoy the Chana Masala