Instant Pot Chickpea Curry with Spinach (Chana Saag)
This easy one-pot Spinach Chickpea Curry, also known as Chana Saag is a healthy vegan and gluten-free curry. Serve it with rice, quinoa, or naan for a perfect weeknight dinner!
Servings: 4
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup Chickpeas (Chole/Garbanzo beans) dry, see notes for using canned
- 3 cups Water for soaking
- 1 tablespoon Ghee or Oil (use oil for vegan)
- 5 cloves Garlic minced
- 1 inch Ginger grated
- 1.5 cups Onion diced
- 3/4 cup Tomato chopped
- 1.5 cups Water for cooking
- 3 cups Baby spinach chopped
Spices
- 1 teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder
- 2 teaspoon Coriander powder (Dhaniya powder)
- 1/2 teaspoon Ground Cumin (Jeera powder)
- 1/2 teaspoon Garam Masala
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Dry Mango powder (Amchur) or lime juice
Whole spices (optional)
- 1 teaspoon Cumin seeds (Jeera)
- 2 leaves Bay leaf (Tej Patta)
- 1 stick Cinnamon (Dalchini)
Instructions
- Wash and soak chickpeas in 3 cups of water overnight or at least for 4+ hours.
- Set the Instant Pot on sauté mode and let it heat.
- Add oil along with the whole spices (cumin, bay leaves, and cinnamon). Saute for 30 seconds until they release their aroma.
- Now add the onions, garlic, ginger and sauté them for about 3 minutes.
- When the onions turn golden brown, add the tomatoes along with the spices except for the dry mango powder (amchur powder). Saute for couple of minutes.
- Drain the soaked chickpeas and add it to the Instant Pot. Add the required water for cooking and give it a stir.
- Switch the Instant Pot to bean/chili mode on high pressure for 35 minutes with the vent in sealing position.
- 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 chickpeas a bit.
- Add the chopped spinach along with the dry mango powder to the chickpea curry and stir well. Change the instant pot setting to sauté mode and let it boil for 2-3 minutes.
- Chickpea Spinach Curry is ready to be served with hot parathas, naan, roti or a steaming bowl of rice.
Stovetop Pressure Cooker Method:
- Heat oil in the pressure cooker on medium-high heat. Add whole spices, ginger, garlic and onions. Saute for about 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 chopped spinach along with the dry mango powder to the chickpea curry and stir well. Let it boil for 2-3 minutes. Adjust water if chole are too thick.
- Chickpea Spinach Curry is ready to be served with hot parathas, naan, roti or a steaming bowl of rice.
Notes
Dump-and-go option: This recipe can be made by just adding all the ingredients except spinach to the pot in the order listed, without sautéing and it works well.
Whole Spices: They are optional in this recipe, but they add a wonderful flavor and aroma to the curry.
No dry mango powder? If you don't have dry mango powder or amchur, replace with 1 teaspoon lemon juice.
Spice level: You can reduce or skip kashmiri red chili powder. If you don't have Kashmiri Red Chili powder, use paprika.
Using canned chickpeas: Drain and rinse the chickpeas. Pressure cook for 10 minutes in the instant pot or 2 whistles on the stovetop pressure cooker. Add only 1 cup water for cooking.
Using canned tomatoes: Use one cup canned tomatoes to replace fresh tomatoes.
Chickpea Curry in Coconut Milk: You can add coconut milk to thicken the curry at the end.
Greens: I added spinach in this curry, but any greens or a blend of greens such as spinach, kale, mustard. etc will work too.
Adding other vegetables: You can add broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, bell peppers, or squash to this curry too. When adding carrots and squash, pressure cook the chickpeas before adding the veggies for 32 minutes. Then add the veggies and pressure cook for an additional 3 minutes.
Double the recipe: Cooking time will remain the same, even if you half or double the quantity in this recipe.
Make it a meal: Cook pot-in-pot brown rice with this Chana Masala to make a complete meal. See my Dal Makhani with Rice recipe for detailed instructions.
Nutrition
Calories: 288kcal | Carbohydrates: 45g | Protein: 13g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 10mg | Sodium: 669mg | Potassium: 851mg | Fiber: 13g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 3072IU | Vitamin C: 24mg | Calcium: 158mg | Iron: 7mg