Saucy Chickpeas Recipe is a common Indian food. I love chickpeas! I think because it reminds me of my early childhood. That time in our lives where everything is magical and make belief and reality has no difference. Where we live in the moment without even trying and nothing is impossible. Saucy Chickpeas also hold for me a connection to “home” since it it not a typical food in Brazil. The only place I ate it was at my home. Hummus and other styles of chickpeas, also known as Garbanzo beans were easy to find thinks to the many Lebanese immigrants and their restaurants. These continue to be super popular and hummus seems to be one of the top healthy food here in America. Lets stick to our recipe before I go way off topic!
Yield: 11 cups
For the beans:
21/3 cups chickpeas (garbanzo beans)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 black tea bag
5 cups water
2 teaspoons salt
For the sauce:
2 medium potatoes, boiled and diced
4 teaspoons turmeric
8 black peppercorns
½ cup peeled and thinly sliced fresh ginger
4 teaspoons ground cumin
3 tablespoons g
aram masala
8 green chilies, mild or hot, to taste, chopped
2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons pomegranate seeds
1 cup hot ghee
Garnish:
A few fresh coriander leaves (cilantro)
2 onions, sliced thin
1 cup chopped tomatoes
4 lemons, sliced
To prepare the beans:
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Carefully pick over and wash the beans. Soak them overnight in 5 cups of water, along with the baking soda and black tea bag.
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In the same water, cook the beans, along with ½ teaspoon salt, over low heat until tender. Strain off the liquid, reserving it for the sauce.
To make the sauce:
In a large, thick-bottomed frying pan or wok, mix together the cooked beans, potatoes, ginger (sauté ginger first, if you prefer), green chilies, pomegranate seeds, turmeric, peppercorns, cumin, garam masala, and salt. Make a hollow in the center and into it pour the approximately 2 cups of the water from the cooked beans. Bring it to a boil and mix in the spices and the beans. Pour very hot ghee on top of it and let it simmer for 2 minutes.
To serve:
Place in a serving dish and garnish with coriander leaves, tomatoes, onions and lemon slices.
Garbanzo beans (Chickpeas) are a good source of B vitamins. They do not have all the essential amino acids for our bodies to make protein so it should be eaten with some basmati rice or another whole grain.
This recipe comes from the folks at http://www.kundaliniresearchinstitute.org/