Chana Masaledar

Comfort Food, Indian Style: Chana Masaledar, adapted from Madhur Jaffrey's 1973 kitchen textbook, "An Invitation to Indian Cooking", with some hints from the voluminous, cloth-encased "India: The Cookbook" (the cookbook for transporting India to home kitchens in America and elsewhere? What a bold claim!).  This hearty, rich, chickpea- and tomato-based stew is perfect for a lovely winter dinner, or, conversely, for watching NFL Championship Sunday playoffs (I'm guilty of the latter).  Move over, chili and cheese dip. 

Truth be told, I'm also just a sucker for good Indian food, sans American football.  I've tried my hand at a variety of different recipes from the subcontinent, ranging from samosas and other appetizers to rice-based desserts.  Often, I find the savory fare a bit trickier than other main-course dishes I'm used to preparing: the spice combinations don't come as naturally to me.  As a result, I'll typically test out a combination of various versions and adaptations, happily consuming the practice batches.  I think this one's a keeper.

And what tune best complements an American kitchen flavored with garam masala and amchur powder?  Big Star's "The India Song".  After all, I'm cooking in Virginia, but *I'd like to go to India*.

Ingredients:
--2 cans (15 oz cans) chickpeas
--2 large tomatoes, chopped (keep the juices!)
--2 tbsp. tomato paste
--approx. 2 tbsp. olive oil
--1 large yellow onion, chopped
--2 cloves garlic, minced (by the way, the Casserole Queens of Austin, TX have a great suggestion for peeling garlic before mincing it--just stick it in the microwave for a few seconds, and the shells pop right off!)
--4 tsp. cumin
--1 tbsp. ground coriander
--2 tsp. turmeric
--2 tsp. ground ginger
--2 tsp. garam masala
--2 tsp. paprika
--4 tsp. amchur powder (I found this locally in Charlottesville at Foods of All Nations)
--1 tsp. cayenne pepper
--1 tbsp. salt, or to taste 
--1 c. basmati rice (you can also use any other kind of rice you like, such as brown or jasmine, but the basmati tends to be the fluffiest, pairing well with a thick sauce)
--pinch of saffron (optional)

In a saucepan, drizzle the olive oil and heat over medium.  Add the chopped onions and minced garlic and sauté until golden brown, about 4-5 minutes.  Reduce heat to medium-low, and add all of the spices, including the salt, to the onion/garlic mixture.  Stir, and allow to simmer.  

Next, drain and rinse the chickpeas.  Add the rinsed chickpeas, the chopped tomatoes (along with all of their juices), and the tomato paste to the onion/garlic/spice combo and stir.  Allow to simmer over medium-low for approx. 15 minutes, stirring frequently, or until desired thickness is obtained (the longer you let it simmer, the thicker it will get).  

While your chana masaledar is simmering, boil 2 c. water in another pot.  Once boiling, add 1 c. basmati rice, turn heat down to low, cover, and allow basmati rice to cook for approx. 25 min.  If desired, add a pinch of saffron to the rice.  Fluff with a fork and serve with chana masadelar spooned over rice. 

This makes quite a bit of food, but it's just as delicious re-heated the next day (or the day after that).