channa masala

right now my house smells like an indian village. in a good way.
the first time i had indian food was in high school at one of my friends houses. her family was vegetarian and ate all kinds of stuff i didn't even know existed. when her mom whipped up a batch of dahl one day, i was really confused as to what the baby poop colored mush was on my plate. needless to say it was delicious and i have been a believer ever since. sadly this dahl pictured was a little bland, but the channa masala was, in the words of guy fieri, out of bounds. (i may or may not watch a lot of diners, drive ins, and dives at the gym...)
this stuff is downright delicious. a little spicy, but for the most part just good and i would like to think somewhat authentic... hey i had to go down to the local bollywood market to secure the garam masala, so i think that means we're pretty legit!
i got it from this blog, which i am jut loving right now. i think it's safe to say that the writer makes me want to go to culinary school.
til then i will just keep chopping my onions and measuring out tomato paste.

please notice the sheer size of that strawberry

channa masala
serves: 4
needed:
1 c dried chickpeas, soaked and cooked
1.5 tbsp butter
1 onion, diced
1 jalepeño, diced
2 tsp ginger paste (or fresh or powdered, whatever you've got)
3 tbsp tomato paste
1 can diced tomatoes
1 tbsp coriander
1 tsp cumin
sprinkle of salt
1 tsp garam masala
1/4 tsp cayenne (or less... cook be warned...)
1 tsp tumeric

1. saute your onion til it get carmelized on medium heat. patience is a virtue!
2. add your jalepeño and your ginger. stir this all together and let it marry a couple minutes while you measure out your tomato paste
3. add your tomato paste and stir stir stir. let it cook down it's crusted on the bottom of the pan a little. that means the flavor is really getting in!
4. add your tomatoes to the mix and stir it all together.
5. throw in your spices. i like to measure yout all the spices in another bowl, mix, then add them together so they are nice and conglomerated.
6. finally, add the chickpeas and stir until everything is incorporated.
7. serve with a side of yogurt. adding it gives a nice smooth texture and adds creaminess and relief to the cayenne. enjoy

could that fork look any bigger? really?

xo