This Instant Pot Chana Masala is a classic Indian dish. It is famous not only in India but all over Asia. It is a very heavy dish which makes you feel full. It works well even if you take it for lunch or dinner.
Regular consumption of legumes has various beneficial effects such as better diabetes control1, lower risk of cardiovascular disease and lower risk of certain cancers. Recommendations suggest eating legume a few times a week.
Chickpeas, like all legumes, is a food naturally rich in vegetable proteins, several vitamins and minerals and dietary fiber. In addition, it is low in fat, and like all plant foods it does not contain cholesterol. You don’t have to be a vegetarian to enjoy its flavor and benefits!
How to serve
This pressure cooker Chana Masala can be serve as a side dish or as a full vegan meal with, naan (Indian Bread), rice and a salad.
What to do with the leftovers?
If you made the Instant Pot chana masala recipe and you have leftovers don’t hesitate to use it in a salad.
You can also freeze it for later use.
Instant Pot Indian Recipes
- 2 garlic cloves finely chopped
- 1 tbsp onion powder
- 2 tsp coriander
- 2 tsp garam masala
- 2 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 2 cans chickpeas rinsed
- 2 tomatoes finely chopped
- 1 can coconut milk
- salt to taste
- pepper to taste
- Add all the ingredients in the Instant Pot. Stir it well.
- Cook at high pressure for 15 minutes.
- Once done. do a quick pressure release.
- Open the lid and enjoy 🙂
Trying this out tonight and am excited to taste it! Just one thing I was confused about. It says “after 15 minutes release steam”. Is this right after the 15 min of cooking or did you mean an additional 15 min of NPR before doing a quick release?
Yes you have to release the steam after 15 minutes of cooking.
Wonderful. Just made and couldn’t resist eating some even though it’s only ten in the morning. Added some cayenne for a little heat. Just got back from a cruise and they had some great Indian dishes. I’ve been looking for a recipe that would be as good as what I had on the ship. Yours was even better. I also like how easy the recipe was and that I had all the ingredients in my cupboard. Thank you. Will be making again.
I am sure that you will again love to enjoy this dish.
Hi Peggy,
Wow, that’s so great, I’m glad you love the recipe. Thanks for your comment I really appreciate it !
Do you have a method for making this on the stove?
We made this last night and it was delicious. The only variations were that we used 1/2 can of diced tomatoes (didn’t have fresh) and added 1/4 tsp of very hot chili powder in addition to the 1 tsp of mild. I think the next time I might add a squeeze of lime at the end. Super-simple and flavorful recipe to have on hand using mainly pantry items.
Sounds like great replacements. So glad you love the recipe ^_^
I can’t have coconut milk but assume maybe an unflavored nut milk would work?
You will get a slightly different taste but it will work.
I have canned chickpeas does the cooking time applies for this or is there a difference in time?
Yes, this recipe calls for canned chickpeas so just follow the recipe as written 🙂
what would be the timings if I used soaked chickpeas? thanks
It depends how long you’ve soaked them and how much bite you want them to have at the end. 15 minutes should still be good, but if you soaked for a long time like 8 hours 12 minutes should be good.