Bengal gram dal bitter gourd

Ingredients

Bitter gourd-3-4 nos

Bengal gram dal(washed and soaked in water for 2-3 hour-1/2 cup
Tamarind pulp-2 tsp
Garlic(chopped into small pieces)-5-6 cloves
Chilli powder-2 tsp
Coriander powder-11/2 tsp
Tumeric powder-1/4 tsp
Cumin seeds-1/4 tsp
Mustard seeds-1/4 tsp
Pinch of aesfoiteda
Oil-3 tbsp
Curry leaves-7-10
Salt to taste
Coriander for garnish
Water-1 cup

Preparation:
1. Sprinkle some salt on the cut pieces of bitter gourd and add some water and keep it aside, for
20-30 minutes. This is to remove the bitterness.
2. Heat up the oil in a pan, add aesfoiteda, cumin seeds, mustard seeds and curry leaves. Allow
mustard seeds to crackle. Then add chopped garlic pieces and saute for few seconds.
3. Lower the flame, add tumeric powder, red chilli powder, coriander powder, salt as per taster and
little water. Mix everything up and allow this mixture to cook for 2-3 minutes.
4.Add tamarind paste, soaked bengal gram dal and cook it for few more minutes with lid closed.
5.Squeeze water out of bitter gourd and add it to above mix. Add more water as required. bengal
gram dal will need water to cook.
6. Allow the curry to cook for 15-20 minutes. Stir it occasionally until dal and gourd are cooked.
7. Garnish with coriander and serve it with roti's( Indian flat bread).

Chole recipe

Ingredients

Ingredients for pressure cooking:

Garbanzo beans/chickpeas-1 cup
Pressure cooking the chickpeas-2.5 to 3 cups water
Black tea bag-1
Salt- tsp
Ingredients for the masala gravy:
Onion(medium sized , finely chopped)-1no
Tomato (medium sized , finely chopped)-1no
Garlic cloves-2 to 3 cloves
Ginger(crushed to a paste)- inch ,
Ginger-garlic paste- tsp
Turmeric powder-powder
Red chili powder- tsp
Dry mango powder - to 1 tsp
Green chilies (slit)-2 to 3 nos
Oil-1.5 -2 tbsp
Salt as per taste

Spices for the punjabi chole masala:

Black cardamoms-2 nos

Cinnamon-1 inch
Peppercorns-3 to 4
Cloves-2 nos
Bay leaf(medium indian)-1nos
Carom seeds- tsp
Cumin seeds-1 tsp
Coriander seeds-1 tsp
Fennel seeds-1 tsp
Dry pomegranate seeds- tsp
Dry red chilies-1 or 2 nos

For garnish:

Chopped coriander leaves

Ginger- inch
Onion (medium sliced or chopped)-1nos
Tomato(medium , sliced or chopped)-1 nos
Lime sliced-1 nos

Preperation
1. Rinse and soak the chole (chickpeas) in enough water overnight.
2. Add enough amount of water as the chickpeas increase in size after soaking it.
3. Rinse the soaked chickpeas.To give a dark color to the chickpeas,add 1 black tea bag
these also give a faint sourness to the stock. Season with salt and pressure cook for 18 to

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20 whistles.
The chickpeas should be cooked well an softened. And should be soft when you mash it
with a spoon.
In a pan, take all the whole spices for the chole masala mentioned above and on a low
heat begin to roast them.
Stir often and roast the spices till they get extra browned.
Roast well till properly brown.
Let these roasted spices cool and then grind them finely in a dry grinder.
Remove the amla pieces which would have softened by now or the tea bag from the stock.
Heat oil in a pan or kadai.
Add ginger-garlic paste and saute till their raw aroma goes away.
Then add chopped onions and saute till the onions turn translucent or light brown.
Add tomatoes & saute them till they soften and the oil starts to leave the sides of the
masala.
Then add the powdered chole masala that we ground, along with the red chili powder,
turmeric powder & garam masala powder (optional).
Stir the dry masala and then add slit green chilies
Add the cooked chole. stir well.
Add salt.
Add the stock in which the chana was boiled. you can also water instead.
Stir and cover the chana.
Simmer on a low to medium flame. you can also cook without the lid. the gravy will
thicken and reduce. mash a few chana. this will help thicken the gravy. simmer till you get
the consistency you prefer. the consistency is not thin, but medium consistency or dry.
In case, you have not added dry pomegranate seeds while roasting the spices, then you
need to add amchur powder (dry mango powder) now. stir.
Garnish chole masala with coriander leaves & ginger julienne.
Serve the punjabi chole with kulchas, bhaturas, pooris, rotis, along with sliced onions,
tomatoes and lime. chole also tastes good with steamed rice or jeera rice.