There is so much more to Indian cuisine than curries, daals, biryanis. Street snacks and meals are sold by vendors on carts or even shops set up on their bikes, sell everything from elaborate meals to simple snacks. These snacks are usually pre fried and assembled right in front of you to maintain crispness and optimum flavors. They are generally called chaat. Chaat, usually is made with an array of condiments that are added to simple food like cut fruit, puffed rice, fried chickpeas snacks, pakoras, samosas, or even hot potatoes are mixed with hot and spicy, sweet and sour chutneys, and served.
These roasted chickpeas are one of the simpler ones. They are called Chana chor garam. The original recipe has chickpeas flattened and fried then spiced and served fresh with chopped onions, chutneys, tomatoes and cilantro. My version is spiced and oven roasted till crispy. They have all the fun crunchiness without being to heavy from the frying.
You can find ground mango powder and chaat masala at any good Indian grocery store or on Amazon .
To make Roasted Chana Chor you will need
- 2 can chickpeas rinsed, patted and and left to dry at least 30 minutes
- 1-2 tablespoons any neutral oil
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
- 1.5’teaspoon chaat masala or (1/2 teaspoon garam masala+1 teaspoon ground mango powder)
- 1 teaspoon +/- hot cayenne pepper
- Black salt or regular salt to taste
- To serve
- 1 red onion chopped
- 1/2 tomato finely chopped
- 1/4 cup fresh chopped cilantro
- chopped green chilli ( optional)
- lime juice
- chaat masala(optional)
Preheat the oven to 300F.
Drain-rinse and pat the chickpeas dry on a clean towel. You could also rub them gently to remove the skin. Mix all the spices, coat the chickpeas and let them marinate for 30 minutes. This will help the spices penetrate the beans. Spread it out on a baking sheet in a single layer and bake in preheated oven for 45 minutes to a hour. Shake the tray frequently to get even crispness. Leave to cool completely.
Right before eating mix the onion, tomato, cilantro, lime juice and optional items and serve.
Leave a Reply