Channa (chickpea) masala

In the past I found it hard to make 'proper' curry but with lots of practice I have gotten a lot better at it. My biggest tip for authentic tasting curry is to use fresh tomatoes, not tinned. Sounds simple (and may be obvious to some?), but it really makes a difference. That and cook your curry for as long as possible. This recipe was cobbled together from several I found online; I used cream because I had some in the fridge which needed using up, but you can omit if you'd like or substitute with yoghurt  You can use any vegetables you want in this curry (you could even omit them entirely) - I used sweet potato and a courgette and the sweet potato took a long time to cook, so if you're in a rush substitute for a vegetable that takes less time to cook. 

Ingredients:

1 onion sliced
4 garlic cloves
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
Chilles, to taste
1/2 tbsp coriander
1 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp turmeric
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp salt
1 small sweet potato
1 courgette
6 large ripe tomatoes 
1 x 400g (approx) can of chickpeas
1/2 tsp garam masala
Juice half lemon
100ml cream
1 inch piece of fresh ginger

Serves 2 - 3

Instructions: 

1. Slice onion thinly, crush garlic, and fry in oil/butter on a medium heat until softened.

2. Add the chillies and cumin seeds and fry for a couple of minutes.

3. Chop vegetables and add to the pan; fry for 5 - 10 minutes until beginning to soften. 

4. Add the remaining spices and the salt (except the garam masala) and stir through. Chop the tomatoes into eighths and add to the pan. Cook for 15 minutes or so.

5. Drain the chickpeas and add to the pan. Cook for another 10 minutes or until all the vegetables are cooked (some vegetables such as sweet potato can take longer to cook).

6. Grate the ginger directly into the curry, add the lemon juice, and stir in the garam masala. Add the cream (if using) and simmer (don't boil!) until warmed through. Season further with salt if desired and serve.