What is amchur and where do I find it?
Amchur is dried green mango powder, available at any South Asian grocery store. If you can't find it, substitute with an extra ½ tsp of tamarind paste stirred in at the end — the flavor profile is close.
Indian · dinner
Chana Masala: Chickpeas, Amchur, and the Right Whole Spices
#indian#vegan#chickpeas#chana#punjabi
55m
Total time
4
Servings
340
kcal
easy
Difficulty
May 18, 2026
INGREDIENTS.
4
Pantry
- 500 g cooked dried chickpeas, soaked overnight and boiled until tender, or 2 × 400g cans, drained
- 40 ml neutral oil
- 1.5 tsp salt
Spice
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 black cardamom pod
- 1 cinnamon stick (3 cm)
- 1.5 tsp ground cumin
- 1.5 tsp ground coriander
- 0.5 tsp turmeric
- 1 tsp Kashmiri chili powder
- 1 tsp amchur (dried mango powder)
- 1 tsp anardana (dried pomegranate seed powder)
- 1 tsp garam masala
Produce
- 2 medium onion, finely chopped
- 6 garlic cloves, grated
- 20 g fresh ginger, grated
- 300 g tomatoes, finely chopped
- 1 green chili, finely chopped
- 20 g fresh coriander, chopped, for serving
THE METHOD.
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0/6 done
FAQ · Things people ask
About this recipe.
Canned chickpeas or dried?
Dried chickpeas soaked and pressure-cooked or slow-boiled give a firmer, less mushy texture. Canned chickpeas work and save time — just rinse thoroughly. Either way, they need at least 15 minutes simmering in the masala to absorb flavor.
What is black cardamom and can I skip it?
Black cardamom (badi elaichi) has a smoky, camphor-like flavor completely different from green cardamom. It's worth finding for this dish — it's the smokiness people notice but can't identify. You can skip it but the dish will taste flatter.
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