Instant Pot Chole Yum

Growing up, one of my favorite North Indian dishes has always been Chole.  Whether we were eating at a wedding, an Indian restaurant, or requesting it as my special birthday dinner, Chole has always been a constant and a comfort in my life.  The aroma of it freshly made in the air, just pulls at you.
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There are so many different versions of making this recipe based on where in North India you are.  Sometimes, even in the same region, recipes differ vastly from home to home.  I prefer mine to have a thick red gravy, which is best achieved I’ve found by adding an abundance of tomatoes (and I really mean A LOT)  and spices.  The best part is that this dish is such a classic, you can never go wrong.  Serve it hot with rice, naan or Bhatura and be prepared to be wowed!
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From my Kitchen to yours, I really hope you enjoy this.

Ingredients:
1 c dried chickpeas, washed and soaked overnight (at least 4 hours)
1 ½ c water
1 Tbsp Olive or Avocado Oil
5 cloves garlic, minced
1″ ginger, grated
1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
3 med-large tomatoes, finely chopped
1 ¾ c tomato sauce
2 tsp cayenne pepper (or to taste)
2 tsp coriander powder
1 Tbsp Chole Masala
1 tsp aamchur (dry mango) powder
1 ½ tsp cumin seeds
2-3 bay leaves
½ tsp peppercorns
1″ cinnamon stick
cilantro to garnish

Directions:
1. Start the instant pot on sauté mode.  Add oil and let it heat up.
2. Add cumin seeds and let them splutter.  Add in the cinnamon stick, peppercorns and bay leaf.  Sauté for 30 seconds.
3. Add ginger and garlic and sauté for another 30 seconds.
4. Add in the onions and sauté for 3-5 minutes until they turn translucent and start shrinking.
5. Add in the tomatoes, cayenne pepper, coriander powder, chole masala, and salt.  Cook for 2-3 minutes until the tomatoes start softening.  Add in the tomato sauce and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
6. Drain the water from the chickpeas and add them to the instant pot.  Mix well with the gravy and cook for 2-3 minutes.
7. Add in the water and mix well.  Turn off the instant pot, cover with vent to sealing position and change setting to manual/pressure cook for 40 minutes.
8.  When the instant pot beeps, do a 20 minute NPR (natural pressure release).  If the pin has not dropped at this point, release the pressure and open the instant pot.
9.  Change setting to sauté, add in the aamchur powder and let boil for 3-5 minutes.  Taste and adjust for salt.
10. Garnish with fresh cilantro and serve hot with rice, naan or bhature.

Enjoy!

Spicy Garlic Hummus

I love snacking.  Who doesn’t?!  Hummus is one of my favorite foods.  Since the first time I tried it in college, I was in love.  Recently, S (my 2 year old) has also been snacking on hummus.  And my hubs too.  This is just one of those foods where I like to add it to everything.  A great snack for S with some carrots and broccoli, or on a sandwich for my hubby, or in a wrap for me.  The versatility of hummus is amazing.
Most hummus recipes have a key ingredient – tahini, which is a paste made of sesame seeds.  Well, I didn’t have any around but I was craving hummus so here is my versions of tahini free hummus.  Hope you enjoy it!

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That’s my little helper.  She loves helping me cook in the kitchen and makes me so proud!
Drain the garbanzo beans and reserve the liquid – you’ll be using it later.  I used canned beans but you can use dried beans and soak them and cook them.  If you do, reserve the water that you cooked it in.  It’ll be used later.
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In a blender, combine the garbanzo beans, garlic, salt, pepper, Sriracha, lemon juice, half of the reserved liquid and olive oil.
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I just love Sriracha!  The kick it adds at the end of each bite when you eat this hummus is the perfect touch!
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Blend it so it becomes a good chunky paste.  This picture is deceiving – it really is chunky!
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Serve it with your favorite veggies!  S’s current fave is carrots as she gets a kick out of dipping them in her hummus.  Hope you enjoyed this as much as our family did!

Ingredients:
1 ½ cans garbanzo beans, drained
½c liquid reserved from the garbanzo beans
juice squeezed from 1/2 lemon
1 Tbsp Sriracha sauce
4 cloves garlic
3 Tbsp EVOO
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste

Directions:
Combine all the ingredients in a blender and grind into a chunky paste.  Serve with your favorite veggies and crackers.  Enjoy!