Curried Chickpeas with Spinach

[apple_pathways]

It's been ages since I've posted a recipe here, and since I haven't much to say about anything else, I think it's the perfect time for one!

So, here's my take on Punjabi-style curried chickpeas. (I make no claims to authenticity, as I tend to use actual recipes as inspiration only--so if the recipe falls short of the experience of your grandmother's house in Delhi, the fault is entirely mine!)





If you're new to my recipes, let me apologize: I'm not good about measuring things. Unless I'm baking, I tend not to measure at all, but rather dump things in until I think it tastes good. I'll try to estimate the amounts of everything I used, but let your tastebuds guide you if you should try to replicate the dish, and feel free to add more or less of the spices according to your tastes!

Ingredients

• 1 large onion
  
• 3-5 cloves garlic
  
• 2 tsp. ginger paste, or fresh grated ginger
  
• About 3 Tbs. ghee, or olive oil
  
• 1 Tbs cumin
  
• 1 Tbs red chili powder
  
• 2 tsp coriander
  
• 1 tsp Garam Masala
  
• 1/2 to 1 tsp turmeric
  
• dried red chilis or crushed chili flakes, to your taste. (Omit if you don't like heat.)
  
• 2 large cans whole tomatoes, most of the juice drained
  
• 2 cans chick peas, drained
  
• small package frozen spinach (cut leaf)
  
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

• Slice the onion into strips, about 1/4" thick. Chop up the garlic and grate the ginger, if you're using fresh root.
  
• In a large skillet, heat the ghee or olive oil. When the pan is hot, turn heat down to medium high and add the garlic. Stir for a minute or so until it gets fragrant, then add the onion and the ginger. I also add the spices at this point, as frying them draws out their natural oils.
  
• When the onions have browned, add the tomatoes and the chickpeas. Turn heat down to a simmer, and cook (stirring occasionally) until tomatoes break down. (About 15 minutes.)
  
• Add the spinach, and cook until heated through. Taste the sauce, and adjust seasoning.
  
• Serve over rice.

Comments

[roh-wyn.livejournal.com]

I think guests appreciate the effort, actually, and for my part, it sometimes gives me ideas for my own cooking, lol. And like you, I'm fond of experimenting with foods, although my flavor profile is fairly typically Indian. Yesterday, I made mac-n-channa for dinner, both to see how far I could push American comfort food into Indian cooking, and to get my preschooler to try something a bit spicier than the usual mac-and-cheese he likes. It turned out surprisingly good. Here's the picture, for the curious:

Here!

[apple-pathways.livejournal.com]

If I were an amazing cook who were able to take on new and unfamiliar recipes, and reliably get them right the first time: I might try it. But it often takes me a bit of experimenting to perfect a new dish!

That mac-n-channa looks delicious! I'll eat anything with pasta in it. Did your son go for it?

I always wonder: I know that children who grow up in cultures whose cooking relies heavily on spices are fed spicy food at a young age, but I wonder exactly how young families would start feeding their toddlers spicy food? I can imagine there being dangers to introducing hot peppers too young.

If I ever have kids, I hope I can get them accustomed to eating spicy food! I would hate to have to cook the same bland, boring, "kid-friendly" fare every night for dinner. (Though I wouldn't object to a steady diet of Mac & Cheese. I LOVE the stuff! My stomach might say otherwise, though!)

[roh-wyn.livejournal.com]

When my kid was about a year old, I introduced first salt, then pepper and finally chili powder into his diet. In small quantities, all these are pretty innocuous. By about 18 months, I was feeding him the same food I was cooking for us, but I'd "cut" the spiciness for his portions using ghee or olive oil.

He eats a reasonable amount of spice for a kid his age, but there are still certain things he resists. And he does love his mac-and-cheese, lol.

[apple-pathways.livejournal.com]

I did some research on feeding spicy food to children, and got a lot of different answers from different sources, but there is a lot of anecdotal evidence for people feeding spicy food to children around a year old.