Palak Chole Recipe | Spinach Chickpea Curry

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Palak Chole is another vegetarian gravy that is served as an accompaniment for Roti/Naan or Pulav. Chickpeas is cooked with spinach and tossed with onion-tomato gravy along with mild spices. We all make Chole masala very often. This chole masala can enhanced with palak (any greens) and make it much richer and healthier. We can make this gravy as no-onion no-garlic version too.

Two ways to cook Palak Chole

We can first blanch and puree the spinach. Then toss the spinach puree into chole masala
We can cook the chole and gravy and toss the chopped spinach into the gravy along with cooked chole and concoct everything to a flavorful Palak Chole

I have given here the 2nd method of making Palak Chole.

I usually have a stock of Store-bought chole masala powder which I use as a spice powder for this masala. If you don't have a stock, you can use the garam masala. The main differentiating ingredient in chole masala is ananrdhana. Its the dry pomegranate seeds. So If we don't have chole masala, you can use garam masala and ananrdhana powder. Try this version of Palak Chole and share your comments!

Recipe Card:

Method with Step by Step Pictures:

SOAKING CHOLE

Wash and soak Chole overnight or atleast for 6 hours in hot water

PREPARING SPINACH

Remove palak leaves from its stem. Soak all the spinach leaves in water for about 20 mins. Soaking process let the dust/sand settle down in water. After 20 mins, we can squeeze the leaves and take it gently without stirring the water. That way the dust/sand settles down and we can discard the water.
Chop the spinach and set aside

COOKING CHOLE

Drain the water from soaked chole. Add 2 cups of fresh water along with 1 teaspoon of salt. Take a small piece of muslin cloth or any clean white cloth. Add the whole garam masala and bring all the edges of the cloth together and tie it and make it like a potli. Add this potli to the chickpeas. Pressure cook the chickpeas for 4-5 whistles. Allow the pressure to relase naturally. Discard the masala Potli and set the cooked chole aside. We don't need to strain excess water. We can use it for the gravy

GRINDING PROCESS

Take tomato pieces along with green chili, ginger and garlic in a mixer jar. Grind everything to a smooth paste.

COOKING PALAK CHOLE

Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan. Add chopped onions and saute the onion till translucent. Then add ground Tomato paste to the pan.

Also, add coriander powder, red chili powder and chole masala powder along with salt. Mix everything well. Cover & Cook in medium flame till the oil oozes out of the masala

Once the masala is cooked, add chopped spinach and give a good mix. Let the spinach gets cooked for 5 mins

Then add cooked chole along with the cooked water. Adjust salt if needed. Cover & Cook in low flame for about 8-10 mins. Finally garnish with coriander leaves