Instant Pot Ghugni | Black Chickpeas Stew

Bihari Special Ghugni – Black chickpeas stew prepared in Instant Pot. A simple and protein-rich stew perfect for the weeknight dinners.

Today I am going to share a traditional recipe that is quite popular in Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa, Assam, and Bengal of course with its own variation. The one that I am going to share is the Bihari version. It is the Kala channa Ghugni or the black chickpeas stew. Traditionally it is served with puffed rice as an evening snack but what I learned was you can serve this with roti, poori, and any other Indian bread too. Check out my simple instant pot version of the Bihari/Jharkhand Ghugni.

As I mentioned in my dal sagga post, I got pretty confused with the recipe roots for states like Andhra/Telangana and Bihar/Jharkhand. Like Dal Sagga, I am going to mention this also as Ghugni from Bihari/Jharkhand.  I found this recipe from the Bihar and Jharkhand website posted by a contributor. The recipe was so simple, and I was pretty sure that both M and vaandu would love this with roti. So I did not explore any further in Bihari cuisine except for the litti.  That’s a separate post for another day.

The original recipe calls for fresh khada masala, but I just went with garam masala.  You can, of course, replace garam masala with cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, peppercorns. This Ghugni is a perfect recipe during weekdays. Be it in a pressure cooker or in the Instant pot you can prepare this in a jiffy. I served this roti hence I added more water. But if you are planning to serve this with puffed rice, you can reduce the water, by 1 cup.

So without any further ado, here comes the simple Ghugni recipe,  

Recap:

• Day 16 | 2015 – Tzatziki Sauce
• Day 16 | 2016 – Dahi Papdi Chaat
• Today – Instant Pot Ghugni | Black Chickpeas Stew

Instant Pot Ghugni | Black Chickpeas Stew

Bihari Special Ghugni – Black chickpeas stew prepared in instant pot.

Ingredients:

• Black Chickpeas – ½ cup
• Oil – 2tsps
• Bay Leaf – 1
• Cumin seeds – 1 tsp
• Chopped Onion – ½ cup
• Cherry Tomatoes – 10 / if using regular ones 3 to 4 medium tomatoes
• Garam masala – 1 tsp
• Ginger Garlic Paste – 1 tsp
• Red chili Powder – ¾ tsp
• Salt – 1 tsp
• Water 2.5 cups
• Cilantro to garnish

Prep – Work:

• Wash and soak black chickpeas for at least 6 to 8 hours.
• Chop the onions and tomatoes.

Steps:

Instant Pot Method:

• Set the IP in saute mode and add oil.
• Once the oil is hot, add the bay leaf and cumin seeds.
• As the cumin seeds start to crackle, add the onion and ginger-garlic paste.
• Cook until the onion turns translucent.

• Then add the chopped tomatoes, red chili powder, and garam masala.
• Mix them all together and then add the soaked chickpeas and salt.
• Then add the water and stir the mix.

• Now set the IP in manual mode for 20 minutes and let the pressure release naturally. If you have soaked the chickpeas for 10 to 12 hours, then you can cook for 12 to 15 minutes or according to your texture preference. Check recipe notes for more details.
• Once the pressure is dropped, open the lid and add the chopped cilantro.

Serve it with warm with roti or puri.

Pressure Cooker Method:

• Pressure cook the black chickpeas by adding 2.5 cups of water for up to three whistles.
• Once the pressure is dropped, set aside the chickpeas and do not drain the water.
• Meanwhile, heat a pan or kadai and add oil.
• Once the oil is hot, add the bay leaf and cumin seeds.
• As the cumin seeds start to crackle, add the onion and ginger-garlic paste.
• Cook until the onion turns translucent.
• Then add the chopped tomatoes, red chili powder, salt, and garam masala.
• Mix them and cover and cook for 5 minutes until the tomatoes are soft and mushy.
• Finally, add the cooked chickpeas with water and chopped cilantro.
• Let it simmer for 5 minutes, and that’s it.

Serve it with warm with roti or puri.

Notes:

• As I had cherry tomatoes, I went with them. You can use three to four medium-size tomatoes for this recipe.
• I missed adding turmeric powder. Given the benefits of hing and turmeric, I always add ¼ tsp of each, and you can use the same measure for this recipe too.
• Last but not least, adjust the spices and salt as per your preference.
• I served this roti hence I added more water. But if you are planning to serve this with puffed rice, you can reduce the water, by 1 cup.
• If you have soaked the chickpeas for 10 to 12 hours, then you can cook for 12 to 15 minutes or according to your texture preference. If time is pressing, then soak the beans atleast for 30 to 45 minutes and cook for 30 to 35 minutes. The cooking time varies depending upon the soak time, quality of the beans and your texture preference.  One batch of beans that I had, cooks in 15 minutes. Start with shorter cooking time and adjust if required.

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Instant Pot Ghugni | Black Chickpeas Stew

Bihari Special Ghugni - Black chickpeas stew prepared in Instant Pot. A simple and protein-rich stew perfect for the weeknight dinners.

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time40 minutes mins

Soaking Time8 hours hrs

Total Time8 hours hrs 50 minutes mins

Course: Entree

Cuisine: Indian

Servings: 4

Calories: 119kcal

Author: Srividhya G

Equipment

• Instant Pot

Ingredients

• ▢ ½ cup Black Chickpeas
• ▢ 2 tsps Oil
• ▢ 1 Bay Leaf
• ▢ 1 tsp Cumin Seeds
• ▢ ½ cup Onion chopped
• ▢ 10 Cherry Tomatoes if using regular ones 3 to 4 medium tomatoes
• ▢ 1 tsp Garam Masala
• ▢ 1 tsp Ginger Garlic Paste
• ▢ ¾ tsp Red chili Powder
• ▢ 1 tsp Salt
• ▢ 2.5 cups Water
• ▢ 2 tbsp Cilantro chopped, to garnish

Instructions

Prep – Work

• Wash and soak black chickpeas for at least 6 to 8 hours.
• Chop the onions and tomatoes.

Steps

Instant Pot Method

• Set the IP in saute mode and add oil.
• Once the oil is hot, add the bay leaf and cumin seeds.
• As the cumin seeds start to crackle, add the onion and ginger-garlic paste.
• Cook until the onion turns translucent.
• Then add the chopped tomatoes, red chili powder, and garam masala.
• Mix them all together and then add the soaked chickpeas and salt.
• Then add the water and stir the mix.
• Now set the IP in manual mode for 20 minutes and let the pressure release naturally.
• Once the pressure is dropped, open the lid and add the chopped cilantro.
• Serve it with warm with roti or puri.

Pressure Cooker Method

• Pressure cook the black chickpeas by adding 2.5 cups of water for up to three whistles.
• Once the pressure is dropped, set aside the chickpeas and do not drain the water.
• Meanwhile, heat a pan or kadai and add oil.
• Once the oil is hot, add the bay leaf and cumin seeds.
• As the cumin seeds start to crackle, add the onion and ginger-garlic paste.
• Cook until the onion turns translucent.
• Then add the chopped tomatoes, red chili powder, salt and garam masala.
• Mix them and cover and cook for 5 minutes until the tomatoes are soft and mushy.
• Finally, add the cooked chickpeas with water and chopped cilantro.
• Let it simmer for 5 minutes, and that’s it.
• Serve it with warm with roti or puri.

Notes

• As I had cherry tomatoes, I went with them. You can use three to four medium-size tomatoes for this recipe.
• I missed adding turmeric powder. Given the benefits of hing and turmeric, I always add ¼ tsp of each, and you can use the same measure for this recipe too.
• Last but not least, adjust the spices and salt as per your preference.
• I served this roti hence I added more water. But if you are planning to serve this with puffed rice, you can reduce the water, by 1 cup.
• If you have soaked the chickpeas for 10 to 12 hours, then you can cook for 12 to 15 minutes or according to your texture preference. If time is pressing, then soak the beans atleast for 30 to 45 minutes and cook for 30 to 35 minutes. The cooking time varies depending upon the soak time, quality of the beans and your texture preference.  One batch of beans that I had, cooks in 15 minutes. Start with shorter cooking time and adjust if required.
• Adapted from Bihar & Jharkhand Website

Nutrition

Calories: 119kcal | Carbohydrates: 18g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 610mg | Potassium: 309mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 402IU | Vitamin C: 12mg | Calcium: 63mg | Iron: 2mg

I am not a nutritionist. The nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. It varies depending upon the product types or brands.

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