Chana Bateta

This Chana Bateta - or chickpeas and potato curry, is a classic dish. It is simple to make, and very tasty! It may look like a long list of ingredients, but the majority of these are the basic spices you would find in a traditional Gujarati spice tin. Other than that, all you really need is a tin of chickpeas and a couple of potatoes. You can add/reduce spice to suit your taste. I served with vegan  homemade naan which only requires 2 ingredients! You can find that the recipe here.

Recipe (Serves 4):

​2 tbsp vegetable oil
3/4 tsp rye (mustard seeds)
1 tsp jeeru (cumin seeds)
3 curry leaves (optional)
1 small stick cinammon
2 cloves
1 small onion, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, finely diced
​1 tsp ginger paste
2 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped into 1" cubes
1/2 tsp hardar (ground turmeric)
1 heaped tsp dhana jeeru (ground corriander and cumin powder)
Pinch of cayenne pepper (or more to taste, or fresh green chilli's finely chopped)
1 tsp salt (to taste)
1 tsp sugar
1 tin chickpeas, drained (save the aquafaba!)
1 cup chopped (tinned) tomatoes
1/2 tsp garam masala
1 tbsp lemon juice

​Method:

1. Heat the oil in a medium sized pan on a medium heat
   Add the rye and wait for it to pop (hold a lid over so that it doesn't splutter out!)
   Add the jeeru, curry leaves, cinammon and cloves, Stir for about 10 seconds
2. Add the onion, garlic, ginger paste and stir for about 1 minute until the aroma is released and the onions start to brown
3. Add the potatoes followed by all of the spices EXCEPT for the garam masala, and stir
4. Add half a cup of water (preferrably hot), stir, cover with lid and simmer on a medium heat for 7 minutes
5. Add the chickpeas, tomatoes, garam masala and a further half cup of water
   Stir and simmer on a medium heat for 10 minutes
6. Take 3 pieces of potato and mash them on your spoon. Stir back into the curry - this will help create a thicker texture for the sauce
7. Add the lemon, mix and simmer on a low heat for 5 minutes, with the lid on
8. Garnish with fresh corriander (if you have any!) and serve with naan or chappati's.

Tips:

• ​I like a thicker sauce, so I mash a few of the potatoes and stir them back into the curry before the final simmering. If you prefer a more runny sauce then leave this step out!
• Chana Bateta tastes better if it is left for a while before eating. This allows the chickpeas and potatoes to absorb the flavours and really enhances the taste. If you can, then make the dish earlier and heat through again before serving. I usually make it in the morning and then reheat for dinner. It tastes even better the following day!
• The onion and garlic are not essentials in this dish so feel free to leave them out. If you are not a fan of chunks of tomato then you can blitz the tomatoes prior to adding, to create a smoother sauce.
• If you are a fan of spicier food then fresh green chillies are the best option. You can either finely chop, or blitz for a more fiery flavour. Add these at the same time as the onion/garlic/ginger.

Enjoy! If you have tried this recipe then please feel free to comment below and let me know how it went. If you have any questions then please ask and I'll do my best to answer!

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