CHICK PEAS IN GREEN GRAVY

INGREDIENTS:-----
Chick peas ---- 1 cup
Palak ----- 1 bundle or frozen 1/2 pack
Coriander leaves --- 1/2 cup
Mint leaves --- 1/4 cup
Ginger ---- 1 inch piece chopped
Garlic --- 5 cloves finely chopped (don't use store brought ginger garlic paste freshly chopped will give a better taste and aroma)
Onion --- 1 big very finely chopped or grated
green chilies --- 4 chopped
Cumin seeds -- 1 tea
Tamarind pulp ---- 1/2 tea sp (or youcan use 1/2 cup thin tamarind extract soak 1 inch piece of tamarind in hot water and extraxt juice with 1/2 cup water)
Oil ---- 1 tab sp (or you can use butter also 1 tab sp)
Salt to taste
Turmeric powder --- 1/2 tea sp
Red chili powder --- 1/2 tea sp
Garam masala --- 1/4 tea sp (optional)
METHOD:------
Soak chick peas in water for over night and cook in a pressure cooker for 3-4 whistles with little salt and keep a side.
Clean palak, coriander and mint leaves drine well and take them in to a bowl and add boiling water to the leaves cover with a lid and leave for 5 min (no need to put this on the flame boiling water heat is enough to blanch the leaves)just pour water to fill the leaves
And after 5 min. drine water in to other bowl and keep this water a side you can use this water in the same gravy or any other gravy s also so don't through.
Now grind the leaves in to a smooth paste with a little water if need and keep a side.
Now heat oil or butter in a pan add cumin seeds(here if you like can add clove,cinamon.cardamom for tadka adding garam masala powder will give a strong taste if you add whole garam masala will give only aroma so as you like)
Now add chopped onion and green chilies and fry till onion become soft then add chopped ginger and garlic and stir for few sec. then add ground paste,tamarind juice,turmeric, red chili powder, salt to taste add one by one and stir continuously
Then add cooked chick peas mix well and let it cook for 10 -15 min. Now you can see the oil comming out from the sides now add garam masala on top (If you like i did'nt add )and add 1 tea sp of butter on top this is optional this will give a good aroma and taste to the curry.
This curry will be a great choice for naan and roti too(i tried with rice also but i dont like that much)
Enjoy your meal.

This is my one more entry for valli s Legume- love- affair started by Susan

And also one more entry for JFI- CHICK PEAS at Ms sometime foodie started by Indira of Mahanandi