[Instant Pot] Vegan Chickpea Masala -- NOT QUICK | 2 hours of Time Investment
First, let me say that this recipe is not a quick way to put dinner on the table, but in terms of actual time you have to do any actual thing, it will only involve your human labor for about 15 minutes. Meets my patient-yet-lazy standards!
This is a great recipe if you like paneer makhani, which I do. It is one of my comfort foods. I wanted to recreate the emotional experience I have eating that dish, but with shelf-stable ingredients I am likely to have at home so as to throw together a meal whenever the need for comfort strikes. And if you are like me, when you need comfort, a trip to the store is not what's on the menu.
Shopping List/Ingredients
1 package -or- 2 cups dried chickpeas [substitute paneer and skip step 1]
1 packet of butter chicken mixed spices [substitute this home made spice mix]
15 oz can tomato sauce
1 onion, diced [substitute 1 TBSP dehydrated onion flakes]
1 green bell pepper, diced [substitute dried parsley to garnish]
1/3 cup + 2 TBSP vegetable oil [substitute ghee or butter]
2/3 cup plant-based "milk"
7 cups water: 5 1/2 cups, 1 cup, and 1/2 cup
First Things First: Faux-soak the Dried Chickpeas
Put your dried chickpeas (2 cups) and first aliquot of water (6 c) into the inner pan of your Instant Pot. Secure the lid and make sure you've set the valve to seal. Set it to cook at pressure for 2 minutes, then allow it to naturally depressurize. DO NOT USE QUICK RELEASE! Chickpeas get frothy. Pot vents get plugged. Owners get sad.
Open your Instant Pot and dump your faux-soaked chickpeas into a colander in your sink. If you want to get /r/NoScrapLeftBehind, retain the cooking liquid and save it as vegetable stock for future cooking.
Second Things Second: The Fats
Put the inner pot back into your Instant Pot and press the SAUTE button. Add your oil (2 tbsp) and wait until the pot says "HOT". Meanwhile, peel and dice your onion (1).
When the pot reports "HOT", add your onion, and set a timer for 7 minutes. Stir the onion for the full 7 minutes.
At the end of 7 minutes, press CANCEL.
Using the residual heat to toast them, add the butter chicken mixed spices (1 packet) to the contents of the Instant Pot. Stir. Let the spices toast on the heat for 1 minute. Now stop the cooking by adding the next portion of the water (1 cup).
Third Things Third: The Chickpeas Return
Dump in your chickpeas (2 c, quick soaked) and then the tomato sauce (15 oz) on top. Use the remaining water (1/2 cup) to rinse out the tomato sauce can to get every last drop and add to the Instant Pot. Don't stir. Tomato products need to stay on the top of the pot to prevent the dreaded "burn" warning.
Put the lid on the pot and set the vent to seal. Set the manual pressure time to 35 minutes, and then allow it to naturally depressurize.
While this is going, combine the remaining vegetable oil (1/3 cup) and the plant-based "milk" (2/3 cup) in a bowl and whisk together thoroughly. You have now created a pantry-staple substitute for heavy cream, and a vegan one at that. If you are substituting ghee or butter, you'll want to melt it before whisking the two together.
Fourth Things Fourth: The Stuff That Doesn't Get Cooked
When the pin has dropped on the Instant Pot and thus indicated that the pressure has naturally released, open the lid and add the substitute for heavy cream (1 cup, created above) and stir it in to the hot mess of food inside.
Fifth Things Fifth: The Eating
Spoon out into a bowl and garnish with bell pepper (1, diced). Also recommend serving it over cooked basmati rice, or any other rice for that matter. Chickpeas and rice make a complete protein. Serve with Laccha Pyaaz if you are feeling fancy.
If it should happen that your spice mix came out too spicy and is burning your tongue -- which I find is absolutely a possibility when using a spice packet -- then there is a way to fix the meal in the now even as avoiding that brand's packet will be the fix for the future: sugar; add it to taste.
Techniques To Make It Easier
How to Dice an Onion -- This is the technique I use to dice onions. I can confirm absolutely no crying with an appropriately sharp knife. Look at the video comments for an even more efficient way to master this technique.
How to Butcher a Bell Pepper -- Again, this is the technique I use to dice bell peppers. I discovered it independently and then am being lazy and linking to someone else's labor videoing and explaining it.
Time is valuable and having these techniques will save you time.
.
.
Inspired by: This vegan butter chickpeas recipe which wasn't lazy enough for me so I lazified it with the spice packet. I also hurried it up by finding a quicker faux-soak technique. And as a final bonus, I pulled in option number one from this website of heavy cream substitutions, as I never, ever have heavy cream to hand.
This is a great recipe if you like paneer makhani, which I do. It is one of my comfort foods. I wanted to recreate the emotional experience I have eating that dish, but with shelf-stable ingredients I am likely to have at home so as to throw together a meal whenever the need for comfort strikes. And if you are like me, when you need comfort, a trip to the store is not what's on the menu.
Shopping List/Ingredients
1 package -or- 2 cups dried chickpeas [substitute paneer and skip step 1]
1 packet of butter chicken mixed spices [substitute this home made spice mix]
15 oz can tomato sauce
1 onion, diced [substitute 1 TBSP dehydrated onion flakes]
1 green bell pepper, diced [substitute dried parsley to garnish]
1/3 cup + 2 TBSP vegetable oil [substitute ghee or butter]
2/3 cup plant-based "milk"
7 cups water: 5 1/2 cups, 1 cup, and 1/2 cup
First Things First: Faux-soak the Dried Chickpeas
Put your dried chickpeas (2 cups) and first aliquot of water (6 c) into the inner pan of your Instant Pot. Secure the lid and make sure you've set the valve to seal. Set it to cook at pressure for 2 minutes, then allow it to naturally depressurize. DO NOT USE QUICK RELEASE! Chickpeas get frothy. Pot vents get plugged. Owners get sad.
Open your Instant Pot and dump your faux-soaked chickpeas into a colander in your sink. If you want to get /r/NoScrapLeftBehind, retain the cooking liquid and save it as vegetable stock for future cooking.
Second Things Second: The Fats
Put the inner pot back into your Instant Pot and press the SAUTE button. Add your oil (2 tbsp) and wait until the pot says "HOT". Meanwhile, peel and dice your onion (1).
When the pot reports "HOT", add your onion, and set a timer for 7 minutes. Stir the onion for the full 7 minutes.
At the end of 7 minutes, press CANCEL.
Using the residual heat to toast them, add the butter chicken mixed spices (1 packet) to the contents of the Instant Pot. Stir. Let the spices toast on the heat for 1 minute. Now stop the cooking by adding the next portion of the water (1 cup).
Third Things Third: The Chickpeas Return
Dump in your chickpeas (2 c, quick soaked) and then the tomato sauce (15 oz) on top. Use the remaining water (1/2 cup) to rinse out the tomato sauce can to get every last drop and add to the Instant Pot. Don't stir. Tomato products need to stay on the top of the pot to prevent the dreaded "burn" warning.
Put the lid on the pot and set the vent to seal. Set the manual pressure time to 35 minutes, and then allow it to naturally depressurize.
While this is going, combine the remaining vegetable oil (1/3 cup) and the plant-based "milk" (2/3 cup) in a bowl and whisk together thoroughly. You have now created a pantry-staple substitute for heavy cream, and a vegan one at that. If you are substituting ghee or butter, you'll want to melt it before whisking the two together.
Fourth Things Fourth: The Stuff That Doesn't Get Cooked
When the pin has dropped on the Instant Pot and thus indicated that the pressure has naturally released, open the lid and add the substitute for heavy cream (1 cup, created above) and stir it in to the hot mess of food inside.
Fifth Things Fifth: The Eating
Spoon out into a bowl and garnish with bell pepper (1, diced). Also recommend serving it over cooked basmati rice, or any other rice for that matter. Chickpeas and rice make a complete protein. Serve with Laccha Pyaaz if you are feeling fancy.
If it should happen that your spice mix came out too spicy and is burning your tongue -- which I find is absolutely a possibility when using a spice packet -- then there is a way to fix the meal in the now even as avoiding that brand's packet will be the fix for the future: sugar; add it to taste.
Techniques To Make It Easier
How to Dice an Onion -- This is the technique I use to dice onions. I can confirm absolutely no crying with an appropriately sharp knife. Look at the video comments for an even more efficient way to master this technique.
How to Butcher a Bell Pepper -- Again, this is the technique I use to dice bell peppers. I discovered it independently and then am being lazy and linking to someone else's labor videoing and explaining it.
Time is valuable and having these techniques will save you time.
.
.
Inspired by: This vegan butter chickpeas recipe which wasn't lazy enough for me so I lazified it with the spice packet. I also hurried it up by finding a quicker faux-soak technique. And as a final bonus, I pulled in option number one from this website of heavy cream substitutions, as I never, ever have heavy cream to hand.