Sundal is a stir-fried dish made with different types of lentils, legumes even grains from the cuisine of Tamil Nadu. This Channa Sundal has white chickpeas, spices and a good dose of freshly grated coconut. This dish is vegan and quite healthy too.

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 5 minutes
  • Cook time: 30 minutes
  • Total time: 35 minutes
  • Yield: 4
  • Category: Side Dish, Snacks
  • Cuisine: South Indian, Tamil Nadu

Ingredients

  • 1 cup dried white chickpeas ((chole or safed chana))
  • 3 to 4 cups water (- for pressure cooking)
  • 2 tablespoons oil
  • 1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
  • 1 teaspoon urad dal ((spilt skinned black gram))
  • 1 pinch asafoetida ((hing))
  • 2 dry red chilies (- broken and seeds removed, can swap with 1 to 2 green chillies, chopped)
  • 10 to 12 curry leaves
  • 2 to 3 tablespoons fresh grated coconut
  • salt (as required)

Method

Preparation

  1. Rinse and soak the chickpeas overnight in enough water.
  2. Drain the water from the soaked chickpeas and rinse a few times. Pressure cook the soaked chickpeas with 1 teaspoon salt and 3 to 4 cups water till they are tender and softened. You can cook chickpeas in a stovetop pressure cooker or in an Instant Pot. For cooking in a stovetop pressure cooker, cook chickpeas for about 12 to 15 minutes on medium heat or more if needed until the chickpeas are tender and soft.
  3. Drain all the water from the cooked chickpeas and set them aside.

Making channa sundal

  1. Heat oil in a pan. add the mustard seeds and urad dal. Heat on a low flame stirring often.
  2. The mustard seeds will crackle and the urad dal will get browned.
  3. They almost take the same time to cook on a low heat.
  4. Immediately, add the curry leaves, red chilies and asafoetida. Fry for 10 to 15 seconds or until the curry leaves look crisp and the red chillies change color.
  5. Now add the cooked chickpeas and salt. Stir and saute for 3 to 4 minutes on a low to medium heat.
  6. Switch off the heat and add the coconut. Stir to combine well.
  7. Serve the Channa Sundal as prashad or naivedyam to the deities.

Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note

Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.