Black Chana Soup/ Kala Chana Shorba

I long for hot and flavorsome soups on cold nights or when it pours. A bowl of aromatic hot soup not only soothes u but also boosts your immunity,  protecting you from fungal and bacterial infections. If ginger, garlic, and whole spices are added to them, they keep us away from a cough and colds which trouble us in the change of season

Soups can be prepared with almost all the veggies, meats, or legumes. Today, I am sharing one such healthy soup or shorba which I have prepared with black chana or chickpeas. Black chana is cooked, quite often in our kitchens and its stock which is left after boiling is very healthy. I always remember my childhood days when my mother used to boil chana and give us kids the stock, saying it is as healthy as meat stock and good for your bones. So as I do now, the leftover stock, tempered with some aromatics and served with slices of bread or chana rice or chana biryani is one of the healthiest soups

Preparation time – 6 hours or overnight

Cooking time – 25 minutes

Type – soup/appetizer

Cuisine – Indian

soaked black/ kala  chana – 1 cup

Water – 6 cups

Salt – 1 tap or to taste

The whole spice like a few cinnamon sticks,  star anise, and cumin seeds

Butter – 2 tsp

Finely Chopped ginger and garlic – 1 tsp each

1- Add chana or black chana, water, and salt to pressure cooker and boil for 15 minutes or 8-9 whistles at high flame

2- Let the cooker cool down completely and open the lid

3- Separate boiled chana from the stock with the help of a colander. This chana can be used to make Chana Chaat Or Chana Biryani. Now prepare for the tempering of chana soup

4- Heat butter at low flame in a pan add chopped garlic and ginger

5- Stir them to avoid burning

6- Add whole spices and stir for a few seconds. Time to add chopped tomatoes

7- Cook tomatoes well by mashing with the back of the ladle until the masala leaves the pan

8- Pour this flavorsome aromatic  tadka or tempering over the chana stock

Serve this aromatic, healthy kala chana shorba or Kala Chana soup with slices of bread or chana biryani.