Kabuli chana salad
Preparation Time
10 minutes
Cooking Time
35 minutes
Difficulty Level
easy
Meal Type
Evening Snack
Serves 4
Key Ingredients
- Kabuli chana (white chickpeas)
About This Recipe
This salad is built around boiled kabuli chana rather than a pile of chopped vegetables: the chana is the bulk of the bowl, and the onion, tomato and cucumber are there for crunch and freshness. The recipe counts 200 g (1 cup) of dry chana, which boils up to about two and a half cups, enough for four good bowls.
The chana is boiled plain in water, so the dressing has to do all the seasoning: lemon juice, groundnut oil, cumin powder and pepper, whisked while the chana cools so the flavours soak in. The cumin powder is the main note, so use freshly ground cumin if you have it.
For a yogurt version, leave out the oil and fold in half a cup of plain curd with the dressing just before serving; the salad turns creamy and tarter. The curd version suits hot days and picnic boxes, and it uses the same boiled chana. Serve it cold or at room temperature.
Ingredient List
Serving Size:
1x
2x
3x
Salad
- Kabuli chana (white chickpeas) — 1 cup
- Water for soaking and boiling — 6 cups
- Small onion, finely chopped — 1 piece
- Tomato, deseeded and chopped — 1 piece
- Cucumber, deseeded and chopped — 1 piece
- Green chilli, finely chopped — 1 piece
- Fresh coriander leaves, chopped — 2 tbsp
Dressing
- Lemon juice — 2 tbsp
- Groundnut oil — 1 tbsp
- Cumin Powder — 1/2 tsp
- Black pepper, crushed — 1/4 tsp
- Salt — 1/2 tsp
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Serving Suggestions
Serve cold or at room temperature as a light lunch with a toasted slice of bread, or as a side to dinner. Leftover salad keeps up to two days in the fridge; toss it once before serving. The same boiled chana makes the kabuli chana khichdi, and more ideas are in the kabuli chana recipes roundup.
Tips for Cooking Kabuli chana salad
Do not stir hard when you toss; a light hand keeps the chickpeas whole. Dress the salad once the chana has cooled, then let it rest before tasting. Taste for salt and lemon at the end, when the flavours have settled.
Chef’s Note
The salad is ready when the chana glistens with dressing and the vegetables still look crisp; only refrigerate it once it has cooled. A bowl comes to about 222 kcal, with 10.2 g protein and 6.1 g fibre, nearly all of it from the chana.
Per serving (approx.): 222 kcal, protein 10 g, carbs 32 g, fat 6.8 g, fibre 6.1 g. Computed from IFCT 2017 / USDA values for the listed quantities. Measures: 1 cup = 240 ml, 1 tbsp = 15 ml, 1 tsp = 5 ml.
Happy Cooking
!!
ByCOWBERRY
Jul 30, 2026
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