Serves: 4
Total Calories: 253

1 large lentils nugget (badiyan)
3 tablespoons peanut oil
1 cup finely chopped onion
1 tablespoon peeled minced fresh ginger
1 to 3 green green chili pepper, such as serrano, minced with seeds
1 cup finely chopped tomato
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/4 teaspoon , hot red pepper flake, , or to taste
2 cups , shelled fresh green garbanzo beans
1 large potato, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 cup nonfat plain yogurt, whisked until smooth
2 to 3 cups water
Chopped cilantro and garam masala

1. With a rolling pin or the back of a small saucepan, break the lentil nugget into half-inch pieces. (The nugget is very soft and easy to break if it breaks into smaller pieces, that's fine.) Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons oil in a medium nonstick saucepan over medium heat and fry the nugget pieces in 2 to 3 batches, frying similar-size pieces at one time and removing them as they brown, which happens very quickly.

2. To the same pan, add remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons oil and the onion, and cook, stirring, until golden, about 5 minutes. Add the ginger and green chili peppers and cook, stirring, another 2 minutes. Then mix in the tomatoes and cook, stirring, until all the juices evaporate, about 5 minutes.

3. Add the coriander, ground cumin, turmeric, land red pepper flakes, stir briefly, then add the green chickpeas and the fried nuggets. Cook, stirring, over medium heat about 5 minutes to roast them. Add the yogurt a little at a time, stirring constantly to prevent it from curdling, until absorbed. Add the water and bring to boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the pan and cook until the chickpeas are tender, about 30 minutes. Transfer to a serving dish, garnish with cilantro and garam masala, and serve.

VARIATION: This dish can also be made with shelled frozen fresh soybeans, available in Asian and health-food markets. (Green chickpeas and frozen soybeans cook in the same amount of time.)

From "1,000 Indian Recipes." Copyright 2002 by Neelam Batra. Used with permission of the publisher, Wiley Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Nutritional Facts:

Serves: 4
Total Calories: 253
Calories from Fat: 105

More Recipes from the 1000 Indian Recipes Cookbook:
* Dried Beans, Lentils, and Peas
Basic South Indian Soupy Split Pigeon Peas
Black Beans in Traditional Curry Sauce
Black Chickpeas with Chickpea Masala
Black Chickpeas with Sizzlilng Ginger and Cumin Seeds
Black Urad Beans in a Slow Cooker
Black-Eyed Peas in Yogurt Curry
Canister Chickpeas (or Dried Yellow Peas)
Chickpeas in Traditional Curry Sauce
Chickpeas with Ginger, Garlic, and Chaat Masala
Chickpeas with Spinach and Potato Wedges
Chutney Chickpeas with Tamarind
Classic Kidney Bean Curry with Onions
Classic No-Onion Kidney Bean Curry
Crispy Split Pigeon Pea Cake
Curried Black-Eyed Peas
Dry-Cooked Green Split Peas
Dry-Cooked Red Lentils with Cumin Seeds
Falguni's Gujarati Split Pigeon Peas
Fresh Green Chickpeas with Lentil Nuggets
Garlicky Dried Green Peas Curry
Garlicky Yellow Mung Beans with Zucchini Wheels
Green Lentils with Sautéed Onion
Gujarati Green Mung Beans with Green Masala Paste
Hazram's Soupy Pigeon Peas
Kashmiri Fennel-Flavored Black Urad Beans with Yogurt
Kashmiri Small Red Beans
Madras-Style Pigeon Peas with Vegetables
Mustard-Roasted Adzuki Beans
Parsi Mixed Lentils, Beans, and Vegatables
Pickle-Flavored Chickpeas
Punjabi Black Urad Beans
Punjabi Dry-Cooked Yellow Mung Beans
Punjabi Green Mung Beans with Sizzling Ginger
Punjabi Red Beans with Mango Pickle Masala
Punjabi-Style Split Pigeon Peas
Rajasthani Mixed 5 Beans and Lentils
Red Lentils with Bengali 5-Spices
Roasted Green Lentils with Tomatoes
Roasted Yellow Mung Beans and Potatoes
Sindhi Dry-Cooked Yellow Mung Beans
Small White Beans with Indian Spices
Smoked Black Urad Beans
Soupy Split Pigeon Peas with Jaggery
Spicy Adzuki Beans
Spicy Chickpeas with Pomegranate Seeds
Spicy Dried Yellow Peas
Spicy Dry-Cooked Split Green Mung Beans
Spicy Mixed 5 Beans and Lentils
Spicy Soybeans in Yogurt Sauce
Spicy Split Black Urad Beans with Split Chickpeas
Spit Pigeon Peas with Coconut and Vegetables
Split Urad Beans and Yellow Split Chickpeas with Spinach
Stir-Fried Black Urad Beans
White Urad Beans with Fresh Lemon Juice
White Urad Beans with Roasted Fenugreek Leaves
Yellow Mung Beans with Fresh Curry Leaves
Yellow Mung Beans with Sautéed Onion and Ginger
Yellow Split Chickpeas with Spinach
Yellow Split Chikpeas with Opo Squash