Malai Chole Recipe (Creamy Chickpea Curry)
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If you love indulgent North Indian curries, this Malai Chole is about to become your new favorite. It’s rich, creamy, and mildly spiced, perfect for a comforting dinner or a special weekend meal. Unlike the robust Punjabi chole masala, this version uses mild spices and cream (malai) to create a luxurious texture that pairs beautifully with butter naan, jeera rice, poori, or tawa paratha.
Table of Contents
What Is Malai Chole?
I made my Dahi Chana Chaat recipe yesterday, and by mistake, I boiled twice as many chickpeas as needed. But some mistakes are good mistakes. I had ready-to-use chickpeas in the fridge.
I had just made Chana Pulao and Aloo Chole last week, so this time I wanted to try something new. This Malai Chole recipe has been sitting in my to-make folder for a long time. So gave it a try. It turned out so good that Mohit asked me to keep some for his next-day lunch. Sharing the recipe with you all.
Malai Chole is a creamy North Indian curry made using boiled chickpeas simmered in a rich onion-tomato gravy enriched with fresh cream. Think of the butter chicken gravy and Punjabi chole masala. This curry sits somewhere in between these two.
Ingredients
- Cooked Chickpeas – You can either soak and cook dried chickpeas in a pressure cooker or an Instant Pot, or use canned chickpeas. If using canned chickpeas, make sure to drain and rinse them.
- Oil – Use any cooking oil.
- Whole Spices – This curry is favored with cloves (laung) and cinnamon (dalcini).
- Fresh Ingredients – You will need red onions, tomatoes, and cilantro.
- Spice Powders – You will need some basic spice powders such as Kashmiri red chili powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, and garam masala. To make the curry even more flavorful, add a teaspoon of chana masala powder.
- Others – You will also need cashew nuts, ginger-garlic paste, dried red chilies, plain yogurt, salt, kasuri methi, heavy cream, and butter.
You can add some cubed paneer for extra richness.
How To Make Malai Chole
Step 1: Heat 2 tablespoon oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, add 2-3 cloves and 1 inch of cinnamon and sauté for 2-3 seconds.
Step 2: Add 1 cup of chopped red onions, ½ cup of chopped tomatoes, 1 tablespoon of ginger-garlic paste, 2 tablespoon of cashews, and 2-3 dried red chilies, and cook for 5 minutes, stirring a few times.
Step 3: Remove the pan from the heat and let the mixture cool down for 10 minutes. Transfer the onion-tomato mixture to a blender along with ½ cup of water.
Step 4: Blend until smooth.
Step 5: Heat 2 tablespoon oil in the same pan over medium heat. Add 1 teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder and saute for 2-3 seconds.
Step 6: Add the onion and tomato paste to the pan. Stir in ½ cup yogurt, ½ teaspoon turmeric powder, 1 teaspoon coriander powder, ½ teaspoon garam masala, and 1 teaspoon salt.
You can also add a tablespoon of chana masala powder at this stage for an even more flavorful curry.
Step 7: Cover the pan and cook for 8-10 minutes until the oil starts to separate on the sides of the pan. Stir a few times when cooking.
Step 8: Mix in 2 cups of boiled chickpeas and ½ cup of water. Cover and cook for 10–15 minutes.
Mash a few chickpeas with the back of the ladle. It naturally thickens gravy.
Step 9: Add 1 tablespoon of Kasuri methi, ½ cup of heavy cream, and 1 tablespoon of butter. Simmer gently for 5 minutes. Add some hot water if the curry is too thick for your liking. Check for salt and add more if needed.
Do not boil aggressively after adding cream; this keeps the texture silky.
Step 10: Serve hot.
Malai Chole FAQs
Absolutely. Replace the heavy cream with thick, full-fat coconut cream and use oil instead of butter. The flavor will be slightly different but still delicious.
Leftover Malai Chole can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. The flavors deepen overnight, making day-two leftovers especially delicious.
Reheat gently in a pan on the stovetop over low heat, adding a splash of water if the curry has thickened. Avoid boiling vigorously when reheating so the cream does not separate.
You can also freeze Malai Chole for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, reheat on the stovetop, and add a tablespoon of fresh cream just before serving to revive the richness.
Serving Suggestions
Malai Chole is best served piping hot. It pairs beautifully with Butter Naan, Poori, Bhatura, Lachha Paratha, or Plain Tawa Paratha.
You can also serve it with Jeera Rice or Steamed Basmati Rice.
Top with a swirl of fresh cream, a sprinkle of kasuri methi, ginger juliennes, and fresh coriander before serving for that restaurant-style finish.
Other North Indian Vegetarian Curry Recipes We Recommend
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Malai Chole Recipe (Creamy Chickpea Curry)
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons oil (divided)
- 2-3 cloves (laung)
- 1 inch cinnamon
- 1 cup chopped red onions
- ½ cup chopped tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon ginger-garlic paste
- 2 tablespoons cashews
- 2-3 dried red chilies
- 1 teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder
- ½ cup plain yogurt (dahi, curd)
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder
- ½ teaspoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups boiled chickpeas
- 1 tablespoon Kasuri methi
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon butter
Instructions
- Heat 2 tablespoon oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, add cloves and cinnamon and sauté for 2-3 seconds.
- Add onions, tomatoes, ginger-garlic paste, cashews, and dried red chilies, and cook for 5 minutes, stirring a few times.
- Remove the pan from the heat and let the mixture cool down for 10 minutes. Transfer the onion-tomato mixture to a blender along with ½ cup of water.
- Blend until smooth.
- Heat 2 tablespoon oil in the same pan over medium heat. Add Kashmiri red chili powder and saute for 2-3 seconds.
- Add the onion and tomato paste to the pan. Stir in yogurt, turmeric powder, coriander powder, garam masala, and salt.
- Cover the pan and cook for 8-10 minutes until the oil starts to separate on the sides of the pan. Stir a few times when cooking.
- Mix in the boiled chickpeas and ½ cup of water. Cover and cook for 10–15 minutes.
- Add Kasuri methi, heavy cream, and butter. Simmer gently for 5 minutes. Add some hot water if the curry is too thick for your liking. Check for salt and add more if needed.
- Serve hot.