Kothamalli Channa Curry recipe with step by step photos. A delicious and lip smacking side dish to serve with rotis, phulkas or pooris. This recipe is completely vegan, aromatic and flavorful and your guests will keep asking for more, if you serve them this awesome tasting curry.
This is one recipe that was adapted to suit our vegetarian palate. I happened to see a chef making this curry in a T.V. show and was really hooked to it. He made it with chicken and called it kothimeera kodi vepudu.
It seemed so easy and I passed this recipe on to my friend J, as she eats chicken. One Sunday when I dropped by her home, her housekeeper was making this curry and I was totally hooked to the aroma that wafted from the kitchen.
They all raved about it so much and told me that it had become one of their hot favorites and a sunday staple to be served for lunch with biryani and phulkas. And I had to make it immediately too.
I made it on the same day using boiled channa that was sitting in the fridge and served it with phulkas for dinner and the aroma while this was cooking had us all salivating.
Our Favorite Video:
Kothamalli Channa Curry recipe with stepwise photos:
1. Clean and wash coriander leaves, chop roughly and set aside.
2. Blanch tomatoes, puree it and set aside.
3. Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a pan. Add onion, ginger, garlic and sautΓ© till the onions turn pink. Add clove, cardamom and cinnamon and sautΓ© for a minute.
4. Switch off stove and immediately add red chilli powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, cumin powder and roast in the pan heat itself. Set aside to cool.
5. Once cool, transfer to a mixie jar. Add chopped coriander leaves.
6. Grind to a fine paste adding very little water.
7. Heat the remaining oil in the same pan. Add ground paste and sautΓ© over a low flame till the raw smell disappears.
The paste should cook well and will come together in a ball.
8. Add tomato puree, mix well and close with a lid. Let it cook for 5 mins over low flame.
9. Add kabuli channa, channa masala or garam masala powder, salt, 1/4 to 1/2 cup water, mix well and close with a lid.
10. Cook over low flame till all the flavors merge well and the for the curry to thicken a little bit. This should take another 5 to 7 mins. Take off stove.
11. Kothamalli channa curry is ready to be served hot with rotis, phulkas or pooris.
While the recipe may look more like the regular chana masala, its more flavorful and aromatic comaparatively. Feel free to adapt it your taste buds by using any vegetable of your choice.
Kothamalli Channa Curry recipe details below:

Kothamalli Channa Curry
Ingredients
- Kabuli Channa or White chick peas - 1 cup boiled
- Kothamalli / Coriander leaves - 1 bunch
- Onion - 2
- Ginger - 1 inch piece
- Garlic - 4 pods
- Tomato - 4
- Cinnamon - 1 inch stick
- Cardamom - 2
- Cloves - 2
- Red chili powder - 1 tsp
- Coriander powder - 2 tsp
- Cumin powder - 1/2 tsp
- Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
- Chana masala powder or Garam masala powder - 1 tsp
- Salt - to taste
- Oil - 4 tbsp
Instructions
Preparation:
- If using channa that has been refrigerated, let it thaw for 15 to 20 mins.
- Clean and wash coriander leaves, chop roughly and set aside.
- Chop onions into juliennes. Blanch tomatoes, puree it and set aside.
How to make Kothamalli Channa Curry:
- Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a pan. Add onion, ginger, garlic and sautΓ© till the onions turn pink.
- Add clove, cardamom and cinnamon and sautΓ© for a minute.
- Switch off stove and immediately add red chilli powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, cumin powder and roast in the pan heat itself. Set aside to cool.
- Once cool, transfer to a mixie jar. Add chopped coriander leaves and grind to a fine paste adding very little water.
- Heat the remaining oil in the same pan. Add ground paste and sautΓ© over a low flame till the raw smell disappears.
- The paste should cook well and will come together in a ball.
- Add tomato puree, mix well and close with a lid. Let it cook for 5 mins over low flame.
- Add kabuli channa, channa masala or garam masala powder, salt, 1/4 to 1/2 cup water, mix well and close with a lid.
- Cook over low flame till all the flavors merge well and the for the curry to thicken a little bit.
- This should take another 5 to 7 mins. Take off stove.
- Kothamalli channa curry is ready to be served hot with rotis, phulkas or pooris.

looks delicious ..love the flavour of coriander leaves..I am sure ur family loved it π
That was so quick. Thank you Sushma.
Delicious, yummy and innovative recipe. Thanks for sharing.
looks yummy!
Hey this is something new n interesting recipe dear…like your creativity…looks so inviting n tempting too…thanx for sharing!!! Bookmarked !!!
what a great idea! seems yummy!
really interesting…recipe…
Looks gorgeous and I can smell the aroma here
these days i get to see only cartoon channels π not even news updates… this coriander based curry with chana sounds very delicious
Deepa
Hamaree Rasoi
u make me hungry saw the chana curry looks tempting
Lovely flavors in it….love chickpeas n coriander n this combo shud be nice..:)
Delicious curry,yummy with coriander flavor…
Oh Yum! This looks great. Very nice recipe & beautiful pics!
Delicious channa masala,love the flavors combined.
Beautiful presentation, irresistible and delicious curry…
wow!great flavors for sure, looks too good radhika,..
Nice flavorful and aromatic curry… Yum…
Wow flavourful curry…addition of coriander sounds intersting
Very flavorful, deliciuos. Beautiful presentation.
Lovely combo of channa and coriander. So flavorful and yummy π
Sounds flavorful, beautiful presentation.
I love the twist in the gravy. Wonderfully presented, great pic π
Delicious curry with full of flavors…
Sounds so aromatic Radhika.
Looks absolutely delicious. Loved the addition of Kothamalli
South Indian Home
delicious one.. Thats should be perfect with chapathi..
Super curry.
Curry is indeed bursting with flavors.Loved it.
Kothamalli channa curry looks awesome delicious, i am in search of new curries for rotis.
new to me !! wonderful curry and well presented !!
Green channa curry looks excellent,simply delicious..
New recipe .. love the pictures .. yum
Vardhini
VardhinisKitchen
my mom makes this one and we love to relish this with veg biryani. Yours reminded me of that. U made it so well and flavourful too
Very flavourful curry,..Perfect for roti’s..Neat presentation
Hi Radhika
This curry looks delicious.
Thanks for visiting my space and leaving a comment.
Glad to visit your space and follow you too.
Hi Radhika
This curry looks delicious.
Thanks for visiting my space.
Glad to visit and follow you..
nice recipe..looks delicious n yummy..masala looks very colorful π
Thanx for visiting my blog.. you have a wonderful space too..yummmmy recipes..adding you to my blogroll π
hmm I like the idea of flavoring the channa with Cilantro/Kothamalli.. yumm π
yum, yum, super swell- will give it a try
The gravy looks mouthwatering!!!
Prathima Rao
Prats Corner