Kala Chana Salad | Protein Salad

Kala chana salad is a healthy and protein-rich salad recipe. This is an excellent meal option for those who are aiming to shed some extra kilos.

Kala Chana aka Black Chickpeas

Because of its dark color, Kala chana is also known as black chickpeas whereas some may refer to this as brown chickpeas.

These are a variety of chickpeas that are in dark brown color. Kala chana aka black chickpeas are protein-rich pulses that are popular in Indian cuisine. However, these are available globally in other countries as well. This is not only delicious but it's nutritious as well. It's a valuable source of protein for vegetarian and vegan diets.

Like other legumes, kala chana is a good source of protein, fiber, and various vitamins and minerals. It is particularly high in dietary fiber.

Health Benefits of Black Chickpeas

Chickpea is a good source of protein for vegans and vegetarians. This is rich in fiber also. It contains high antioxidants, iron, calcium, manganese, magnesium, and other essential nutrients. It has zero trans fat and hence good for health. This is a superfood with numerous health benefits.

A few benefits are listed below.

• It helps in weight loss
• Helps in Controlling Diabetes
• Helps in Maintaining Low Cholesterol & Keeps Heart Healthy
• Prevents Digestive Disorder
• Beneficial for pregnant & lactating women
• Prevents anemia and boosts energy levels.
• Rich in antioxidants, fights free radicals
• Excellent for healthy skin and promotes hair growth

Kala Chana - High Protein Salad

This is a yummy delicious salad that goes well with every meal. You can also have them as a healthy snacking option. Since these are high in protein and fiber, they will keep you full for longer. These are again low in calories and are oil-free.

Apart from being high high-protein salad, this salad is easy to make with fewer ingredients. For quicker ones, I soak them, cook them, and refrigerate them in the fridge for 3 - 4 days together. And then it takes only a few minutes to assemble with other ingredients.

Ingredients You'll Need

Black Chickpeas or Kala Chana: Soak the Kala chana or chickpeas overnight as these are hard and need proper soaking before you cook them. Then pressure cook for 7 - 8 whistles. You can also use the instant pot and cook for 20 - 30 minutes on high pressure or on beans in automatic mode.

If you don't have black chickpeas, you can always substitute them with regular white chickpeas, in a similar way.

Cucumber: Cucumber is a zero-fat low-calorie vegetable. This is high in fiber and has a lot of water content (96%). Thus it helps to keep us full for longer and helps in lose weight.

Tomato: Tomato is one of the superfoods and helps in losing weight. It reduces inflammation and water retention by the body. The presence of leptin, a type of protein, helps regulate metabolic rate and appetite. And helps in shedding extra pounds.

Red onion - Red onion brings a crunch in the salad.

Seasoning: Add some black salt/ rock salt and lemon juice. Garnish with chopped cilantro leaves. To make it spicy either add finely chopped chilies or a pinch of cayenne pepper (optional) and stir well. To make it a little tangy add a pinch of chaat masala to this.

How to make protein salad aka kala chana salad?

Prepare chickpeas

This is the main task of this recipe takes a long preparation time since pulses are hard and we need to soak and cook them first.

Step 1 - Wash the chickpeas 2 to 3 times before soaking them. Add enough water to the chickpeas and soak overnight or 6 - 8 hours.

Step 2 - Remove from water and transfer to the manual pressure cooker or into the instant pot basket depending on your cooking method. Add water and a tsp salt to this. Pressure cook till the chickpeas are cooked soft. In a manual pressure cooker it may take up to 7 - 8 whistles. In an instant pot, it takes 20 - 30 minutes on high pressure.

Step 3 - Remove from the pressure cooker and pass it through a colander to remove from the liquid. Now you can store them for 4 - 5 days in the refrigerator.

Step 4 - In a large mixing bowl, add 1 cup boiled chickpeas.

Step 5 - Chop the cucumber, tomatoes, red onions, green chili, and cilantro leaves into small pieces. Squeeze juice from 1 small-sized lemon.

Step 6 - Then add the chopped veggies to the bowl of chickpeas followed by lemon juice, salt, and chaat masala. Chaat masala is optional and you may skip it.

Step 7 - Toss to mix everything well. Add some more cilantro leaves and the high-protein kala chana salad is ready to serve.

Variation

To make this interesting, you can saute the chickpeas with spices before adding them to the veggies.

For this heat 2 tbsp oil in a pan. Add a pinch of cumin seeds and let them crackle. Then add a pinch of thing or asafoetida.

Add chopped onions, and 1 tsp ginger garlic paste, and saute till onion becomes translucent.

Then add chopped tomatoes and saute till it becomes soft.

Now add a pinch of salt (as required), coriander powder, cumin powder, red chili powder, and turmeric powder, and mix them well. Add 3 - 5 tbsp water and cook for a minute.

Then add the boiled chickpeas to the pan and mix everything. Cook for another 2 - 3 minutes till all liquid is soaked up. Turn off the heat and let it cool down to room temperature before adding other ingredients.

Then repeat the other steps similar to those mentioned above. You can store these sauteed chickpeas in an air-tight container for 4 - 5 days in the refrigerator.

How to store?

You can cook the chickpeas and store them in an air-tight container for 4 - 5 days. When required remove from refrigerator 1 - 2hrs before and let it come to room temperature. Then add the veggies, spices, and a sprinkle of freshly squeezed lemon juice and some freshly chopped cilantro leaves

Other Black Chickpeas Recipes:

1. Kala Chana Curry
2. Kala Chana falafel

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