Name: Chana masala with spinach
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 4 portions
Ingredients: 2 tbsp olive oil; 1 onion, chopped; 1 jalapeño, seeded and minced; 1/2 tsp fine salt; 5 garlic cloves, minced; 1 tbsp minced ginger; 1 1/2 tsp garam masala; 1 1/2 tsp ground coriander; 3/4 tsp cumin; 1/2 tsp turmeric; 1 can (28 oz) fire-roasted crushed tomatoes; 2 cans (15 oz each) chickpeas, drained and rinsed; 3 cups baby spinach; 1 lemon, cut into wedges; 2 tbsp chopped cilantro

Chana masala with spinach

Spinach wilts into the chickpea-and-tomato sauce just before serving.

Published October 2, 2026 · Updated October 16, 2026

4 portions · Estimated 45 minutes

Ingredients & method

Before you start: Prepare: 20 minutes · Sauté and simmer: 25 minutes

Equipment: Large saucepan

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Method

Chop the onion, seed and mince the jalapeño, and prepare the minced garlic and ginger. Drain and rinse both cans of chickpeas, cut the lemon into wedges and chop the cilantro so the finishing ingredients are ready.
Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the onion, jalapeño and fine salt, then cook for 5–7 minutes, stirring regularly, until the onion has softened and looks translucent.
Add the garlic and ginger and stir for 1 minute. Keep the heat gentle so the garlic becomes fragrant without browning.
Add the garam masala, ground coriander, cumin and turmeric. Stir for 30 seconds to coat the softened onion with the spices, then add the fire-roasted crushed tomatoes before the spices can catch on the pan.
Stir in the drained chickpeas, mixing from the bottom of the saucepan to incorporate the spiced onion. Bring the sauce to a gentle simmer and cook for 12–15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the chickpeas are hot and the sauce has thickened slightly.
Fold in the spinach a handful at a time as it collapses into the sauce. Cook for 2–3 minutes, turning the leaves through the chickpeas until they are wilted throughout.
Take the saucepan off the heat and stir in the chopped cilantro. Divide into 4 portions and serve with the lemon wedges for squeezing over; any rice or naan is a separate accompaniment outside this recipe’s ingredients and timing.

Recipe note: Rice or naan is a separate serving suggestion and is not included in the ingredients or estimated time.

Measure the spices before the short spice stage

Prepare the onion, seeded jalapeño, garlic and ginger before starting the saucepan. Keep the ground spices measured together and the crushed tomatoes ready to add. The spice stage lasts only thirty seconds in the method, leaving little time to search for jars once it begins.

Soften the onion first, then keep the garlic and ginger moving over gentle heat. Add the tomatoes promptly after coating the onion with the spices. Stir from the bottom when the drained chickpeas go in so the spiced onion becomes part of the whole sauce.

Let the spinach collapse before the finishing herbs

Add the spinach by handfuls and fold each addition through the hot chickpeas as it wilts. This is easier to manage than placing all the leaves in a mound on top of the saucepan. Keep the cilantro for the off-heat finish and the lemon wedges for serving.

The listed yield is four portions of the chickpea dish. Rice or naan is a separate accompaniment with its own ingredients and timing, so plan that alongside the saucepan if you want it. Portion the chickpeas and sauce together before bringing the lemon wedges to the table.

Chana masala with spinach

Ingredients & method

Measure the spices before the short spice stage

Let the spinach collapse before the finishing herbs

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