Delicious Indian Chick Peas

I love chick peas, in all different forms. This delicious recipe is easy and perfect as a side dish or, with rice or couscous, as a main course. In fact, I'm bringing it to a Shabbat potluck dinner tonight! It requires some Indian spices that you might not have in the house (garam masala, cumin seeds) but you can find them at an Indian grocer and some specialty stores. Now that I have them, I've expanded my Indian cooking and actually use them a lot.

Ingredients:

2 cans of chickpeas
1/4 C vegetable or olive oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 medium onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1/4 heaped C chopped canned tomatoes (or 1/2 C raw)
2 tsp grated ginger
1 1/4 C prepared black tea (you can also use water, doesn't affect taste, just color)
1 to 2 hot green chilies, sliced into thin rings (I often omit the chiles because my husband is a wimp when it comes to spiciness)
1 tsp salt
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp garam masala
3 to 4 Tbs coarsely fresh cilantro or mint.
(If using dried herbs, use half as much)
1 Tbs lemon juice

Drain the chickpeas, rinse with water and set aside to drain.
Heat oil over medium high heat. Add cumin seeds and let sizzle for 15 seconds.
Add onion. Stir and fry until onion edges turn brown.
Add garlic. Stir and fry until it turns golden.
Add tomatoes. Stir and cook until they turn dark and thick.
Add ginger and stir.
Add chickpeas and remaining ingredients. Bring to simmer.
Lower heat and simmer uncovered for 10 minutes, stirring now and then.

Good hot, warm, or cold.

Enjoy, and Shabbat shalom!