
Indian-style cucumber and chickpea salad
Servings: 0
Considering cucumbers actually originated in the foothills of the Himalayas, across Northern India and Nepal, around 5000 years ago, these cuisines have had a head-start on working out what works with the cuke, and it’s no surprise that there’s no shortage of inclusions across both cuisine. Cucumbers provide a cooling and refreshing counter to spicy dishes and steamy evenings, which is why you’ll find plenty of cucumber recipes across the subcontinent, and why its popularity quickly spread across the world. Here I’ve teamed cucumbers with chickpeas – a protein-packed legume that bulks this from a side to a substantial light lunch that’s perfect for packing for work. Just combine the ingredients with the dressing and give them a good shake in your lunch container to reincorporate before tumbling out onto whatever bowl’s left in the staff kitchenette. If you have date & tamarind sauce in the fridge, feel free to sub this in rather than heading out for mango chutney (though you’ll find ample uses for the rest of the jar too).
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Ingredients
- 2 tbsp neutral oil such a grapeseed or rice bran
- ½ cup cashews
- ¼ tsp black mustard seeds
- 400 g (1 tin) chickpeas drained and rinsed
- 1½ tsp chaat masala or Garam masala, ideally with a sprinkle of amchur powder
- 4 medium Lebanese cucumbers cubed
- 4 Roma Tomatoes cubed (or other firm tomato)
- ½ Spanish onion cubed
- ½ bunch coriander leaves picked and roughly chopped (stems reserved for dressing)
Yoghurt dressing
- ½ cup yoghurt
- 1 tbsp coriander stems chopped
- Handful mint leaves finely chopped
- ½ tsp ground cumin
- 1 garlic clove finely microplaned
- ¼ tsp salt flakes
Final bits and bobs
- Green chilli optional but excellent
- ¼ cup sweet mango chutney store-bought is fine
- Coriander leaves
Instructions
- Place a medium sized saucepan on a low heat, add in 1 tbsp of oil. When warm add in the cashews and toast for 5 mins, stirring about, then add in a pinch of salt flakes and the mustard seeds and cook for another minute until they start to pop like popcorn and transfer into a bowl.
- Keeping the pan on a low heat, add in the other tablespoon of oil followed by the chickpeas and fry up for a few minutes. Add in the chaat masala, cook for a minute and turn off the heat and transfer into a large mixing bowl.
- In another small mixing bowl, make the yoghurt dressing by combining all of the ingredients listed. Taste for seasoning.
- In the mixing bowl with the chickpeas, tumble in the cubed cucumbers, tomatoes, red onion and coriander leaves and a pinch of salt flakes. Mix about and check for seasoning.
- Pour onto a platter with high sides, drizzle over your dressing, blob over the mango chutney and top with cashew & mustard seed mix, coriander leaves and green chilli.