Chickpea and Ginger root Salad
KABLI CHANA ADRAK KACHAMBER
-Recipe from Yamuna mataji
Whole chickpeas are soaked overnight, sometimes even slightly sprouted,
before being used in this salad. Two types of rhizomes are suitable
here: young camphor ginger or ginger-like mango ginger (a member of the
turmeric family). Their flesh should be virtually fiber-free, with a
thin skin. Because they are only found sporadically, look for young or
“green” fresh ginger at the corner produce store or supermarket.
This salad was a constant on my breakfast menus for Srila Prabhupada.
He taught it to me in 1967 and commented that ginger root for breakfast
aided his digestion all day. Eight years later, when I forgot to soak
the chickpeas Oneday and had to omit the dish, he again reminded me how
important this “digestive” breakfast salad was for his health. Later,
another of his cooks, Palika Dasi, related that he also favored another
variation using soaked mung dal instead of chickpeas –a variation he
simply called chutney.
Try this
dish with seasonal fresh fruits for a light breakfast, or include it as
a “salad-chutney” with lunch or dinner.
Dal soaking time: 8 hours or overnight
Preparation time (after assembling ingredients): 10 minutes
Serves: 4 to 6
1/3 cup (50 g) whole chickpeas, sorted and soaked
in 1 ½ cups (360 ml) water overnight
1 ½-inch (4 cm) piece of fresh ginger root
1 ½ table spoons (22 ml) fresh lime or lemon juice
½ teaspoon (2 ml) chat masala (optional)
¼ teaspoon (1 ml) freshly ground black pepper
Drain the chickpeas. Peel the ginger and slice into paper-thin rounds,
then paper-thin julienne. Combine all of the ingredients in a small
bowl and toss well. Serve directly on the dinner plates in small mounds.