Vegan Amla Chickpeas from "The Indian Slow Cooker"

Dried Amla (Indian Gooseberries)

More Indian Chickpeas!  I made the Vegan Amla Chickpeas, or the Sooka Amla Chana, from The Indian Slow Cooker book authored by Anupy Singla.  I have been making something from her book nearly every day! Another simple recipe that uses dried chickpeas meaning no soaking, no fermenting of forgotten beans, no BPAs found in can linings and no additional cost.  You can get them anywhere!  But if you go to your local co-op, Whole Foods, health store, then you can usually snag them organic and in bulk.  Under 2.00 a pound.  

Vegan Amla Chickpeas from The Indian Slow Cooker Book

Amla Chickpeas, finished.
This make 14 cups of chickpeas!

I did have just a few questions regarding the amla.  What you want is dried amla, Indian Gooseberries, and I guess you probably don't want any of the other gunk that they sometimes put on them.  I had options of amla with sugar, salt, and other stuff, or just amla and salt.  I chose amla and salt. The amla turns the chickpeas dark!  This one used a slightly different technique for adding all the veggies at the end.  You basically make a tunnel in the beans, put your veggies in, and carefully pour hot oil on top trying to cook the veggies.  This slightly freaked me out as I don't really do Earth Balance anyhow, and then hot! Scary!  But it turned out to be simple and overall pretty non-threatening.

Verdict: I thought they were great.  They did have a dryer texture than the "Chana Masala" recipe.  Hubby liked, but he still prefers the wet dal makhani, urad dal, and rajmahs.  He just prefers broth.  I am a total chickpea fanatic and could eat them soupy or dry!  Hands down, this is a delicious dish!  It also makes

Amla Chickpeas, Chana Masala, Goan Black Eyed Peas and Vino.

Another one Anupy's examples that you can make some of the healthiest food on the planet for pennies.  Just yesterday a friend was exclaiming to me that she had no inclination to eat healthier nor feed her family any sort of "natural" food.  That maybe in "big" metropolitan cities these foods are available, but in "normal" mid-western towns, natural foods just aren't "around".   I was thinking, hmmm.......Rice and Beans are everywhere!!  And for far less cost than people are paying for their "Fruit Loops" or "Healthy Brand Name Cereals".  One of the most important things that  you can do for your kids is to teach them how to eat in a mindful, healthy way.  If cost is an issue, then minimize packaged foods.  Dried Rice and Beans are very inexpensive, even when you buy organic.  Fresh veggies are also inexpensive if you are not buying bags of tortilla chips.  The wealth in our country has completely impoverished us spiritually and nutritionally.  While I do not advocate poverty in the least, we have swung so far the other direction that we have lost sight of being human.  A terribly non comical tragedy.  In general we do not recognize that even with the recession, that our overabundance is actually robbing others out of food and water.  We won't recognize this until we are the ones that are thirsty.  While I would never want to hand in my US passport because I embrace the freedom that it gives me, it was also my return to the States that made me shudder from the "Born in the USA" syndrome.  It seems like nothing is ever "realized" until it is our children who are starving.  Our children who cannot get clean water.  My hope is that parents consider that trying to be "green" isn't some elitist trend, but a hope that there will be sufficient resources for the generations to come.  Their generations.