Neither chicks, nor peas

Hindustan Times | ByVir Sanghvi

Aug 11, 2018 10:54 PM IST

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They may call it the chickpea in the West but Indians know it as our very own channa, partner of the kulcha and mother of besan flour

Many years ago on a trip to Japan, I watched a master tempura chef at work. Foreigners are fascinated by tempura but Indians are less impressed because we recognise the dish as a descendant (or a cousin) of our own pakoras and bhajiyas.

Besan is used in the preparation of traditional dishes like pakoras in India(Shutterstock)

The colder the batter, the crisper the tempura (Shutterstock)

In many parts of the Middle East, including Egypt, the word for chickpea is hummus, which has now become associated all over the world with a dip (Shutterstock)

Around the 10th century, the chickpea fell out of favour and began to be regarded as the food of the poor

Most great chickpea dishes, including channa bhatura are associated with Hindu communities (Shutterstock)

The popular West Asian dish, the falafel is made from what we would call besan (Shutterstock)

The spicy chaat-style channa, with kulchas or bhaturas, must be among India’s fastest growing snack foods (Shutterstock)

The food of Gujarat relies heavily on channa or besan that’s used liberally in such dishes as dhoklas (Shutterstock)

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Neither chicks, nor peas

They may call it the chickpea in the West but Indians know it as our very own channa, partner of the kulcha and mother of besan flour

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