Create allergy card
← Browse ingredients

Kala Chana

Small dark brown chickpea used in curries and salads.

Kala chana — illustrative ingredient image

About Kala Chana

Kala chana is a small, dark-brown chickpea used as a pulse in curries, stews, snacks, and salads. Its thin shape and dark seed coat distinguish it visually from the larger, pale chickpeas commonly sold as kabuli chickpeas. It is especially useful in dishes where the pulse should retain structure.

Cooked kala chana has a deep, earthy, nutty flavour and a firm, pleasantly dense bite. Soaking and simmering soften the centre, but the seed coat usually keeps the chickpeas more resilient than pale chickpeas. Roasting or frying gives them a drier texture and more pronounced toasted flavour.

Kala chana is usually sold dry as whole chickpeas, and it may also be found cooked, canned, sprouted, split, or ground. Dry beans range from brown to nearly black; cooking swells them and lightens the interior. Soaking, pressure-cooking, or simmering changes tenderness and cooking time.

Ingredient type
whole food

FOLLOW IT TO THE PLATE

Where will you meet it?

Explore the dishes that use this ingredient and their country and cuisine connections.

Explore linked dishes

ON A MENU OR LABEL

Find local names and written forms to help recognise this ingredient.

See local names

Where kala chana appears

0 linked foods

Find foods to recognise by country and type. Recipes and products vary; these are recorded ingredient connections.

Food connections are still being added.

No linked foods are available for this ingredient yet.

Name examples awaiting language review. Confirm the specific food or product.

Local names for kala chana

Names and romanised forms to recognise on menus and labels.

English

Kala chana

Available names only. Languages may be spoken in other countries; a name alone does not identify every ingredient in a dish.

Kala Chana nutrition & diet

Kala Chana nutritional value

Product example: KALA CHANA (Indian Groceries & Spices)

Per 100 g of this specific product as recorded by USDA, per 100 g.

Calories
368kcal
Protein
16.8g
Carbs
66.3g
Fat
4.2g

A product-specific label example, not a generic average. Formulations can change; use the nutrition label on the product being eaten.

Portions & preparation

Match kala chana as the specific dark chickpea variety, distinguishing dry, soaked, boiled, canned, sprouted, or milled forms. Use the drained edible portion for cooked beans; curries and salads add oil, salt, sauces, vegetables, grains, or animal ingredients that require separate consideration.

Compare the right form: Confirm kala chana variety and match dry or prepared beans—soaked, boiled, canned, sprouted, or milled—with drained edible portion specified.

Diet considerations

Kala chana is a plant legume and plain beans can fit plant-based patterns. Compatibility changes with ghee, dairy, meat broth, animal fat, sweeteners, or cereal ingredients in breads and mixed dishes. Portion size and processing influence the dish’s carbohydrate pattern, so plain cooked beans and curry should not be treated as identical.

AI-authored reading notes · Awaiting editorial review. Measured values, where available, have a separate source above.

Dietary compatibility

  • Vegan
    Not established
  • Vegetarian
    Not established
  • Pescatarian
    Not established
  • Keto
    Not established
  • Paleo
    Not established
  • Low-carb
    Not established
  • Halal
    Not established
  • Kosher
    Not established
What these diet assessments mean
Vegan · Not established
The available profile does not establish the full composition or processing for this dietary pattern.
Vegetarian · Not established
The available profile does not establish the full composition or processing for this dietary pattern.
Pescatarian · Not established
The available profile does not establish the full composition or processing for this dietary pattern.
Keto · Not established
A defined serving and sourced carbohydrate data are needed before assessing this dietary pattern.
Paleo · Not established
The ingredient form and processing have not been assessed against this dietary pattern.
Low-carb · Not established
A defined serving and sourced carbohydrate data are needed before assessing this dietary pattern.
Halal · Not established
Sourcing, processing and any applicable certification have not been verified. A food name alone does not establish halal status.
Kosher · Not established
Sourcing, processing and any applicable certification have not been verified. A food name alone does not establish kosher status.

For the plain ingredient · Awaiting review. Diet compatibility is not allergy suitability or halal/kosher certification. Keto and low-carb depend on the portion.

Reviewed ingredient entryIngredient reference · Preparations vary

AI-generated illustration for visual context. It does not identify a particular product or establish allergen content.

Sources & review

Nutrition reference: USDA FoodData Central branded product — KALA CHANA ↗. Values are scaled from 100 g of the recorded edible form. Individual portions have no assumed fixed weight.

Expanded overview, name examples and nutrition notes are database drafts awaiting editorial review. Numeric nutrition values, where shown, have their own source and food-form reference.

The ingredient description and dish connections come from the draft catalogue and may change after review.

Last recorded verification: .