Ghugni Recipe {Instant Pot} (2024)

Make this amazing ghugni recipe or Oriya style ghuguni in your instant pot. All you need is some soaked dried yellow peas, spice mix, and a few other pantry staples. Ready to try the instant pot ghugni recipe? Here is my version of dried peas curry.

Being an Oriya or Odia, I grew up eating ghugni with almost every snack. We oriyas serve ghugni with vadas, roti, upma, and even as a chaat. I have a special fondness for ghugni, especially the one my mom makes. Even today, whenever I visit home, mom never forgets to add ghugni to the menu.

My ghugni recipe is inspired from my mom’s Oriya style ghugni. This is not a no-onion-garlic version. But I will share that version too in the notes section. This original version uses some homemade curry powder, which is highly recommended. Feel free to use any Indian style hot curry powder if you want to. Roughly pounded ginger and garlic adds a nice flavor to this recipe. If you can, use lightly ground onion instead of chopped and it will make the real difference.

What is Ghugni ?

For those unaware of what ghugni is, it’s a popular dried yellow peas curry often made in the eastern Indian states. This curry is mildly spiced, cooked with soaked dried yellow peas and has herbs and spices all meddled intoa light gravy.

Ghugni is served with chopped onions, green chilies, tomatoes, and lime juice.Alternatively, it’s widely eaten with vadas, upma, idli, poori, and even rotis in coastal districts of Orissa.

What is Ghugni Chaat?

Ghugni Chaat is also known as matar chat and is a popular street food in India. Typically, a plate of ghugni chat contains a full serving of the curry topped with chopped onions, tomatoes, cucumbers and a generous amount of chutneys. The chat always has a crispy element such as papad, puris and crispy sev. In some parts of Orissa, the chat also served with dahi vada, spicy tomato chutney and pakoras.

What is Ghugni Masala?

The concoction of spices used in this curry is also known as ghugni masalas. Some of the main ingredients are:

1. Ground turmeric
2. Coriander powder
3. Curry powder and garam masala
4. Roasted cumin and chili powder

Herbs and vegetables used in making ghugni masala are:

1. Onion chopped or ground
2. Ground ginger and garlic
3. Green chilies and tomatoes
   

How do you boil yellow peas ?

To cook boiled yellow peas, soak the dried yellow peas in water for at least six hours to twelve hours. I always pressure cook my yellow peas. In an instant pot, add soaked yellow peas with sufficient water and set the instant pot to manual mode and cook the peas for 3- to 6-minutes in high pressure. I prefer soft yet not-mushy texture, which takes about 6-minutes when the peas are soaked for 4 hours.

How many calories are there in Ghugni Recipe?

Ghugni is a healthy and low-Calorie curry, which has only 117 calories per serving.

For detailed Nutritional Info Please refer to the Nutritional chart / Calorie Card in the Recipe Card below.

How Long can you store Ghugni?

This Ghugni stays fresh for at least three days when stored in an airtight container for three days. The curry, however, gets thicker as it stays longer in the refrigerator. The chat is best stored when kept separately from the toppings. If you are freezing, store the curry in individual serving size containers and it will stay fresh for up to a month.

How to make Ghugni Recipe without Onion Garlic?

If you want to make the recipe without onion and garlic, skip the chopped onions and garlic. Instead make lo a coarse purée of ground ginger, green chilies, and tomatoes. Cook the purée in mustard oil first before cooking rest other ingredients. In the no-onion-garlic recipe, use a paste of soaked cumin and coriander seeds instead of the ground spices.

How to make Oriya Ghugni Recipe?

To make the authentic Oriya Ghugni recipe, just follow my recipe. My version is inspired from my mom’s Cuttuck-style ghugni recipe.

How to Make Ghugni Recipe in Instant Pot?

Ingredients

1 cup dried yellow peas soaked in 4 cups of water, 2 tablespoon paste of ginger 1-inch size 4 pods of garlic, 1 teaspoon roasted cumin and dried chili powder, 2 teaspoon coriander powder, 1 teaspoon homemade curry powder, ½ tspgroundturmeric, ½ teaspoon ground chili powder, 3 tablespoon of cooking oil(mustard oil preferred), ½ red onion chopped or minced, 2 tomatoes chopped, 1 bay leaf
1 Whole dried red chili, 2 green chilies, Salt to taste, Cilantro to garnish

Instructions

• Wash, rinse and soak the dried yellow peas with enough water for 3 to 12 hours or overnight.
• Set the instant pot to a sauté mode and add oil. Once it’s hot, add the bay leaf and whole dried red chili.
• As both the chili and leaf browns, add onion and sauté well. Remember to stir occasionally till onion turns brown.
• Meanwhile, take all the spices and ginger garlic paste in a small bowl. Mix well with a little water.
• Add this mixture to the sautéed onions and cook till the raw smell of the herbs are gone.
• Now add tomatoes and cook till the tomatoes are mushy.
• Add soaked dried peas, salt and add water. Cover and seal the vent. Pressure cook the curry for 6-minutes in high.
• After 6-minutes, open the lid and gently stir the curry.
• Top with roasted cumin and chili powder, cilantro and lime juice.
• Serve hot or warm and with your favorite toppings and/or as a chat with chopped onions, tomatoes, green chilies and lime juice.

📖 Recipe

Here are a few more instant pot beans curry that you may like:

Kali Chana

Chana Lauki