Chana dal is baby chickpeas that has been split and polished. It looks and tastes like small kernels of sweet corn, and is one of the most popular ingredients in Indian cuisine. Chana dal is delicious, nutritious and easily digested. Apart from being used in soups, salads, curries, dal preparations, savories, sweets and rice dishes, the legumes are also roasted and powdered into chickpea flour (besan), another ingredient that is widely used in almost every province of India.