Recipe for Home-Style Rajma

Rajma means Kidney beans. In India, Rajma is usually cooked as a gravy dish and is served with rice. It is quite popular, especially in northern India, and is generally cooked on weekends for lunch, when the entire family sits together and eats a meal. During winter, piping hot Rajma served with freshly cooked basmati rice tastes even better. People usually pair it with salad and a pickle of their choice.

Kidney beans are a great source of protein, and when cooked in ghee or oil (fat) and served with rice( a gluten-free source of carbohydrates) and salad (Vitamins and minerals), it makes a complete dish. It is nutritious and delicious. 

In Germany, where I live presently, I still keep with the tradition of making either Rajma Chawal or Kadi Chawal on the weekends. It reminds me of my childhood days and brings back many pleasant memories.

In India, this dish is almost always made with raw kidney beans, which are soaked overnight and then cooked in a pressure cooker. However, you can also use canned kidney beans for this recipe. Although using canned beans saves you a lot of time and effort, the taste of raw beans, soaked and cooked, is much better.

The recipe that I am sharing today is a simple homestyle recipe, and trust me, it tastes best this way. Rajma is commonly available in restaurants and dhabas in India, but they usually make a richer version of this dish. But, in my opinion, this home-style recipe brings out the best taste and flavour of the kidney beans and makes it a perfect comfort food. Try it out on a cold winter afternoon, and you will love it even more 🙂

Let us start with the recipe:

Kitchen Equipment:

1. Pressure Cooker: https://amzn.to/3OyZlVY
2. Knives: https://amzn.to/3Lg64Bj
3. Cutting Board: https://amzn.to/3K0dh8L
4. Pan: https://amzn.to/3Qicd44
5. Mixer Grinder: https://amzn.to/3wmP08F

Ingredients needed:

• 1 Cup Raw Kidney Beans; washed and soaked overnight
• Water; to soak and cook the kidney beans and to adjust the consistency of the gravy
• 1½ tsp Salt
• 2 tbsp Mustard Oil
• 2 tbsp Ghee
• 4 Medium-Sized Onions; Thinly Sliced
• 1 tbsp Finely Chopped Ginger
• 1 tbsp Finely Chopped Garlic
• 2 Medium-Sized Tomatoes; Pureed
• 1 tsp Kashmiri Red Chilli Powder
• 1 tbsp Coriander Powder
• ½ tsp Turmeric Powder
• 1 tsp Kasuri Methi
• Fresh Coriander Leaves for garnishing

Method to make simple home-style Rajma:

• Wash the soaked beans. Add about 4 cups of water and 1 tsp of salt and cook them in a pressure cooker till the beans turn soft.
  
  
  
• Heat two tablespoons of oil in a pan. Add sliced onions and fry them on medium heat till they turn light brown.
  
  
  
• Remove the onions and grind them to a fine paste. Add about ⅓ cup of water to make a smooth paste.
  
  
  
• Heat ghee in the same pan. Add finely chopped ginger and garlic. Fry them on low-medium heat for 1-2 minutes.
  
  
  
• Add tomato paste, followed by turmeric powder, coriander powder, red chilli powder and 1/2 tsp of salt.
  
  
  
• Cover with a lid. Lower the heat and cook this for about 15 minutes. Mix in between with a spatula so that it doesn’t stick to the pan.
  
  
  
• Now, add onion paste. Mix. Add about 1/2 cup of water.
  
  
  
• Cover with a lid and cook it for about 10-12 minutes. Mix in between with a spatula so it doesn’t stick to the base.
  
  
  
• Add cooked kidney beans. Boil for 4-5 minutes.
  
  
  
• Taste and adjust salt. Add kasuri methi and fresh coriander leaves.
  
  

Delicious home-style Rajma is ready

This gravy dish tastes best with plain steamed rice or Jeera Rice, any homemade pickle and a simple salad.

You can check out some of my tried and tested pickle recipes here.

Cut onions, carrots, cucumbers, radishes, or any salad veggie that you have in your fridge. Add salt and lime juice to the salad veggies and serve with Rajma Chawal.

For other salad ideas, you can click here.

Recently, when I made Rajma, I served it with steamed rice and Potato and Romano Beans Sabzi.

Here is the recipe for simple, home-style Rajma in printable format:

Some notes for my readers in Germany:

1. As mentioned earlier, you can use dry kidney beans or canned beans in this recipe. Dry kidney beans are easily available in Indian/Asian shops. You can get them in supermarkets too. They come in wide varieties. Any type will do for this recipe.
2. Some of the spices mentioned in the recipe are available in German supermarkets. All the spices are easily available in Indian shops. The best brand for spices in Indian shops is MDH.
3. You can buy basmati rice in German supermarkets and Asian shops. If you cook rice often, you can buy a 5kg/10 kg pack of basmati rice from Indian shops. In Indian shops, you get many more choices, which are cheaper if you buy 5kg/10kg packs. In my experience, the best brand of basmati rice available in Germany is HEER.
4. The thumb rule for buying any rice is that the older it is, the better. So, check the date of manufacture and packaging and buy accordingly. Always wash the rice before use. Soak rice for a minimum of 30 minutes before cooking.
5. Indian Ingredients can also be purchased from the online store of Spiceland, Frankfurt. Their quality is good, prices reasonable and they deliver all across Germany.
   

Click here to read more recipes from my kitchen.

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