Heat ghee in a kadhai or any thick base pan and throw in the cumin seeds, wait till they splutter and get fragrant and then pour in the coarse onion paste.
Make a coarse paste of onions and tomatoes separately and keep aside, the onion paste should be about a cup full and the tomato paste should fill up 2 cups, juice n all. The red kidney beans are soaked and then simmered with onions, tomatoes, and a cocktail of herbs and spices to make Rajma masala.
It is also a famous order item in most North Indian restaurants. Some cooks don't even soak rajma and cook it directly, I wouldn't ever do that. Rajma Chawal is a very common combination of Rajma masala and rice loved by millions in the country. ( i used regular chilly powder, use kashmiri chilly powder if you want a brighter red color )īoil the soaked rajma in pressure cooker for 12-15 minutes under pressure, with enough water to submerge the beans and salt to taste, till the rajma beans look cracked.ĭo not use the soaking water for cooking as it causes flatulence (due to phytates that are soluble in water and get washes away when soaking water is discarded), traditional cooks cook along with this pinkish water though. ( i used badarwahi or kashmiri rajma as this recipe is best suited for this variety) This one is absolutely our favorite kashmiri rajma. Every family has it's own version of rajma and another kashmiri version uses the fennel-dry ginger- kashmiri masala and that version is very different from this one. I used to love it at one of my Aunt's place and learnt it quickly as the recipe was very simple and tastes unbelievably creamy mild and full of earthy rajma flavor. This is the favorite rajma of Arvind while I sometimes like it a bit spicy n hot made the punjabi way but he always prefers this one whenever asked. So it is just the onion-garlic-ginger-tomato gravy and a hint of butter brings the richest flavors of rajma. This recipe of rajma is kashmiri too, it is mild in taste as the flavors of the rajma beans is so wonderful you'd not want to mask it with overpowering spicing. There are other varieties of kidney beans too, chitre rajma, pahari rajma of uttarakhand, and many other varieties which differ in taste and texture though all of them are great if prepared accordingly.
It is available in Delhi too you just need to look out for very small grains of rajma with dark skin color. It grows in the hills they say, I get it from a small shop owner from katra whenever we visit Vaishno devi. Now about the rajma being kashmiri, this is a variety of kidney beans smaller in size and darker in color, very smooth n creamy and flavorful when cooked, called badarwahi rajma or kashmiri rajma.
I cooked small grain govindbhog rice for this meal as it is very very soft and goes well with this mildly flavored smooth kashmiri rajma. Rajma is usually served with plain boiled basmati rice. It is such a popular meal that small stalls or rehris (push carts) of rajma chawal can be seen in almost all the north Indian cities to cater to the low budget traveler or even the office goers during lunch break. A delicious filling meal of rajma chawal once a week is what a true punju needs to go through the rigors of ue bliss on a plate. Rajma chawal is such a punjabi favorite that it is the most favored comfort food in this part of the world.