'Rajma' Punjabi style.

                       
                'Rajma'  yum-yum! ( Indian Kidney-bean curry)


             It is an all-time favorite dish of Punjabis. In fact, it is relished by all Indians. 

Rajma are traditionally eaten with simple boiled rice but, they taste delicious even with 'Paratha', 'Poori', 'Pulao', 'Tandoori roti' or plain every-day 'roti' (chapati). 

Punjabis have a special style of making Rajma. I am going to share with you the way I make them.

Ingredients-        (1)  300gm.'Rajma' (Kidney beans);    (2)  5-6 medium onions;     (3)  8-10 tomatoes;     (4)  1 pod garlic;     (5)  2 inch piece ginger;     (6)  80-100 gm.cooking oil;     (7)  1/3 tsp.turmeric powder;     (8)  1/2 tsp. red chilli powder;     (9)  salt to taste;     (10)  some chopped coriander leaves for garnish.

Method-         1.  Wash rajma 2-3 times and soak overnight (6-8 hrs) in plenty of water. A short-cut method is to soak them in slightly warm water for 3-4 hrs. and, if you do not have time to soak them at all, not to worry, just pressure-cook them for 15-20 minutes longer!

2.  Grate onions after removing their skins and make a paste of ginger and garlic by crushing them together.

3.  Put a 'kadahi' or fry- pan over fire, heat 80 gm. oil and add grated onions.You can add more oil later if

you feel the requirement. Fry onions, stirring contantly so that they do not stick to the bottom. When they become slightly pink in color, add ginger-garlic paste and continue stir-frying till the 'masala' becomes a nice red-brown. Now add turmeric powder, red chilli powder and salt and cook for a few seconds more before adding chopped tomatoes.

Keep frying, stirring constantly, till tomatoes are nicely cooked and become a part of the 'masala' and it starts leaving oil ( you will see tiny bubbles of oil appearing on the fringes). This is the time to add 'rajma'.

4.  Drain the water from the soaked 'rajma' and wash them again in fresh water. Transfer the prepared 'masala' to a pressure cooker, put on the fire, add 'rajma' and stir both the things together for approx. 1 minute. Now add 1 liter water, close the lid and put weight on the pressure-vent when steam appears. You may lower the heat after the first whistle and, cook for 45 minutes after which time, turn the heat off. Let the pressure come down and open the lid to check. 'Rajma' should be very soft and some of them should have started splitting when they are done. The 'masala' should also have turned into a nice, thickish gravy. If the 'rajma' are not nicely cooked, pressure-cook again for 10-15 minutes. You can add more salt or chilli at this stage and, more water also if the curry is thicker than your liking. Boil for a few seconds more after making the additions so that everything is nicely mixed. Sprinkle some chopped coriander leaves and your 'rajma' are ready to eat!

5.  Serve hot 'rajma'  with plain boiled rice/pulao/paratha/poori/tandoori roti or, simple every-day roti (chapati), it is delicious always!

Enjoy!