Rajma chawal. The name is synonymous with comfort for me! This for me is one of the few Indian dishes that I can eat on its own with rice. Rajma is red beans spiced with tomato, garlic, ginger, chillies and cinnamon. Traditional varieties of this dish call for a host of other spices, but I like to keep it simple. This recipe does not disappoint.
Growing up, this dish was not a staple. I learned to appreciate it from a family friend who would make this for her kids after they came home from school. Once I began getting more into exercise and working out, Rajma became a staple for me for its high protein content. I generally serve it with some sauteed spinach and garlic or any other sauteed or lightly blanched green vegetable.
I use dried red beans, soaked overnight and thicken. The sauce is made in the Instant pot itself on the saute setting. I then add the red beans and water and cook it for 30 minutes. The result is a thick, creamy rajma that would take hours on the stovetop. You could cook it for 20 minutes if short on time, but 30 gives a creamier texture.
Canned vs. Fresh/Dried
For this dish, I used dried beans because I feel they have the most flavor. I can also be confident they are preservative free. No bean dish thickens as well using canned beans. I do, however use canned fire roasted tomatoes. The reason for this is that I feel canned tomatoes allow for a richer gravy and they have a deeper umami flavor. If you do feel like adding fresh tomatoes instead, please feel free! About 2 vine ripened tomatoes, sautéed well would be a good substitute.
Rajma Masala (Instant Pot)
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup dried red kidney beans
- 1 can fire roasted tomatoes
- 1/2 red onion chopped
- 2 cloves garlic grated
- 1/4 inch nub ginger grated
- 3 Indian green chilies
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 1/2 stick cinnamon
- 1 tsp sugar
Instructions
- Rinse kidney beans and soak in water for at least 8 hours. Less soaking will require more cooking time.
- Set the Instant Pot to the sauté setting. Add 2 tbsp mild oil like sunflower.
- Add 1 tsp cumin seeds.
- Once cumin seeds sputter, add grated ginger and garlic (equivalent of 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste), green chilies, cinnamon stick and onion
- Sauté until the onions become translucent. Add tomatoes.
- Allow the tomatoes to reduce for 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add 2 tsp salt and 1 tsp sugar. The sugar helps reduce the acidity if using canned tomatoes.
- Add 1 tsp red chili powder or cayenne if additional heat is desired.
- Add the beans and 3 cups of water. There should be enough water to cover the beans by at least 1 inch.
- Close the instant pot and set to manual, and pressure cook for 30 minutes.
- The beans should be perfectly done after this time, and will thicken upon standing, but if you would like, you can keep it on the saute setting for an additional 2 minutes to speeden up the thickening process.
- Adjust salt to taste and garnish with cilantro.
- Serve with Basmati or brown Basmati rice.
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