Rajma (Red Kidney bean curry) in a pressure cooker or Instant Pot. Rajma Masala. Vegan Gluten-free Soy-free Indian Recipe
We dont eat much Rajma at home… Gasp ! I know right. I am a Punjabi (North Indian), and we punjus pretty much live off Rajma and Chole/chana masala every other day.(Rajma: Red kidney beans curry and Chole: Garbanzo bean curry). And to think that hubbs doesn’t like Rajma.. Double gasp!
Yes, there are some very very few things in the world that he doesn’t like. He will eat it, but not with relish. Its all because he had enough Rajma in his 4 years in the college cafeteria, during undergrad.. Lets just say it was bad, watery, undercooked, bland(few more of his choice adjectives) enough to alter hubb’s preferences.
I do make Rajma once in while, with all sorts of dread. Sometimes I make the longer more authentic mom’s version and sometimes a quick version, but usually in limited quantities..:)
This recipe works on him most times, if served hot and spicy.
Quick Rajma (Red Kidney bean curry)
Serves 2
Ingredients:
- 2 teaspoons oil
- 1/2 cup onion chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin powder
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 to 1/2 tsp cayenne
- 1/2 to 1 teaspoon kashmiri garam masala or garam masala or chana masala blend
- 1 bay leaf
- pinch of asafoetida(hing) – optional
- 1 inch ginger chopped (can be substituted with ginger paste)
- 4 to 5 cloves of garlic peeled and chopped (can be substituted with garlic paste)
- 1/2 green chili chopped or to taste
- 2 medium tomatoes chopped small
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 15 oz can dark red kidney beans, drained or 2/3 cup dry kidney beans, soaked overnight or atleast 4 hours
- 1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon rock salt/black salt
- 1/4 teaspoon raw sugar
Directions:
- In a pressure cooker or Instant Pot, add oil and heat on medium heat. Add onions.
- Cook until onions are translucent. Add in the spices, kashmiri garam masala, bay leaf, asofetida, chili, ginger, garlic and mix well for half a minute.
- Add in the chopped tomato and cook on medium low on stove top, partially covered with occasional stirring for 10-12 minutes, till tomatoes are mushy and leave the sides of the pan. (In the Instant pot, add a generous splash of water and stir frequently to cook until tomatoes are tender)
- Add in the lemon juice salt, sugar and red kidney beans and 1 cup of water for cooked and 1.5 cups of water for soaked kidney beans.
- Pressure cook for 2 whistles on medium high and 3 to 4 whistles on medium-low heat for uncooked soaked beans. (Manual 15 minutes for cooked/canned, 25 minutes for uncooked soaked beans, at high pressure.). Let the pressure release naturally. Mash some of the kidney beans with the spatula.
- Serve hot topped with lemon wedges, cilantro, garam masala and Rotis or Naans(flat breads) or fresh Basmati rice. Quick and fun everyday Kidney beans curry.
I am a Punjabi too, but I hail from Malaysia.
I just ate Rajma for the very first time in my life, a week ago (GASP!) and don’t very much relish it. Perhaps I grew up eating it as sweet dessert.
Your recipe does look more delicious than my first attempt at cooking it 🙂
http://kirantarun.com/blog
This looks SO good! Can’t wait to make it 🙂
richa, this looks gorgeous! kidney beans are generally my least favourite of all the legumes, but i think i will be trying this rajma!
looks healthy and delicious ……
looks so yummy
So tasty and healthy! A wonderful curry.
Cheers,
Rosa
I’m not Punjabi, but I think I could live off this every day! It sounds amazing. Thanks so much for submitting to WW this week! 🙂
Thanks Kiran, you should try it. it might take some time to adjust to a savory rajma.. but hopefully it will be worth it!
Thanks Kirsten and Jess. Do let me know how the curry turns out!
Thanks Padhu, Kalyani and Rosa.
Thanks Ricki. Always a pleasure to link up with WW.
i love rajma and likes to have them with roti, ur version of rajma sounds delicious..
wow this curry looks delicious!!! i can’t imagine why he wouldn’t like it, but then again, i guess we all have those things we’ve eaten too much that we’ve gotten sick of!
this is my husband’s fav meal. Not much mine though but these days I enjoy it too! 🙂
Thanks for coming to my lunchbox party! Hope to see you next Friday 🙂
Lisa @ Allergy Free Vintage Cookery
I love rajma, although Desi’s a bit iffy about it. Yours look super, and good to know it’s quick.
Loved your blog!!!
Rajma chawal is an all time favorite, a comfort food for me 🙂
Your pictures look fabulous.
thank you Sobha, Junia, Vaishali, Lisa, kankana and Sangeeta!
Rajma with rice is my favorite!! Great recipe! PS…I just had a quick look at the other 2 blogs you listed..and i love them!! Animal cruelty is so heart breaking. It’s nice to see that you’re doing everything you can on your end and getting the word out 🙂
Also, I’m from Seattle area as well, I go to school out in Boston for now. But maybe I’ll run into some day (probably at an animal rights event hehe) when I’m visiting home 🙂
Thanks Nony. I am trying to do what i can.. seems less some days.. but trying..
do ping me when you are around.. tweet me at betit19 or mail me at richahingle at gmail.
Well this looks really good to me…not sure what one would not like about it?? Everbody to their own(right). When I started out 3yrs ago towards full-time vegetarianism I followed an Auyervedic way of eating,,,but not long after went to vegan then more high raw….but when I do a cooked meal this would be something I would do….love your site and recipes…thx
Making this right now – thanks!!!
That looks perfect for mid-week dinner! Just wondering if it would be the same steps without a pressure cooker? I would assume it takes longer…?
soak the kidney beans overnight if using dry beans. they will take more water and longer to break down on stove top. the canned beans will work better without a pressure cooker. cook for 30 minutes or so. mash some of the beans and serve.
We made the beans tonight. Delicious! But we noticed a mistake. The ingredients list 1 teaspoon of lemon juice, but the instructions never refer to the juice. We just assumed we were supposed to add it at the end.
Great! Thanks for letting me know. fixed it.
This recipe is excellent. It was delicious!
How much water should I use if I’m using dried beans in a pressure cooker (InstantPot)?
you would use about 3/4 cup dried and 3 times the amount water to pressure cook
I made this a while ago, and it was very tasty. I wanted to make it again, but didn’t have kidney beans. But I do have a big ol bag of pinto beans, so I used those. It’s great! Yum!! So if you don’t have kidney beans or just don’t like them very much, have a go at this recipe using pinto beans, or even some other kind of beans.