Punjabi Rajma Chawal (Delhi Household Style)
A comforting kidney bean curry simmered until thick with onion-tomato masala, an everyday household staple in Delhi's Punjabi refugee-origin families.
- Prep
- 480 min
- Cook
- 60 min
- Total
- 540 min
- Servings
- 4
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Calories
- 350 kcal
Equipment
- •Pressure cooker
- •Pot for rice
Nutrition
Per serving, approximate
- Calories
- 350 kcal
- fat
- 9 g
- carbs
- 52 g
- fibre
- 12 g
- protein
- 14 g
- calories
- 350 kcal
Instructions
- 1
Pressure cook the soaked rajma (kidney beans) with salt until soft and creamy. Save the cooking water.
- 2
Heat ghee (clarified butter) in a pan. Sizzle the cumin seeds in the hot fat.
- 3
Add chopped onion and fry gently until golden brown.
- 4
Stir in ginger-garlic paste and cook until the raw smell goes away.
- 5
Add tomato puree, red chilli powder and garam masala. Cook until oil starts to separate from the sauce.
- 6
Add the cooked rajma with its water. Lightly mash a few beans to thicken the gravy.
- 7
Simmer on low heat for 20 to 25 minutes until the curry becomes rich and thick.
- 8
Meanwhile, cook basmati rice in a separate pot. Serve hot alongside the rajma.
Chef's tips
Simmer the rajma longer on low heat to develop deeper flavour. It often tastes even better the next day.
Ingredient substitutions
- kidney beans → black-eyed peas for a lighter variation
Storage
Refrigerate up to 3 days; freezes well for up to a month.
Reheating
Reheat gently on the stovetop with a splash of water.
Common mistakes to avoid
- •Undercooking the rajma so the beans stay hard instead of melt-in-the-mouth creamy.
Serving suggestions
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