Hotel style creamy rajma masala

Punjabi Rajma masala  is a popular North Indian dish that is made very often in Punjabi households. Boiled Red kidney beans (rajma) are simmered in spicy onion-tomato gravy.This can be made in a simple manner with onion tomato gravy wIth spices & also in a restaurant style manner where in you can add some butter ,cream or curd or milk to give it a rich taste.

There are two types of rajma available in market. One is lighter in color and other is darker. Both takes different time to cook. I have tried both & in my experience dark ones take more time to cook than light ones

One important point is that the rajma has to be perfectly cooked they should melt in your mouth when you bite into them . this is very crucial and the most overlooked aspect of cooking rajma or else it may also affects your stomach.

So its important to soak the rajma or kidney beans overnight or for 8-9 hours and then cook them really well. 

This rich rajma masala goes well with rice and eating rajma chawal combo with some achar & papad is heavenly.Or you can even eat it with roti,naan or chapati

Today we will see the hotel style creamy rajma masala

Ingredients

Method :

1 Wash rajma under running cold water till water runs clear. If using canned beans then no need to soak or pressure cook them. Just rinse under the water and use beans in the recipe.

2 Soak them in enough water for at least 8 hours or overnight. It should get bigger in size after soaking. This helps to reduce the cooking time.

3 In a pressure e cooker, take both the rajma and 4 cups water.pressure cook on a medium to high flame for 12-18 whistles .when the pressure settles down on its own, open the lid,check if the rajma is cooked or not by taking a bite or pressing a bean .if they are not cooked completely, then pressure cook again adding some water if required for some minutes.

4Heat oil + butter in another pot or pan. add cumin first and let them crackle & get browned ,then add onions and saute them till they caramelized or golden browned .add the ginger-garlic-chili paste. stir and saute for 5-10 seconds on a low flame.

5.Add the tomatoes. saute for 2-3 minutes till the tomatoes become soft .add all the spice powders one by one - turmeric powder, red chili powder, coriander powder, asafoetida/hing and garam masala powder .stir and saute the whole masala mixture till the fat starts leaving the masala.

6. use a slotted spoon or a strainer and remove the beans and add them to the masala keep the stock also aside. stir and saute for a minute.take 1.5 to 2 cups from the stock and add to the rajma add salt and simmer with a lid for 10-12 minutes or more till the curry thickens slightly. it should not be too thick or thin.mash a few rajma beans with the spoon. this helps to thicken the curry.

7.when curry has thickened slightly , add the kasuri methi and cream.stir & simmer rajma masala for 30 seconds to 1 minute. switch off the fire.garnish with coriander leaves

8.Serve rajma masala restaurant style with steamed basmati rice,Jeera rice or naan

Tips :

1.Can add whole garam masala like bayleaf,cloves,cinamom,green cardamom in step 4 at the time of tempering

2.you can make onion tomato puree or can even add half chopped & half puried onions & tomatoes ( if using half half first let chopped onion & tomatoes be soft than add tomato onion puree& follow the rest of the recipe as it is .

3.Can add 1/4-1/2 cup milk in step 5 along with rajma stock in case you dont have cream or you can even add 1.5 tbsp of cashew poppy seeds paste for creaminess instead of cream

4.dont skip kasuri methi