Rajma Recipe | Rajma Masala | Rajma Chawal

Rajma Recipe also known as Rajma Masala is a North Indian curried dish made with kidney beans, onions, tomatoes, plenty of spices and herbs. This delicious dish is easy enough to make for a healthy and hearty meal. Serve Rajma over Chawal (Basmati Rice) or with roti for a protein-packed vegetarian meal. My latest recipe will help you make mouth-melting Rajma Masala that you can either cook in an Indian pressure cooker or in the Instant pot.

Have no pressure cooker? No worries! Use canned red kidney beans for ease.

Rajma Chawal is a favorite combo in many North Indian households where Rajma Masala is served with Chawal (rice). Some onion & lemon wedges on the side is all you need to enjoy this delicious dish.

We Indians eat a lot of legumes regularly as they are the main source of protein and fiber. Skinned lentils, chickpeas, black eyed peas and kidney beans are some of the most commonly used in curries.

Apart from Rajma Masala, here is a list of popular dishes from North Indian Cuisine. They are often found on the restaurant menus and also cooked in North Indian homes.
Kadhi Pakora
Black Eyed Peas Curry (Lobia Masala)
Punjabi Chole
Dal Makhani
Chana Masala
Aloo Gobi

About Rajma & the kinds

Rajma is the Indian name for kidney beans. These are soaked, cooked & then simmered with onions, tomatoes & spices to make the dish, Rajma masala. It is also just referred as Rajma. It is the quintessential North Indian dish made on weekends, special occasions, weddings etc.

Rajma are fat free and have many benefits since they are high in fiber, folate and magnesium. High fiber promotes digestive tract health, folate & magnesium makes them a heart healthy food. Considering these benefits kidney beans are widely eaten in India.

If you are wondering what kind of Rajma to use, you can use whatever you like but remember the initial cook time changes with each of these. There are basically 4 or even more kinds of rajma, varying in sizes and colors. Red rajma, Chitra rajma, Jammu Rajma and yellow rajma are some of the most commonly available in the Indian stores.

Everyone’s choice is different. A lot of people love chitra rajma because they cook faster. If you begin to take a look at the different kinds of rajma available in the stores, you may easily get confused and not know which one to use.

I prefer to use the red rajma, though they take a little longer to cook. Red rajma taste delicious, have a lot of flavor and also makes your gravy thicker.

My Recipe

There are numerous ways to make rajma masala. In this post I share 2 ways to make the same recipe.

• The traditional Punjabi style Rajma Masala. First soaked rajma is pressure cooked until tender, meanwhile a onion tomato masala is made separately. Lastly the soft cooked rajma is simmered in this masala.
• The second method is a one pot dish made directly in the pressure cooker/ instant pot and for this method you don’t need to pressure cook the beans separately. Instead everything is cooked at one shot.

A typical Punjabi rajma or bhuna masala is made with chopped onions, tomatoes & crushed ginger garlic. However onions, tomatoes and ginger garlic can be used in various forms – grated, boiled & pureed or fine chopped for a preferred texture.

Read my pro tips section for texture variations and preferences.

How to Make Rajma Masala on Stovetop (Stepwise Photos)

Prepare rajma – soak & pressure cook

1. Add 1 cup rajma to a large bowl and rinse them well a few times in lot of water. Pour fresh water and soak for at least 8 hours and up to 12 hours. Soaking helps to soft cook them well.

While you soak them , do not cover the bowl completely. Beans need fresh air while they soak, so cover them with a mesh basket or a thin breathable cloth. This prevents Rajma from turning sticky. When you are ready to cook, discard the water and rinse them thoroughly.

2. Transfer soaked rajma to a stovetop pressure cooker or instant pot. Pour 1½ cups water and pressure cook until soft, for 4 to 5 whistles. Or in the instant pot for 12 to 16 mins, depending on the age of rajma. Once cooked they should be soft enough yet hold there shape. If you mash a rajma with your fingers it should get mashed easily.

If they are al dente pressure cook them again for 2 more whistles or for few more minutes while you make the masala.

3. For this recipe you will need

• 1 cup fine chopped onions (2 medium or grated or boiled & pureed)
• 1½ cups tomatoes (2 large, chopped & pureed, or 1 cup canned tomato puree)
• 1 green chili chopped (optional)
• 1 ½ teaspoon ginger garlic paste (or 1 teaspoon each minced & crushed)

Make Onion Tomato Masala

4. Heat 2 to 3 tablespoons ghee or oil in a pan. Add 1 bay leaf and half teaspoon cumin seeds (both are optional).

5. When the seeds begin to sizzle, add the onions and green chili.

6. Saute on a medium heat until deep golden, for about 4 to 5 minutes. Stir in the ginger garlic paste.

7. Saute for 30 to 60 seconds without burning.

8. Pour the pureed tomatoes and cook until the raw flavor of tomatoes is gone, for about 3 minutes.

9. Stir in the spices:

• ¼ teaspoon turmeric
• ½ to ¾ Kashmiri red chili powder (1 tsp for very hot)
• ¾ teaspoon garam masala
• 1½ to 2 teaspoon coriander powder
• ¾ to 1 teaspoon roasted cumin powder
• ½ teaspoon salt

10. Saute for 2 to 3 mins until aromatic.

11. Add the soft cooked rajma along with the stock (rajma cooked water). Pour more hot water, about ½ to 1 cup to bring it to a consistency. If using canned beans, drain the liquid and rinse them before adding here.

12. Mix well and cook for 10 to 15 mins. Taste test and add more salt, ¼ teaspoon garam masala (optional), ½ to 1 tablespoon kasuri methi (crushed in the palms first).

13. This is the consistency you will have. Optionally you may stir in 2 tablespoons heavy cream.

14. It will thicken upon cooling down a bit. Garnish with 2 tablespoons coriander leaves & half inch ginger juliennes if you want.

Sprinkle lemon juice while serving. Serve rajma hot with chawal (rice), onion and lemon wedges.

How to Make Rajma Masala in Pressure Cooker (Stepwise Photos)

Here I share pictures of making this in the instant pot but also writing the instructions for Indian stovetop cooker. I have tested this recipe in a 3 lts steel cooker and pressure pan for the number of whistles. However if you have a different cooker, you may need to cook for more whistles.

1. Heat a pressure cooker with 2 to 3 tablespoons ghee or oil. (For the instant pot, you will press the saute button and carry on). Add 1 small bay leaf, half teaspoon cumin seeds and onions and sprinkle ½ teaspoon salt. Sauté until the onions turn golden and about to caramelize. Stir in ginger garlic paste and saute for 30 to 60 seconds.

Do not burn and do not skip this step. Caramelized onions impart a wonderful flavor to the dish and they actually dissolve in the curry giving a thicker consistency. This step takes about 5 to 6 mins.

2. Add all the spice powders:

• ½ to ¾ teaspoon red chilli powder (Kashmiri)
• ¾ teaspoon garam masala
• 1½ to 2 teaspoons coriander powder
• 1 teaspoon roasted cumin powder

3. Turn off the heat (stove or instant pot – press cancel) and mix all the spices well. Do not burn them.

Make Rajma Masala

4. Add soaked, drained and rinsed rajma along with 2 cups water if cooking in instant pot. For the stove top Indian whistling cooker, pour 2 ¼ cups water. Mix and deglaze the pot well so any bits of food stuck at the bottom is released.

5. For the Stovetop Indian cooker, cover it and place the weight. Pressure cook for 4 to 5 whistles on a medium heat. Please note that number of whistles may vary depending on your cooker. Meanwhile pour the tomato puree to a small bowl/ pot and cook on a medium heat until it loses the raw flavor. Cover the pot partially as it splatters a bit. This takes about 5 to 6 mins.

Instant pot: Place a trivet inside the instant pot and place your tomato puree bowl over that. Secure the Instant pot with the lid, press the pressure cook button and set the timer to 18 mins.

6. After the pressure cooker is done, wait for the pressure to release naturally. (pic of cooked tomato puree)

7. Open the lid and check if the rajma is soft. They will have a melt in the mouth texture. This is what we are looking for. Mash them with a spoon and check. Super soft! Yet they hold their shape well. Now optionally mash 1 to 2 tbsps of rajma and add it back if you want a thicker gravy.

Finish the Dish

8. Mix well and pour the tomato puree and simmer for 2 to 4 mins. You won’t smell the raw tomatoes at all. If you want add more hot water to adjust the consistency. If you are not serving right away it thickens more as it rests and cools down. So if you want it runny, add about ½ to ¾ cup boiling hot water & simmer for 1 to 2 mins. (No cold water here!).

9. Taste test and adjust salt. Add more ¼ to ½ teaspoon garam masala if required along with ½ to 1 tablespoon kasuri methi. Stir and take off from heat.

Garnish rajma masala with chopped coriander leaves and fresh ginger juliennes.

Squeeze some lemon juice over the Rajma and serve with chawal / rice, sliced cucumbers and raw onions.

Pro Tips

Choosing Rajma: Always buy your rajma from a store where the stocks move out faster so you get fresher stock of beans. Old beans (aged beans) that have been in the shelves for a long time take longer to cook. Sometimes won’t cook at all. Avoid them at all cost as they also don’t digest well.

However if you want to use up the stock you already have you may brine them in salt or baking soda as mentioned below.

Soaking Rajma: Soak your kidney beans well for 8 to 12 hours. Soaking beans before cooking helps in easy digestion, without making you feel bloated and experience flatulence. This process not only softens the beans cutting down the cook time, but also cooks them to a smoother and creamier texture. Well-cooked rajma are easier to digest.

Avoid sticky rajma: Rajma tends to become sticky and slimy when soaked for too long or left in the stock for too long after cooking because they haven’t been prepared well. Avoid covering the bowl while soaking, beans need ample amount of air to breath as they soak. Cover with a mesh basket or a thin breathable cloth.

Also rinse them well after soaking and change the water at least once if soaking for longer than 8 hours.

Avoid eating undercooked rajma: Consuming undercooked rajma is extremely dangerous and can lead to health issues. For the same reason you should not be cooking unsoaked rajma.

How to Make Rajma Masala Thick?

Slow cooking for long time to some extent makes the curry thick. I know a lot of people mash the rajma lightly once they are cooked in the masala. Here are my tips which will help you to get a thick gravy

1. Blanch & puree the onions instead of grating or chopping.
2. Puree the tomatoes and use. Chopped or grated tomatoes often separate water in the gravy.
3. Blend/mash 2 tbsp of soft cooked rajma with little water and add it to the simmering gravy. Or puree them along with tomatoes & use. This will triple the taste, flavor & texture of your rajma masala. You will be surprised at how good your rajma smells & tastes.
4. I haven’t used any cream like they do in the restaurants. However you can add a bit towards the end if you like.

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Rajma Recipe first published in November 2015. Republished in June 2022.