Rajma Curry/ Red Kidney Beans Curry

Rajma Curry with a dollop of sour cream for a hearty stew!

A Hearty vegetarian dish for a rainy, cold, spring day. It goes to   My Legume Love Affair # 57,  originally created by The Well Seasoned Cook and now managed by Lisa;  hosted  this month by PJ .

Simple Rajma Curry, 

Ma's recipe

A favourite from our childhood. This curry belonged to a group from Ma's repertoire that brought back fond memories of our time in the North. It reminded us of the Holi  celebrations there, something which was not celebrated in Kerala. Rajma, Boondi Raita,  and a  Chicken Curry was the norm for the celebrations. Ma always always made it with a raita: yougurt, ginger, green chillies, onions & tomatoes or a seasoned Boondi Raita. Rajma Chawal/ Rajma and Rice was a favourite Sunday lunch.

Apparently Ma's recipe changes slightly from time to time. 

However, the taste was consistent every time she made it.

When asked, she would say, "Sometimes I add a little bit of garam masala or the one for the Chana or else just this..."

Soaked Kidney Beans ready for pressure cooking with  a clove of black cardamom and bits of ginger and garlic from the 'mixie wash'!!!

Notes

• **Tomatoes are used according to their sourness, use less or more according to taste
• Red Chilli powder is also used the same way
• Substitute with green chillies; according to taste
• *Soaking Time for kidney beans: 6-8 hours depending on the variety. 
• Cooking Time  for Kidney Beans in Pressure Cooker: 20-30 minutes, Plus 10 minutes for simmer.

Ingredients

1 1/2 Cup dried  kidney beans/ red rajma used here

**Tomatoes: approximately 2 Cups

Onions-1/2 cup, finely chopped

Garlic-2 cloves

Ginger-1 tsp chopped

Cinnamon- 1/2 piece

Cloves-1

Green Cardamom- 1 

Black Cardamom -1

Bay Leaf - a peice

Turmeric Powder-1/4 tsp

Red Chilli powder -1/2 tsp or according to taste

Oil- 1/4 Cup

Garnish

Optional but affects the taste! : A teaspoon of Ghee/ Clarified Butter

Fresh chopped coriander for garnish.

Method

Soak the Rajma overnight in plenty/ double the amount of cold water

Rinse thoroughly and use fresh water to cover the Rajma with  3/4 - 1 inch of water.

Add one clove of black cardamom and salt

*Pressure cook for one whistle on medium heat

Turn the heat down slightly and cook for another 10-15 minutes.

Grind the green cardamom, clove and cinnamon along with the 

tomato, ginger  and garlic.

Finely chop the  onions 

Heat oil and temper the cumin seeds, 

Saute the chopped onions until soft, 

Add the tomato, ginger and garlic paste 

Saute on medium high heat until the oil separates.

Add the turmeric powder and red chilli powder

Add the Bay leaf

Saute for a couple of minutes

Add the cooked kidney beans with the black cardamom

Simmer for 10 minutes.

or

Add the masala paste to the cooked kidney beans in the pressure cooker

Cook on medium high for one whistle

Switch off.

Serve with  a garnish of finely chopped coriander

The Workhorse of the Indian Kitchen: Pressure Cooking Chickpeas and Lentils

Steam escaping sharply from a pressure cooker, was part of our morning memories. This steam carried with it  the fragrance  and the promise of our meals for the day. 

It goes to Cindy's  Black and White Wednesdays # 73 originally created by Susan and hosted this week by Zorra.

The unsung heroine's of our daily lives toiled within the cramped kitchen's, managing the patriarchal expectations of a 'complete Indian meal'. This 'complete Indian meal' had elastic boundaries, stretching to include festivals and fasts, snacks and guests,  pampered children and fancies, grandchildren and treats, assorted neighbours and sweetmeats, friends and more family. It arranged the heroine's routine, from her first waking moments to when her work ended. But wait, perhaps it also  inordinately occupied our heroine's sleep, dreams and thoughts. This fairly impossible task would have been herculean without the sturdy, Indian pressure cooker. Through this important role, the dependable contraption has moulded itself to our cuisine and social fabric. 

This has been obliquely acknowledged by our patriarchal Indian guardians. In a cliched advertisement which caters to our notions of the ideal Indian woman and her doting husband...  Jo Biwi Se Kare Pyaar / The one who loves his wife... the pressure cooker figures prominently. This was followed by parodies  in popular culture, of an exploding pressure cooker for spouses who did not like their wives  or for brides, who did not bring the expected dowry. The pressure cooker figured prominently among the common incidents, given for a dowry death.  Exploding cooking gas cylinders were the other common one.

However despite this dark side, there is little dispute that the Pressure Cooker has taken Indian cuisine easily ( with most traditional elements intact) into our modern lives! Perhaps in a twisted way,  don't we Indian women efficiently manage our kitchen, churning out made-from-scratch, nutritious food and all cooked in a healthy method to boot? This apart from managing our studies and careers when compared to  our sisters  in the west?  Why have we  not rec'd any kudos for this feat?!! :-D!

Green Peas Kachori with Dum Aloo / Koraishuttir Kachuri & Alur Dom

Happy that I could use this winter recipe from Bengal, and cater to a little nostalgia from a recent trip

• Part of the   South Vs. North Challenge created by  Divya Pramil of  You Can Cook Indian Food
• Recipe challenge by Sanoli's Kitchen Koraishuttir Kachori with Spicy Dam Aloo.

I found several  versions of Bengali Dum Aloo/ Alur Dom  in the blogosphere. Though similar to the Adraki Aloo Tamatar, this has  a roasted flavour. Everyone has a favourite with variations in spicing. I have used Sanoli's recipe but have also adapted Sangeeta's Mottorshuttir Kachuri and Alur Dom recipe. Had bookmarked it for sometime and finally got an opportunity to make it. Her tip on making the green peas filling is specially appreciated. Thank you!