How To Make Rajma Chawal Recipe (Instant Pot)

Instant Pot Rajma Chawal is a delicious meal your whole family will love. The Instant Pot makes preparing this hearty vegetarian recipe easy enough for a busy night. Leftovers store well and make perfect nutritious lunches to fuel your family’s day.

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DRIED BEANS IN THE INSTANT POT

If you are not making dried beans in your Instant Pot, it’s time to start my friend! The Instant Pot makes preparing dried beans fast and easy.

If you make dried beans on the stove top,  you need to soak your dried beans before cooking them to remove some of the sugars found in beans, which helps with digestion. With the Instant Pot, soaking your beans prior to cooking them is optional! For more information on cooking dried beans in the Instant Pot, check out my post, Instant Pot Black Beans / Chickpeas / Kidney Beans, for tricks and tips to cooking the perfect beans with or without soaking them first..  

WHAT IS RAJMA ( Red Kidney beans)?

Rajma is a traditional vegetarian dish made with dried kidney beans in a thick, Indian spiced curry. The flavorful sauce of the rajma chawal curry is hearty and packed with an assortment of whole spices to create maximum flavor. Rajma chawal is a very easy, vegetarian meal perfect to serve your family on weeknights or weekends alike. The kidney beans (Rajma) are full of fiber and protein, which makes them very filling. Rajma chawal also makes an excellent meal to prepare for your family’s lunches for the week. It will fill their bellies so they can focus and stay full until dinner.

RAJMA CHAWAL IS SUPER EASY TO MAKE

Rajma chawal is easy to make in the Instant Pot. And the best part is, you only need one pot to cook it in and a blender - so you won’t be buried in dishes when you are done cooking this amazing meal for your family. Though I use dried rajma  that was soaked  for 2 hours to overnight, you can short cut the process if you use pre-cooked beans. You can also skip the soaking process altogether when you use the Instant pot.

HOW TO MAKE RAJMA IN AN INSTANT POT?

• To start, this recipe calls for soaked beans for at least 2 hours in hot water, however you can use no soak beans as well and the cook time in instant pot will change to 1 hour and 10 minutes.
• When you are ready to make the rajma, add the onions, tomatoes, ginger, and garlic to a high speed blender and puree them together on high.
• Once you make the puree, plug in your Instant Pot and press the SAUTE button. Once it is hot, add the oil, cumin seeds, green chillies  andbay leaf. Next, add the puree (tomato and onion). Cook on saute for 5 to 6 minutes.

• Once the mixture has sauteed for a few minutes, add in the salt, rajma masala, red chili powder, and stir it all together. Finally, add the soaked kidney beans and water.
• Switch off the SAUTE setting by pressing the “Cancel” button on the Instant Pot. Now close the lid on the Instant Pot  and select PRESSURE COOK/MANUAL on HIGH for 30 minutes. Make sure the Pressure Valve is set to SEALING.

• Once the Pot beeps off, use the Quick release to remove the pressure. Carefully open the lid. 
• Finally, add in the dried fenugreek leaves and garnish with cilantro leaves. You should serve the rajma hot with rice or naan.

CAN I MAKE RAJMA AND CHAWAL IN AN INSTANT POT USING THE POT IN POT METHOD?

Yes, you can cook brown rice, while making Rajma. But, instead of using dried beans, you will need to use pre-cooked Rajma. For more information on how to use the pot in pot method in the Instant Pot, check out my post  Instant Pot Black Beans / Chickpeas / Kidney Beans for how to precook the beans. 

HOW CAN I FREEZE RAJMA CHAWAL?

If you want to freeze your Rajma to serve later, allow the rajma to cool to room temperature. Spoon the rajma into a freezer safe container or a quart size freezer bag - just be sure to squeeze the extra air out before placing it in the freezer.

HOW DO I SERVE RAJMA / WHAT DO I SERVE RAJMA WITH?

Rajma pairs well with basmati rice. Rice helps to soak up the extra rajma gravy. You can also pair rajma with quinoa or other whole grain or, you can serve rajma with naan or roti. They offer a great way to soak up the extra gravy.

How to make Rajma on a Stovetop Pressure Cooker?

Follow the same steps as above. Just cook the rajma on stovetop pressure cooker for 2-3 whistles on high heat, then set the heat to medium and cook for another 15-20 minutes.

CAN I USE CANNED / PRE-COOKED RAJMA? 

Yes! You can use canned, pre-cooked instead of dried beans. This works well if you forgot to soak the beans or you are really short on time ,you only have canned beans on hand, just make sure you rinse the beans before adding it to the masala .

When you use pre-cooked or canned beans, you need to adjust the pressure cooking time and water. Otherwise, the rest of the steps are the same. You only need a cup of water when using cooked beans. You have to adjust the cook time to 5 minutes.

WHAT DO I DO IF I FORGET TO SOAK RAJMA?

No problem! If you don’t presoak the beans, you just need to adjust the pressure cooking time to 1 hour and 10 minutes. 

Why is rajma chawal so famous?

To simply put, the primary reason for rajma chawal being so famous is the taste. The rajma cooked in thick and tangy gravy and poured over rice is simply out of this world.

What do you eat with rajma chawal?

Rajma Chawal is a complete dish in itself and does not need anything else to be served with it. You can certainly add a scoop of yogurt to take it to the next level.

HOW DO YOU KNOW IF THE RAJMA CHAWAL IS PROPERLY COOKED?

Cooked rajma has a soft texture and feel to it. You should be able to easily poke or cut  the beans with a fork. The rajma should also thicken some. If it is too loose, you can use the saute function to reduce the amount of water in the chawal. You just need to make sure you stir it frequently. About 3 to 5 minutes should help thicken the sauce more if you like it thicker.

If you make this recipe, Don’t forget to come back and leave your feedback and star rating. We would be THRILLED if you would take a pic and tag us on Instagram @dbellyrulesdmind or Facebook @thebellyrulesthemind 

Instant Pot Rajma Chawal Recipe

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4.9 from 262 reviews

• Author: Soniya Saluja
• Total Time: 1 hours
• Yield: 4
• Diet: VegetarianDiet

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Description

Instant Pot Rajma Chawal is a delicious meal your whole family will love. The Instant Pot makes preparing this hearty vegetarian recipe easy enough for a busy night. Leftovers store well and make perfect nutritious lunches to fuel your family’s day.

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Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

• 1 cup Dried Kidney Beans / Rajma - Soak overnight or for 2 hours
• 2 cups Water
• 1 cup Onion
• 3 Tomato
• 4 garlic cloves
• ½ inch fresh ginger
• 1 tbsp Ghee or oil
• 3 green chilis
• 1 tsp Cumin seeds
• 1 Bay Leaf
• Salt as per taste
• 1 tsp Red chilli powder or paprika
• 2 tbsp Rajma Masala
• 1 tbsp Kasoori Methi
• 1 tsp turmeric powder

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Instructions

Soak the kidney beans overnight or at least for 2 hours in hot water
Add  the Onions,Tomatoes,Ginger and Garlic in a high speed blender and make a puree.

Press the SAUTE button.When HOT , add oil , cumin seeds,Bay leaf .Add the onion + tomatoes ginger and garlic puree  and saute for 5 -6 minutes .

Add in the salt, rajma masala, red chili powder ,turmeric powder and give it a stir.

Add the soaked kidney beans and water.
Switch off the SAUTE setting , Close the lid, Select PRESSURE COOK/MANUAL on HIGH,Set the timer for 30 minutes,Pressure Valve at SEALING.

 Quick release the pressure
Open the lid. Add in the fenugreek leaves and garnish with cilantro leaves
Serve with basmati rice.

 
If cooking with precooked Rajma or Canned Red kidney Beans
If using pre cooked kidney beans or canned  in this rajma recipe, cook for just 5 minutes on high pressure and reduce the water to 1 cup . You can do a POT in POT method and cook white rice together.

No soak Rajma
If you forgot to soak the kidney beans  you can still make it . It will take about 1:10 minutes to cook on high pressure. You will also have to add more water as soaked beans absorb some water. I would suggest 3 cups water for 1 cup of beans Ratio.

How to make Rajma on a Stovetop Pressure Cooker?

Follow the same steps as above. Just cook the rajma on stovetop pressure cooker for 2-3 whistles on high heat, then set the heat to medium and cook for another 15-20 minutes.

• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Additional Time: 15 minutes
• Cook Time: 30 minutes
• Cuisine: Indian

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1
• Calories: 352
• Sugar: 10
• Sodium: 333
• Fat: 10
• Saturated Fat: 3
• Unsaturated Fat: 6
• Trans Fat: 0
• Carbohydrates: 54
• Fiber: 13
• Protein: 17
• Cholesterol: 10