Sunday, November 2, 2008

Red tales.... rajma chawal


i love the color red....be it my wedding benarasi (which is not quite so red), or the red sindur, or red pola, the color looks really happy and rich to me ....
the story of foods is not quite different..... i love red chillies(SRK's Red Chillies entertainment too!!),red tomatoes,cherries, red bell pepper and all that....(also note the red spoon on the plate!!)
Rajma is an all time favorite ..... for the color..... the taste and also because the curry tastes wonderful with the white steaming rice.....there's nothing like a plate of piping hot rajma chawal after a long tiring day!!!

Recipe:(serves 4)

Ingredients:
Rajma: 1 and 1/2 cup
Potatoes: 3-4 medium size diced
Onions: 1 medium cut into rings
Tomato:1 large diced
Ginger: 1" root finely ground
Whole spices: 1" Cinnamon roll, 4-5 cloves dry roasted and ground coarsely
Whole cumin seeds:1 tbsp
Cumin powder: 1/2tsp
Coriander powder: 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder:1 pinch
Natural Yogurt:3 tbsp
Salt and sugar to taste
Cooking oil
Slit green chillies


How to cook:

Pressure cook the rajma until soft , the skin should not be peeling.
Also boil the potatoes and keep aside.
In a cooking vessel heat 4tbsp oil and add the cumin seeds and the coarsely ground spice mix.
Wait till the smell comes out.
Then add the onion rings, and the ginger paste. Cook on low medium until the onions turn translucent and then add the tomatoes.
Increase the heat to medium and let the tomatoes soften.
To this add a pinch of turmeric powder, cumin powder, coriander powder , the rajma and potatoes .
Lower the heat and cook the mixture until the spices coat the beans and potatoes evenly.
Next add the yogurt and around 1/2 a cup of water . Increase the heat to medium and let the gravy thicken.
Add salt and sugar and the green chillies.

Serve hot with white rice.

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