Whenever I'm in a dilemma to decide what to cook for dinner and have enough leftovers to pack for lunch next day, I go for a quick one pot meal like pulao. You can make a variety of pulao varying the vegetables, greens, lentils and legumes, so that you don't get bored. Browse through the different quick and delicious pulao recipes already posted in the blog.
Today's pulao recipe is a healthy, delicious and protein packed recipe. Kidney beans as you all know is a good source of dietary fiber and also a very good source of proteins for vegetarians. If you have some leftover cooked kidney beans or canned ones, then making this pulao is a breeze. A simple onion tomato raita is enough to complete the meal. Now let's see how to make this rajma pulao.
RAJMA PULAO RECIPE
{ Quick pulao with red kidney beans and Indian spices }Serves 3 -4
Ingredients:
1 cup basmati rice
1 cup cooked kidney beans / rajma
1 tbsp oil
1 tsp butter / ghee
1 bay leaf
¼-inch cinnamon
1 clove
1 cardamom
1 tsp cumin seeds / jeera
1/8 tsp fennel seeds / sombu
1 medium onion, sliced
1 tsp ginger -garlic paste
1 small tomato, pureed
¼ tsp turmeric powder
¾ tsp red chilly powder
1 tsp coriander-cumin powder
½ tsp garam masala
½ tsp dry mango powder / amchur powder
1 tsp kasuri methi / dried fenugreek leaves
Few coriander sprigs, finely chopped
Salt to taste
Method:
1. Soak the rice for 30 minutes. If using dry kidney beans, soak overnight and pressure cook until soft.
2. In a kadai, heat oil and butter. Add bay leaf, cinnamon, cardamom, clove and cumin seeds. Once spices crackle, add onion and fry until soft.
3. Add ginger-garlic paste, tomato and fry till soft and mushy. Then add turmeric powder, red chilly powder, coriander powder, garam masala, amchur powder and kasuri methi.
4. Fry for 2-3 minutes, then add kidney beans, salt, coriander leaves, drained rice and mix well. Add 1 ½ cup water and bring to boil.
5. Once the rice is ¾ cooked, reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook until the rice is soft. Remove from heat and gently fluff the rice with fork.Notes and Tips
- You can also use canned kidney beans (1 tin / 400g).
- Adjust spices according to you preference.
- You can also transfer the contents to pressure cooker at the end and pressure cook for 1-2 whistles.
