Punjabi Rajmah (Punjabi-Style Kidney Beans)

If you're looking for a quick and easy curry to throw together, this definitely fits the bill. It's not as saucy as many curries. The sauce is thick and scoop-able rather than pour-able. Iyer recommends serving this one with naan and I agree. Especially since the thicker consistency makes it perfect for scooping up with naan rather than soaking into rice.

Punjabi Rajmah

Slightly adapted from 660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer

Ingredients

• 1 onion, minced very fine
• 3-4 fresh green Thai chiles
• 2 Tbsp. garlic paste¹
• 1 Tbsp. ginger paste²
• 1 Tbsp. amchoor (unripe mango powder)³
• 2 Tbsp. ghee
• 1/2 c. plain yogurt
• 1 c. water
• 2-3 c. cooked red kidney beans
• 1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro
• 1/2 tsp. Punjabi garam masala

Directions

1. Combine onion, chiles, garlic, ginger, and amchoor and mix well⁴.
2. Heat the ghee over medium-high heat and add the minced blend. Stir-fry for ~5 minutes. (Make sure you have good ventilation for this as the chiles will be very hard on your lungs otherwise.)
3. Add the yogurt and cook until dry and curd-like (~10-15 minutes).
4. Add water and beans and bring to a boil.
5. Reduce heat to medium and simmer, uncovered, for an additional 10-15 minutes.
6. Stir in the cilantro and garam masala.
7. Serve with warm naan.

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¹ Or, alternatively, 4 large cloves of garlic, crushed. ^Back
2 Fresh ginger also works here, I just find ginger paste more convenient. ^Back
3 If mango powder is unavailable, use lime juice instead. ^Back
4 If you have a food processor, you can skip mincing the onion and crushing the garlic and whatnot and just bung everything in and pulse until minced. If you go the food processor route, hold the amchoor back until everything else is minced and then sprinkle the powder in and mix it through at the end. Trying to add it at the beginning with everything else will result in clogs and chunks. ^Back