Jammu-Style Rajma with Measured Rice
Jammu's small red rajma cooks to a creamy, thick gravy with whole spices and tomato; served with a measured portion of rice and curd, it is North India's most loved Sunday lunch.
- Region
- Jammu and Kashmir (Jammu, Bhaderwah-style rajma)
- Status
- Traditional
- Diet label
- Strictly vegetarian, egg-free
- Time
- Soak 8–10 h · Prep 15 min · Cook 50 min
- Serves
- 3
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Good for
- Weekend lunch, family meals, batch cooking
- Tags
- Good source · High fibre · No added sugar · Soy-free · Whey-free · Gluten-free* · Meal-prep friendly
- Allergens
- Milk (curd)
Nutrition (estimated)
- Calories
- 500 kcal
- Protein
- 21 g
- Carbs
- 79 g
- Fat
- 10 g
- Fibre
- 14 g
Headline values are for the full plate.
| kcal | Protein | Carbs | Fat | Sat fat | Fibre | Total sugars | Protein per 100 kcal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rajma only (about 250 g) | 265 | 13 g | 36 g | 7 g | 1 g | 13 g | 4 g | 5.0 g |
| Full plate: rajma, 50 g raw rice, 100 g curd | 500 | 21 g | 79 g | 10 g | 3 g | 14 g | 9 g | 4.0 g |
Good source (plate); the dish alone is High protein. Values checked against IFCT 2017 on 14 Oct 2026.
Ingredients
- 180 g rajma (small Jammu or Kashmiri red), dry
- 120 g onion, finely chopped · 200 g tomato, puréed · 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste · 1–2 green chillies
- 15 g groundnut or mustard oil (1 tbsp) · 1 tsp cumin seeds · 1 bay leaf · 2 cloves · 1 black cardamom
- ½ tsp turmeric · 1 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder · 1½ tsp coriander powder · ½ tsp garam masala · 5 g salt
- Plate: 150 g raw rice for 3 (50 g each) · 300 g curd (100 g each)
Method
- Soak rajma in 1 litre water for 8–10 hours. Drain and rinse.
- Pressure-cook with 750 ml water and 1 tsp salt for 1 whistle on high, then 25 minutes on low. Beans should crush easily against the roof of the mouth. Undercooked kidney beans can cause stomach upset; do not shorten this step.
- Heat oil. Add cumin, bay leaf, cloves and cardamom for 20 seconds.
- Add onion; cook 8 minutes on medium until deep golden.
- Add ginger-garlic paste and chillies for 1 minute, then tomato purée and powdered spices. Cook 8–10 minutes until the masala darkens and oil separates.
- Add rajma with its cooking liquid. Mash a ladleful of beans against the pan to thicken. Simmer 15 minutes, uncovered, until thick and creamy.
- Add garam masala. Serve with rice and curd.
Protein optimisation
- Rajma supplies 13 g per serving; rice 3.5 g; curd 3.5 g.
- Boost: serve 150 g hung-curd raita instead of 100 g curd (+8.5 g protein, +90 kcal).
Variations, serving and storage
- Regional: Punjabi rajma — finish with 1 tsp butter and crushed kasuri methi (adds about 25 kcal per serving).
- Substitution: large Chitra rajma or white lobia; cooking time varies.
- Lower-carbohydrate: serve rajma with a large salad and 1 roti instead of rice.
- Storage: rajma keeps 3 days refrigerated and freezes 2 months.
- Food safety: never use slow cookers alone for raw kidney beans; boil or pressure-cook fully first. Reheat until bubbling.
- Meal prep: excellent.
Nutrition values are estimates calculated from the Indian Food Composition Tables 2017 (ICMR-NIN) and typical product labels. They have not been laboratory-analysed and will vary with your ingredients, brands and cooking. Recipes are for healthy adults and are general information only, not a substitute for advice from a doctor or qualified dietitian. If you are pregnant or breastfeeding, cooking for children, have food allergies, or live with kidney disease, diabetes or any other medical condition, please take professional advice about your diet. From the collection Protein-Rich India by Dr. Shantanu Deshpande · drshantanudeshpande.com