This instant pot rajma is the ultimate comfort food when served with steaming hot rice. You get the soft, melt-in-your-mouth kind kidney beans in delicious, flavorful onion tomato gravy.
2tablespoonsCilantro or coriander leavesfinely chopped
Instructions
Soaking Rajma:
Take rajma in a colander and wash under running cold water until water runs clear.
Soak them in enough water (about 2-3 inches above the beans) for at least 8 hours or overnight. After that discard the soaking water. The beans get double in size and get lighter in color.
Making Rajma In Instant Pot:
Turn on the instant pot with saute mode. Once hot add oil and onion. Sprinkle a little salt to speed up the cooking process. Mix and saute until onions get soft and light pink or translucent. It takes around 2-3 mins.
Then add ginger, garlic and slit green chili. Mix and saute for 30-40 seconds or until the raw smell of ginger garlic goes away.
Then add chopped tomatoes. Mix and cook until they become soft and about to be mushy. It may take around 2-3 mins.
Now add remaining salt, turmeric powder, red chili powder, coriander powder and cumin powder. Mix and saute for 30-40 seconds.
Then add soaked rajma and fresh water. Stir to mix everything well.
Cover it with the lid, keep the vent to sealing. Cancel the saute mode and cook on manual (high) for 25 minutes. Let it NPR (natural pressure release), when the pin drops open the lid. If in a rush then let it NPR for 10 mins and then release the pressure manually. Now with the back of the spatula mash a few beans to thicken the gravy.
Now add garam masala and amchur powder, mix.
If you need to thicken the gravy more then let it simmer on saute until you get the desired gravy consistency.
Lastly, garnish with fresh chopped cilantro and serve.
Notes
Instant Pot Rajma Chawal Recipe using PIP (Pot-in-pot) methodTraditionally, the rajma chawal dish has white rice (basmati or any other regular rice) served. When cooking in IP using PIP method rajma takes 25 minutes to cook and basmati rice takes only 4-8 minutes only. So we cannot cook basmati rice here like we did in instant pot dal fry.But brown rice takes 20-25 minutes in IP. So here we can use that for PIP method.
Wash and soak 1 cup of brown rice for 30 minutes to 1 hours as time permits. If no time, no need to soak.
After that discard the soaking water, take soaked rice in steel container along with 1 ½ cups water and pinch of salt.
Follow the above procedure for rajma. After you add water, put the tall trivet in it.
Place the rice container on the trivet. Cover with lid.
Cook on manual (high pressure) for 25 minutes and let the pressure release naturally.
Instant Pot Rajma Recipe using canned red kidney beansFollow the same procedure with below changes only.
two 15 oz can = 1 cup dried
Reduce the water quantity to 1 cup only.
Cook on manual (high pressure) for 8 minutes.
If using canned kidney beans then you can cook basmati rice (not brown rice) using PIP method because both gets cooked in almost same time.