Rajma
Plus green tomato pickle.
Here is a dish that's easy, decadent or decadent-adjacent and good for the environment.
Can such a dish even exist? Yes! It's rajma.
Rajma masala is a Punjabi dish, rajma means red kidney bean. I hope that as they did for me, red kidney beans will unlock a new source of creaminess and depth for you. It’s very simple! Here’s how you make it.
Ingredients: Red kidney beans, onions, tomatoes, coriander, cumin, mustard seeds, garam masala, turmeric
Steps:
Cook red kidney beans. I cooked about two cups for about an hour or so, with a bay leaf or two, salt and a hot pepper. Mash just a touch the red beans when they’re close to done, to help release even starch to achieve the creamy texture. You can use both the cooked beans and any remaining liquid in the rajma.
Add a teaspoon each of the whole spices and let bloom a bit, then add a pinch or so of the powdered spices.
A v. non-traditional de-glazing of the pan with beer.
Add handful of onions and let brown, then add a handful of tomatoes (I used two small tomatoes from my garden plus a 1/4 cup approx of boxed diced tomatoes). I’d say a general guideline of one part tomatoes, two parts onion, four or five parts beans.
Add cooked beans (or substitute canned beans) and let mix and heat thoroughly.
Rajma, like all bean dishes, is so versatile too. You can have it with roti and rice, but you can also have it with grilled bread (that’s how I’m eating it!) You can use them as a taco filling, or make rajma dip? I wonder if someone in the UK is making a rajma hand pie right now. Right now as I write maybe!
I also made a quick green tomato pickle to go with it. Diced green tomatoes, pinch of salt, pinch of turmeric, dash of apple cider vinegar, because it’s always nice to have a sharp acid that cuts through a rich dish.
That’s all for now. I’ll see y’all on the other side of this election!
