Preparations:

Soak Red Kidney Beans overnight. If you have forgotten to do it, take a Thermos flask and add the beans to it. Heat some water on high power in a microwave oven for 5 minutes. Add the hot water to the beans in the flask. Cover the flask with its lid tightly and keep it aside for 3 to 4 hours. Remove the soaked beans from the flask to a bowl. If required add some more water and place this bowl in a pressure cooker and cook the beans. When pressure is fully developed in the pressure cooker, lower the flame and cook for 20 to 25 minutes. Remove the bowl when the pressure cooker has completely cooled off. Check whether the beans are fully cooked or not. They should be soft when pressed between fingers or when pressed with a spoon. Peel the onions and chop them finely. Wash and clean ginger and mince it. Wash and chop the tomatoes finely. Crush cinnamon, cloves and big cardamom to a fine powder. Keep this garammasala powder aside.

Method:

Heat a pan and add oil to it. When the oil is hot add cumin seeds followed by asafoetida. Then add the curry leaves and fry well. Now add the chopped onions, minced ginger and fry till onions are transparent. Add bay leaves, turmeric powder, red chili powder, powdered garammasala and chopped tomatoes. Mix well and add salt. Mix and cover the vessel. Cook the masala for 3 minutes or till tomatoes are soft. Remove the lid and mash the tomatoes with the back of the ladle. Now add the cooked beans and mix well. Take some beans from the boiling curry and grind to a coarse paste. Add this paste to the curry and mix well. This would make the gravy thick. Cover the vessel and cook on slow flame for 5 minutes to bring the curry to right consistency. Add cream to the boiling curry. Mix well and cook for 2 minutes. Transfer the curry to a serving bowl and garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

Points to Notice:

Red kidney beans popularly known as Rajma beans are rich in protein and fiber. They are the richest in fiber of all pulses.

When there is shortage of vegetables at home these pulses come handy to make healthy dishes.

Tip:

As an option for cream, grind some low fat paneer with water to a smooth texture and add to the dish. This also gives a good taste. For calorie conscious people this is a useful tip.