Rajma & Jeera Chawal - Punjabi Special

Punjab, a state from Northern India and shares its border with Himachal Pradesh,Haryana and Rajasthan in east,south and southwest and Paksitani province of Punjab in the west.Their cuisine is well known for the varieties of foods. Staple food of a Punjabi is chappathi or roti, they use different wheat in making them and use rice only for special occasions. Some Punjabis are strictly vegetarian while a group of Punjabis consumes non vegetarian foods. You will be able to taste varieties of spices in homemade foods while the foods cooked in Punjabi restaurants aka dhabbas will be filled with cream and butter. Since rotis are the staple food of Punjabis they use either wheat or maize,they consume dals like yellow moongdal and black gram in their cuisine often. Milk based dishes are very popular in Punjabi food. This cuisine will also have rustivc touch,in rural areas people will use tandoors to cook their dishes,this method of cooking food gives a fabulous taste and hence tandoor dishes are world famous dishes liked by many peoples around the world.

Punjabi foods are rich in proteins and the famous dishes prepared with pulses,beans and legumes are Dal Makhani,choley,Dal Amritsari,Rajma, Sarson da saag,while the famous breads are Naans,parathas,Kulcha, Tandoori roti, Pulka. Do you know the popular combination dishes of Punjab?, Sarson do saag with makki ke rotis (mustard greens with corn roti), Bhatura and pindi chole (puffy maida puri with channa) Rajma with Jeera chawal (red kidney beans with cumin rice) Aloo paratha with dahi (potato paratha with curd) Dal Makhani with tandoori roti (black gram& red beans curry with roti cooked in tandoor oven). Their food is not complete with pickle,salad and definitely lassi. Punjabis are font of breads,but still they cook rice to have with rajma or just flavor them with cumin,fried onions. During winter, rice is cooked like a sweet dish with jaggery, sugar cane juic and this dish is calle Rao ki kheer.I picked a traditional Punjabi dish Rajma, which i served with cumin rice for our lunch. Both makes a prefect pair and we had a satisfying lunch.

Cumin Rice/Jeera Chawal:
 1cup Rice
1tsp Cumin seeds
1no Bay leaf
1no Black cardamom
Salt
2cups Water
Oil

Soak the washed rice in water for half an hour, drain the rice.

Heat oil in a pan, fry the bayleaf, black cardamom.

Add the cumin seeds and fry until they turns brown.

Now add the rice and fry for few minutes, add the 2cups of water,salt and cook in medium flame until the rice gets cooked.

Put off the stove, keep aside.

Recipe Source: Sanjeev Kapoor
1cup Red kidney beans (soaked overnite)
2nos Onions (chopped)
3nos Tomatoes (chopped)
1inch Ginger (chopped)
6nos Garlic cloves (chopped)
1tbsp Coriander powder
1tsp Chilly powder
1/4tsp Turmeric powwder
1tsp Cumin powder
Salt
Oil
1tsp Garam masala powder
Chopped coriander leaves

Pressure cook the rajma with 4cups of water upto 3whistles.

Heat enough oil in a pan, add the bayleaves, fry it, add the chopped onions and cook until they turns golden.

Add the chopped ginger,garlic,cook for few minutes.

Add the spice powder and cook, now add the tomatoes,salt and cook until the tomatoes gets cooked.

Add the rajma with the cooked water, cook in low flame for few minutes.

Now add the garam masala, cook for few more mintues.

Put off the stove, add the coriander leaves and serve hot.