In a kadhai, mix the cooked rajma, half a litre water, chopped garlic, chopped ginger, whole green chili and little bit of salt for taste. Let it boil.
While the rajma is boiling, heat some oil in another pan.
Add to this cumin seeds, cloves and brown cardamom. Saute, crackle and fry these spices to release their flavors.
Now add the chopped onion. Saute till the onions turn brownish.
Add to this the chopped ginger and chopped garlic. Saute them all together.
Now add the aromatics i.e turmeric powder, red chilli powder, coriander powder, cumin powder and little salt for taste.
Turn up the heat and dry roast all the powdered spices. Mix them all well.
Add a little bit of water to this onion-spice mix to bhuno the spices.
Let the pan dry up of all the water you added. When the pan screams out for more moisture that’s when you add the tomatoes.
Add the tomatoes. Add a pinch of sugar to balance the acidity, to bring out the flavor of tomatoes and also to aid caramelization of the aromatics.
Mix the onions, tomatoes and spices well. Add some water to prevent the mix from drying out.
Now add the green chillies and some coriander leaves.
Mix well for a minute or two.
Now remove the pan from the heat and add this spice mix to the kadhai in which the rajma was boiling.
For some extra flavor add some water in which the rajma is boiling to the spice mix pan. De-glaze all the flavors and then add it back to the kadhai with rajma.
Turn up the heat and add butter and curd. Mix them well with the rajma.
Squeeze half a lime into the rajma.
Cover it, lower the heat and let the rajma simmer for about 10 – 15 minutes.
Stir a bit. You can garnish with coriander leaves as well and then serve the rajma hot with rice.
