Low Carb 'Rajma Chawal' bean stew let's me indulge in my comfort food

similar to Indian kidney bean stew but with lower carb beans

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There are some dishes that scream nostalgia and comfort food. Rajma Chawal (kidney bean stew with rice) and Cholle Chawal (chickpea stew with rice) are two such Indian dishes that I grew up with. My mom would soak the beans the night before and next day in school, I would dream all day of coming home and savoring the warm spicy rich stew with fluffy & fragrant basmati rice. I would smell the aromas emanating from my childhood home before I even got to the front door and a huge grin would spread across my face. I still get equally happy whenever I prepare this dish, with the excitement beginning the night before.

Select Nutrition Facts of Low Carb Rajma Stew Recipe.

However, sometimes I want to eat low carb meals. But both rajma (kidney beans) or cholle (chickpeas) can be carb-heavy, especially when combined with rice. So I began my search for a lower-carb bean option that would be a good substitute in these dishes. While lupini beans are known to be low carb & high protein, they require extensive multiple day washing and soaking to remove the bitterness and the toxins. It did not seem like an accessible substitute for this. More recently I learned about black soybeans that are lower in carbs compared to kidney beans or chickpeas and with a pretty similar cooking process.

Table with select nutrition facts for four types of beans per 100g dry uncooked beans.

Of course I was familiar with white soybeans and derived products like tofu that are protein packed. But black soybeans, which are high protein and low carb, are completely new to me. This had me intrigued and I went on a quest to buy them. I visited multiple Asian stores in London and finally found a pack at a Korean market. In the future, I would try Asian stores in the US or buy them on amazon.

Packet of Black Soybeans.

Similar to other beans, I started with soaking the black soybeans overnight in water after washing them a couple of times. I soaked 100g of beans in 3 cups of water. The next day the beans had grown to nearly 3-4 times their size. These seem to be quite thirsty! The outer shell of some of the beans had started to come off, displaying a green berry underneath.

Black Soybeans: dry, after overnight soak, washed prior to cooking.

I discarded the soaking water and washed the beans 3 times with fresh water before beginning the cooking process. I would have liked to use a pressure cooker to soften these beans, however, my temporary kitchen in London does not have one. Instead I boiled & simmered them in 5 cups of water with some baking soda (0.5 tsp). I brought the beans to a rolling boil and then reduced the heat to low-medium and let them simmer semi-covered with occasional stirring. It took ~1.5 hours for these beans to soften.

In order to turn these into a rajma style dish, I followed the basics of building the aromatics of a North Indian dish using a few spices available in my temporary kitchen. Rajma typically has a tangy tomato-based curry that complements the soft beans perfectly. I sautéed cumin seeds (1 tbsp) in hot oil (1.25 tbsp) for 30 seconds, chopped red onions (100g) for 5-7 mins until they softened, followed by crushed ginger & garlic (1 tbsp each) for ~1 min. I then added tomato paste (1 tbsp) and tomato sauce (200g) and cooked this for 5-7 mins on low-medium heat until the flavors develop. Fresh tomatoes or canned chopped tomatoes can also be used but should be cooked longer to get the flavor development. Finally, I added spice powders like turmeric (0.5 tbsp), cumin (0.5 tbsp), coriander (1 tbsp), garam masala (0.5 tbsp), and salt (to taste). I let these spices simmer into the aromatics for 3-4 mins and then added the softened black soybeans and simmered for additional 20 mins for the flavors & textures to marry. I discarded ~0.5 cups of water from the beans since I wanted a thicker gravy, but this is adjustable.

I served these with a dollop of greek yogurt and wished I had fresh coriander to garnish it. However, these would be excellent with fluffy basmati rice to mirror closer the Rajma Chawal nostalgic experience.

Overall, I am quite happy with the results. While the black soybeans were not as ‘melted’ as the kidney beans would be in a rajma dish, the aromatics and the spices made up for it through massive flavor. I have a sneaky feeling pressure cooking would bring the texture even closer to rajma. In the future I am excited to try these low carb beans in Mexican-style dishes like fajita burrito bowls.

Would you try this low carb option when craving Rajma Chawal, a cosy comfort dish to millions of people?

Dish Debrief

• Is this my winner or disaster? winner

• How would I rate this dish out of 10? 8/10

• What would I change next time? use pressure cooker to soften beans

• Would I make this again? for sure