JH RAJMA WHITE 500GRM

Why chitra, and not the big red bean

Both are kidney beans. They cook and eat quite differently.

Rajma chitra is smaller, mottled tan-and-brown, with a noticeably thinner skin. It softens faster, absorbs masala more readily, and turns creamy inside while the skin stays intact. Cooks in Jammu, Himachal and Punjab tend to reach for it first.

The large dark red bean is meatier and holds its shape more stubbornly. Excellent in its own right — we sell that too — but it takes longer and gives a chunkier result.

If you like your rajma thick and unctuous rather than brothy with distinct beans in it, chitra is the one.

The numbers stand up

• 24 g protein per 100 g — roughly 27% of the bean's calories
• 15 g dietary fibre — well over double the threshold for a high-fibre food
• 8 mg iron and 140 mg magnesium
• 354 mcg folate — more than a full adult day's requirement
• 3 mg zinc, with only 1 g fat and 6 mg sodium

Unpolished, like everything else we sell

Most pulses on the Indian market are polished — water, oil, sometimes talc or added colour — so the bag looks uniform. It's purely cosmetic and it strips part of the outer layer.

Ours aren't. The beans vary in shade and speckling from one to the next. That's what a bean sorted for quality rather than appearance looks like.

There are some sound reasons to eat organic food:

• It tastes good — safe, nutritious, unadulterated food
• It does not use any hazardous chemicals
• It is produced without antibiotics or growth-promoting drugs
• It is eco-friendly
• It is produced without Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs)
• It reduces dependency on non-renewable resources

How to cook rajma properly — worth reading

Kidney beans of every colour are the one pulse where method genuinely matters. Raw and undercooked beans contain a natural compound that causes stomach upset, and proper boiling destroys it completely. This applies to chitra exactly as it does to red rajma.

1. Soak 8–12 hours, or overnight, in plenty of water.
2. Discard the soaking water. Don't cook in it.
3. Boil hard in fresh water for at least 10 minutes before reducing the heat or moving to the pressure cooker. A rolling boil, not a simmer.
4. Then pressure-cook 3–4 whistles — chitra needs less time than red rajma — or simmer until a bean crushes easily between your fingers.

Never cook rajma from raw in a slow cooker or on a low simmer. Low heat without a proper boil is the one method that doesn't work.

Cooked this way it's entirely safe, and always has been. Most packs simply don't tell you.

What to make with it

Who this is for

Serious rajma cooks · North Indian and Punjabi kitchens · High-protein and plant-forward households · Vegetarians tracking iron and folate · Anyone who's found large red rajma too firm or too slow

Key Features

• HIGH IN PROTEIN — 24 g per 100 g, around 27% of its calories
• HIGH IN DIETARY FIBRE — 15 g per 100 g
• RICH IN IRON — 8 mg per 100 g
• RICH IN MAGNESIUM — 140 mg per 100 g
• EXCELLENT SOURCE OF FOLATE — 354 mcg per 100 g
• A SOURCE OF ZINC — 3 mg per 100 g
• CERTIFIED ORGANIC — SGS Organic (NPOP/NAB/009) and IMO Control certified, carrying the India Organic mark
• WHOLE & UNPOLISHED — no oil polish, no water polish, no artificial glaze
• COOKS FASTER THAN RED RAJMA — thinner skin, creamier result
• LOW FAT & LOW SODIUM — 1 g fat, 6 mg sodium per 100 g
• NO PRESERVATIVES, ARTIFICIAL COLOURS OR FLAVOURING CHEMICALS
• GROWN WITHOUT SYNTHETIC PESTICIDES — non-GMO, chemical-free farming
• 100% VEGETARIAN — green dot certified
• FSSAI LICENSED — Lic. No. 20725038003114

Nutrition Facts (per 100 g, as printed on pack)

Approx. Percent daily values are based on a 2000 calorie diet. Daily values not established.

Storage

Store in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight. Reseal the pouch after every use, or transfer to an airtight container.

Certifications

SGS Organic (NPOP/NAB/009) · IMO Control Certified Organic · India Organic · FSSAI Lic. No. 20725038003114 · ISO 9001:2008 · ISO 14001:2004 · ISO 22000:2005 · 100% Vegetarian (Green Dot)