Rajma: all the comfort, a lot less ghee.
Rajma is kidney beans in an onion and tomato gravy, and the beans do the heavy lifting. Cook it in a little oil and finish with yogurt instead of cream, and a serving goes from 364 to 290 kcal.
- 290 kcal a serving, down from 364 for the classic, with 17 g protein, 47 g carbs and 5 g fat
- 2 swaps, each with what it does to a serving, and 2 ways to add protein, up to 22 g a serving
- 5 servings, weighed at 1,750 g when finished, from 10 USDA FoodData Central entries in the library
Classic vs lighter, per serving.
The same rajma masala, made two ways from the same library entries and the same 5 servings. The lighter version is the one built on the screens below.
| Per serving | Classic | Lighter | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| kcal | 364 | 290 | −74 |
| Protein g | 16 | 17 | +1 |
| Carbs g | 47 | 47 | 0 |
| Fat g | 14 | 5 | −9 |
| Saturated fat g | 8.3 | 0.8 | −7.5 |
Saturated fat comes from the same USDA entries; the recipe sheet itself shows calories, protein, carbs and fat. Calorie and macro figures are fitness estimates, not medical or dietary advice.
Swap by swap.
Each change in turn, from the classic to the lighter version, and what it does to one serving.
1. Cook in 14 g of oil, not 40 g of ghee
−45 kcal, −5 g fat, −4.7 g saturated fat a serving
Ghee is 876 kcal per 100 g and mostly saturated fat. Swapping to 14 g of oil saves 45 kcal and 4.7 g of saturated fat a serving.
2. Finish with yogurt, not cream
−29 kcal, +1 g protein, −4 g fat, −2.8 g saturated fat a serving
Cream is 340 kcal per 100 g. 100 g of nonfat Greek yogurt stirred in at the end saves 29 kcal and 4 g of fat a serving.
More protein, if you need it.
Hitting a protein target is the hard part for most people. Each option is added to the lighter version on its own, with what it does to a serving of 17 g protein and 290 kcal. Save the one you like as its own recipe.
Add cubes of tofu
+42 kcal, +5 g protein, +1 g carbs, +2 g fat, +0.5 g saturated fat a serving, making 22 g protein a serving
250 g of extra firm tofu, stirred in at the end, adds 5 g of protein a serving for 42 kcal.
Cook in red lentils
+72 kcal, +5 g protein, +13 g carbs, +0.1 g saturated fat a serving, making 22 g protein a serving
100 g of red lentils dissolve into the gravy and add 5 g of protein a serving for 72 kcal.
Oil and fat: the type changes the fat, the amount changes the calories.
The three oils below are each 884 kcal per 100 g, and ghee is within a few calories of them. Swapping one for another moves the saturated fat, not the calories; using less is what saves them. Butter is lower per gram only because part of it is water.
| Fat, per tablespoon, 14 g | kcal | Fat g | Sat fat g |
|---|---|---|---|
| Olive oil | 124 | 14 | 1.9 |
| Canola oil | 124 | 14 | 1.0 |
| Avocado oil | 124 | 14 | 1.6 |
| Ghee (butter oil) | 123 | 14 | 8.7 |
| Butter, salted | 100 | 11 | 7.2 |
The sample data
These are the amounts of the lighter version used on the screens below, with each figure taken from the library entry for that ingredient. They are sample figures for a pot or tray of this size, not a measurement of anyone's kitchen.
| Ingredient | Amount | kcal | Protein g | Carbs g | Fat g |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kidney beans, canned, drained and rinsed | 800 g | 968 | 65 | 166 | 7 |
| Onions, raw | 250 g | 100 | 3 | 23 | 0 |
| Tomatoes, crushed, canned | 400 g | 128 | 7 | 29 | 1 |
| Ginger root | 15 g | 12 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Garlic | 15 g | 22 | 1 | 5 | 0 |
| Cumin seed | 4 g | 15 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| Coriander seed | 4 g | 12 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| Turmeric, ground | 3 g | 9 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Canola oil | 14 g | 124 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
| Greek yogurt, plain, nonfat | 100 g | 61 | 10 | 4 | 0 |
| Whole recipe | 1,605 g | 1,451 | 87 | 236 | 24 |
| Per serving (5) | 350 g | 290 | 17 | 47 | 5 |
Calorie and macro figures are fitness estimates, not medical or dietary advice. Ingredient values are from USDA FoodData Central, which is in the public domain.
Why this recipe
Rajma is a good recipe to build because it is mostly beans and tomato, with the fat concentrated in one or two spoons. It is easy to see exactly how much the ghee and the cream add, and what the dish looks like without them.
What to weigh
Weigh the beans the way the library entry describes them: canned, drained and rinsed. The sample comes to about 1,750 g from 1,605 g of ingredients once the gravy has thickened. Water adds grams, not calories.
The full workflow, in four steps.
1. Open Create a recipe and search the library
Open Add food and choose Create a recipe, name it, then choose Add ingredient and search the library. Typing "beans kidney canned" lists the entries, drained or with liquid, each with its calories per 100 g.
2. Enter the amount you weighed
Pick the drained and rinsed entry, switch the portion to grams and enter what the scale showed. The sheet shows 968 kcal for the beans before you add the gravy.
3. Add the rest, then set the servings and finished weight
Add the onion, tomato, ginger, garlic, spices, 14 g of oil and the yogurt, then enter the 5 servings and the 1,750 g you weighed at the end. One serving comes to 290 kcal.
4. Save it and log a serving
Save the recipe and it becomes one of your own foods. The next screen is the normal Add food form, ready to log one serving or any weight of it.
Tips while you build it
- Mash a ladle of beans against the side of the pot. The gravy thickens without any cream, and the flavour is the beans'.
- Stir the yogurt in off the heat, so it stays smooth instead of splitting.
- A serving is about 350 g, a generous bowl with a little rice. Log the rice as its own entry.
Go further
- Making the restaurant version? Build it as a second recipe with 40 g of ghee and 60 g of heavy cream, and log whichever one you served.
- Use dried beans if you cook from scratch: search "beans kidney mature seeds boiled" and weigh them after cooking.
Each change is a second recipe with its own name, so the first stays as you built it.
Rajma masala questions.
How many calories are in rajma?
It depends on the fat in the gravy. The sample comes to 290 kcal a serving made lighter, with 17 g protein, 47 g carbs and 5 g fat, against 364 kcal with ghee and cream.
Does yogurt change the taste?
It is a little tangier and lighter than cream. A pinch of garam masala at the end brings back the warmth.
Should I weigh the beans drained or in the can?
Weigh them the way the library entry describes them. Drained and rinsed beans have more calories per gram than the same can with its liquid.
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Keep going.
- Recipe builderWhat the builder does, and every example recipe in one place.
- Indian food caloriesPer 100 g tables for the dishes the food library finds.
- Nutrition and macro trackingBarcodes, label reading, targets that follow your weigh-ins.
- Help: scan, create and recipesThe same steps in the Help Center.
Cook it once. Log it for good.
Build a lighter version of your own indian favourite in Nutrition.