In our Indian culture, having a maid or domestic help is almost a must. And very few get lucky with good maids, who would work for you and with you for a long time, someone who you can trust easily and depend on.
Luckily, my family has had immense luck in this area. And not just ours, but all my relatives have had amazingly talented domestic helps who are not only excellent in their work, but extremely loving and caring too! And what better way to show your love and that you care, than through cooking good food.
Be it Radha Bai (who has been working for us for the past 15 years) or Nura (who has worked for my Masis’s / Aunt’s family for over 2 decades!
This is Nura’s biryani recipe. Originally from Hyderabad, no one could beat her in making this delicious, sumptuous meal! Be it any occasion or festival, she has a permanent request from the whole family, of making this awesome dish, in insane quantities! And the amazingly loving and caring person that she was, she would never deny it, in fact volunteer to make it, anytime, anywhere!
I know, even if she stood by me and told me the recipe step by step, I would never be able to match her skills for making THE BEST biryani ever!
I have really tried my best to make it as she does, and I hope I have done at least some justice to it.
Luckily, my family has had immense luck in this area. And not just ours, but all my relatives have had amazingly talented domestic helps who are not only excellent in their work, but extremely loving and caring too! And what better way to show your love and that you care, than through cooking good food.
Be it Radha Bai (who has been working for us for the past 15 years) or Nura (who has worked for my Masis’s / Aunt’s family for over 2 decades!
This is Nura’s biryani recipe. Originally from Hyderabad, no one could beat her in making this delicious, sumptuous meal! Be it any occasion or festival, she has a permanent request from the whole family, of making this awesome dish, in insane quantities! And the amazingly loving and caring person that she was, she would never deny it, in fact volunteer to make it, anytime, anywhere!
I know, even if she stood by me and told me the recipe step by step, I would never be able to match her skills for making THE BEST biryani ever!
I have really tried my best to make it as she does, and I hope I have done at least some justice to it.
PREP TIME TOTAL TIME SERVINGS | 1 hour approximately 1.5 - 2 hours 4 Portions (Biryani Lovers) |
INGREDIENTS Basmati Rice Cardamoms Cloves Cinnamon For the Gravy Ghee Bayleaves Cardamoms Onion Mint Leaves Garlic Ginger Tomatoes Tomato Purée Coriander Seeds Cloves Cinnamon Peppercorn Red Chilli Powder Carrots Peas French Beans Corn Kernels Cauliflower Salt Sugar Yogurt / Curd Corn Flour Potatoes Eggs | QUANTITY 3 cups 2 - 3 2 - 3 2'' 1 tbsp, or if you want a richer taste then 2 - 3 tbsp 1 - 2 2 - 3 1 large, sliced 1/2 cup 8 - 10 cloves, big 2 - 3'' piece 1 medium 2 tbsp 3 tbsp 4 - 5 2'' stick 1.5 tsp 2 tsp, Kashmiri red chilli powder 1 medium / 100 gms 100 gms 100 gms 100 gms 100 gms to taste 2 tbsp 2 cups 1 tbsp 1 large, sliced into 1 cm thickness boiled, for garnishing |
RECIPE
Take a big casserole, and put the rice in it with almost 4 times the water. Add 2 – 3 cardamoms, 2-3 cloves and 1’’ cinnamon. Bring the rice to boil on a full flame. As soon as it starts boiling, take it off the flame, drain, and rinse in cold water to stop it from cooking further. The rice should be 3/4th cooked.
Take a big casserole, and put the rice in it with almost 4 times the water. Add 2 – 3 cardamoms, 2-3 cloves and 1’’ cinnamon. Bring the rice to boil on a full flame. As soon as it starts boiling, take it off the flame, drain, and rinse in cold water to stop it from cooking further. The rice should be 3/4th cooked.
In a pan on a low flame, roast 3 tbsp of coriander seeds, 3 – 4 cloves, 1.5 tsp peppercorns and 1.5’’ of cinnamon. Grind this to a fine powder and set aside.
Wash and keep the mint leaves, chop 3’’ of ginger and 5 – 10 cloves of garlic. In a mixer, grind all three to a fine paste.
Whisk the yogurt to remove any lumps and mix it with 1 tbsp of corn flour.
Heat ½ cup of milk and put 5 – 10 saffron strands in it and let it stand.
Whisk the yogurt to remove any lumps and mix it with 1 tbsp of corn flour.
Heat ½ cup of milk and put 5 – 10 saffron strands in it and let it stand.
Wash and string the French beans, cut into long pieces. De-shell the peas, peel and cut the carrots, wash and cut the cauliflower into flowerets. Blanch or drop all the vegetables in boiling water for 3 – 4 minutes. Drain, and run under cold water and set aside. Slice onions and tomatoes. Cut one large potato into ½’’ thick slices.
Heat 1 tbsp of ghee in a non stick pan, add 2-3 cardamoms and 2 bay leaves. Allow them to cook for about 30 seconds.
Add sliced onions to the pan and sauté for 2 – 3 minutes, till the onions are translucent.
Add sliced onions to the pan and sauté for 2 – 3 minutes, till the onions are translucent.
Once the onions are cooked, add the ginger-garlic-mint leaves paste to it, and sauté for another 3 – 4 minutes till it is cooked.
Add the powdered masala (roasted and powdered coriander seeds, cloves, peppercorns and cinnamon) and sauté well. Allow to cook for 1 – 2 minutes.
Add the powdered masala (roasted and powdered coriander seeds, cloves, peppercorns and cinnamon) and sauté well. Allow to cook for 1 – 2 minutes.
After the dry masala is well roasted, add the tomato purée to the pan and stir well. Allow to cook for 2 – 3 minutes till it leaves a little oil.
Then add the sliced tomatoes and cook on a low flame for 2 – 3 minutes, till the tomatoes are cooked.
Add red chili powder and stir well, allowing it to cook for 30 seconds or so.
Then add the sliced tomatoes and cook on a low flame for 2 – 3 minutes, till the tomatoes are cooked.
Add red chili powder and stir well, allowing it to cook for 30 seconds or so.
Add the whisked yogurt and corn flour. The corn flour will keep the gravy nice and thick, and make the yogurt stable, preventing it from curdling once added to the pan.
Keep the flame on medium and stir well. Adjust the salt in the gravy. Add about 1 tbsp of sugar to the gravy.
Keep the flame on medium and stir well. Adjust the salt in the gravy. Add about 1 tbsp of sugar to the gravy.
Add the blanched vegetables to this, and stir well, making sure all the vegetables are well coated with the gravy. Cover and cook for 5 minutes or so. Once the vegetables are cooked in the gravy, if you think it has become a little watery, remove the cover and cook for another 5 minutes on a high flame. This should thicken the gravy to the consistency you want.
I decided to make the biryani in an electric cooker, but the same procedure can be followed in a regular pressure cooker too.
Spread about 1 tsp of ghee in the cooker, line them with the sliced potatoes. This would prevent the biryani from sticking to the bottom. And once the whole dish is cooked, the potatoes taste excellent with all the flavors.
Spread a layer of the rice, 1/4th of the total quantity you have boiled. Using half the gravy and vegetables, pour a layer on the rice.
Spread about 1 tsp of ghee in the cooker, line them with the sliced potatoes. This would prevent the biryani from sticking to the bottom. And once the whole dish is cooked, the potatoes taste excellent with all the flavors.
Spread a layer of the rice, 1/4th of the total quantity you have boiled. Using half the gravy and vegetables, pour a layer on the rice.
Follow the same procedure once again. So finally you should have 2 alternate layers of rice and gravy. The final plain rice layer should be a little thicker than the two sandwiched layers.
Now pour the kesar milk all over the last layer of white rice.
Cover and cook for 15 – 20 minutes in a pressure cooker without using the whistle. Or for 15 – 20 minutes in an electric cooker.
Cover and cook for 15 – 20 minutes in a pressure cooker without using the whistle. Or for 15 – 20 minutes in an electric cooker.
Tastes best with Mint Raita and garnished with boiled eggs.
MY NOTES
Some like to garnish it with fried onions too.
It can also be made in an earthen pot. That would give it a whole different taste.