Biryani began as a meeting of two rice traditions — the Persian pilau and the Indian spiced rice — refined in the royal kitchens of the Mughal era into the layered, sealed-pot dish we know today. Every version shares one idea: aromatic rice and meat, layered and cooked together so the rice drinks in the meat's steam. What divides the great biryanis is the order of assembly. In the pakki (cooked) method the meat is cooked first, then layered with the rice; in the kacchi (raw) method raw marinated meat is layered beneath partly-cooked rice and everything cooks together, sealed, in the slow steam of dum pukht.
The regional styles
How the great biryanis differ
| Style | Method | Flavor | Signature |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hyderabadi | Kacchi — raw marinated meat layered under partly-cooked rice, sealed and slow-steamed (dum pukht) | Robustly spiced, spicier | Saffron, fried onions (birista), mint, yogurt marinade |
| Lucknowi (Awadhi) | Pakki — meat and rice cooked separately, layered, then finished on dum | Subtle, fragrant, milder | Kewra and rose water, mace, cardamom |
| Kolkata | Pakki, descended from the Awadhi kitchen | Lighter, subtly sweet, mild | Potato (aloo) and often a boiled egg |
At a glance
- Prep
- 30 mins
- Cook
- 45 mins
- Total
- 1 hr 15 mins
- Serves
- 6
Plus at least 1 hour marinating the chicken.
Ingredients
- 750g basmati rice
- 1kg chicken, bone-in and skinless, cut into medium pieces
- 250g plain yogurt
- 3 tbsp ginger-garlic paste, divided
- 2 tsp Kashmiri red chilli powder
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 2 tsp garam masala, plus a little to finish
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 4 tbsp ghee, plus 3 tbsp neutral oil
- 3 large onions, thinly sliced
- Whole spices: 2 bay leaves, 6 green cardamom, 2 black cardamom, 8 cloves, 1 cinnamon stick, 1 star anise, 1 tsp shahi jeera (black cumin)
- 2 tomatoes, chopped
- 4 green chillies, slit lengthwise
- 1 cup fresh mint leaves, chopped
- 1 cup fresh coriander leaves, chopped
- A generous pinch of saffron, soaked in 1/4 cup warm milk
- Salt
Method
- Rinse the basmati in several changes of water, then leave it to soak in fresh water for 30 minutes while you prepare everything else.
- Marinate the chicken: combine the yogurt, 2 tbsp of the ginger-garlic paste, the chilli powder, turmeric, garam masala, lemon juice and a teaspoon of salt, then fold in the chicken. Cover and rest for at least 1 hour — longer if the day allows.
- Make the birista: heat the ghee and oil in a wide pan and fry the sliced onions over medium heat, stirring often, until deep golden and crisp, 15-20 minutes. Lift out with a slotted spoon and drain on paper.
- In the same fat, fry the whole spices for 30 seconds until they crackle, then add the remaining 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste and cook for 1 minute.
- Add the tomatoes and cook until they soften and the fat separates at the edges, 5-6 minutes.
- Add the marinated chicken with all of its marinade and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes, turning, until half-cooked and the masala clings to it. Stir in half the mint and half the coriander.
- Par-boil the rice: bring a large pot of well-salted water to the boil, add the drained rice and cook for 5-7 minutes until the grains are about three-quarters done — still with a firm bite. Drain well.
- Assemble in a heavy pot: a spoonful of ghee at the base, then half the chicken, half the rice, half the birista, the remaining mint and coriander, the slit green chillies and half the saffron milk. Repeat with the remaining chicken, rice, birista and saffron milk.
- Seal the pot with a tight lid — a strip of dough or a layer of foil under the lid keeps the steam in. Cook over high heat for 5 minutes, then drop to the lowest heat and leave to steam for 25 minutes. Do not lift the lid.
- Rest off the heat for 10 minutes, then open gently, scatter a final pinch of garam masala, and fold from the bottom to bring the layers together. Serve with raita.
Sources
Music to cook to
Biryani is a long, patient cook with a dramatic finish. We set it to our slow evening sitar — the tempo of a sealed pot doing its quiet work, then a fuller room when the lid finally comes off.