Degi Chicken Biryani

Brown Rice Biryani With Chutney Chicken

Brown Rice Biryani With Chutney Chicken

Chicken Biryani dedicated to pakistan karachi

Chicken Biryani ,no body perfect in this world, sab se ghalti hoti ha
I accendently said fry the chicken for 3 minutes but i meant fry for 30 minutes

Chicken Biryani Recipe, Step by Step Pressure Cooker Method

Easy Chicken Biryani made in a pressure cooker. When I posted the layered chicken biryani recipe, I had mentioned that Amma used to make this one pot, simple chicken biryani for me and often for my large groups of visiting friends during various stages of my college life. That biryani would forever remain my favourite kind, a reminder of my 'interesting' childhood and the days I didn't need to bother with things like chopping and cooking.

Amma and I made this biryani together and apart from slicing the onions and preparing the ingredients, it's quite hands off. If you get chicken pieces cleaned and prepared, even better. I bought 6-7 piece of chicken drumstick (the leg pieces) and we were good to go.

Since it wasn't part of the plan to make the biryani, a few ingredients are missing but I have added notes for all you can adapt and prepare accordingly. For instance, mint is a no-brainer and must be added to this biryani but I didn't have any and didn't want to go out and walk a kilometre to buy a bunch. Another important note is about the coconut milk. Adding coconut milk enhances the flavour of the biryani and I'd say it's a necessary ingredient. It makes the rice sticky and richer, almost making it seem very greasy but that's just the coconut milk doing its thing. It also makes the rice stick to the bottom of the pressure cooker if overcooked so be careful not to use too much eat when the biryani is cooking - more on that below.

We serve chicken biryani with a cucumber raita, papad, and lemon pickle. A mirchi ka salan is a great idea too and you can make it in advance if you are cooking for a lot of people.

For more amazing biryani recipes, check out vegetable biryani recipe, egg biryani, mushroom biryani, cauliflower biryani, and the layered chicken biryani recipe here.

PRESSURE COOKER CHICKEN BIRYANI RECIPE

Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Serves 3 generously
Recipe source: Amma

INGREDIENTS:

• 300 grams of basmati rice
• 1/2 cup of ghee (seems like a lot but trust me on this)
• A small fistful of whole spices like cloves, cardamom, star anise, bay leaf, etc
• 4 cups of sliced onions
• 5 green chillies (adjust to taste)
• 2" piece of ginger
• 5-6 cloves of garlic (note that Indian ones are smaller in size so use fewer if using the larger kind)
• A fistful of coriander leaves
• A fistful of mint leaves (I didn't have any)
• 300 grams of chicken drumsticks (or any pieces you prefer)
• 1/2 tsp of turmeric powder
• 1.5 tbsp of biryani masala (we use and like Eastern brand)
• 3 tbsp of plain curd
• 200 ml of thick coconut milk
• 1/4 cup of cashew nuts

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Prep the ingredients first by slicing the onions, cleaning and setting aside the coriander leaves and mint leaves, and grinding the ginger, garlic, and green chillies together. Also soak the rice for 30 minutes and set aside to drain completely
2. Heat 1/4 cup ghee in a pressure cooker pan and add the whole spices. Fry for 20 seconds or until fragrant
3. Then add the sliced onions and fry until golden brown
4. Now add the ground chilli-ginger-garlic paste. Fry for a minute until it turns fragrant
5. Next, add the biryani masala, mix well to combine and add the curd
6. Mix and then add the washed chicken pieces along with turmeric and salt
7. Mix again to coat the chicken pieces with the masala
8. Add the coconut milk and 600ml water on top of that
9. Simmer until the chicken pieces are semi-cooked
10. Add the soaked, drained rice to this and top off with chopped coriander leaves and mint leaves
11. Fry the cashew nuts in the remaining 1/4 cup ghee until golden brown
12. Drain and set aside the cashew nuts and add the hot ghee to the pressure cooker
13. Close the pressure cooker and cook for 15 minutes or 2 whistles
14. Let the pressure leave the pan and remove lid
15. Using a spatula, mix gently to make sure the rice is evenly cooked
16. The rice will be very sticky and moist due to the coconut milk but will firm up quite a bit on cooling down a bit
17. Best served warm with raita, papad, and lemon pickle

Step by Step Pictures: How to Make Pressure Cooker Chicken Biryani

Prep the ingredients by slicing the onions, grinding the ginger, garlic, and green chillies together, and soaking the rice for 30 minutes. Drain the rice and set aside.

Heat 1/4 cup ghee in a pressure cooker pan and add the whole spices. When they turn fragrant, add the sliced onions and roast until golden brown.

Then add the ground ginger-garlic-chilli paste and roast for a minute until fragrant

Add biryani masala and curd to this mixture. Mix well. Then add chicken masala and mix again to coat the chicken pieces well. Add turmeric powder and salt and mix again

Top up with the coconut milk. I used store-bought, thick coconut milk and then measured water in the same packet (3 times the amount). Since I used 200 ml coconut milk, I added about 600 ml water which was perfect. Simmer until the chicken pieces are half cooked.

Now add the drained rice and chopped coriander and mint leaves. Close the pressure cooker and let two whistles sound. Takes about 10 minutes.

Let the pressure completely leave the pressure cooker and remove lid. The biryani will appear sticky and moist. Gently mix without breaking up the rice too much.

Once the biryani cools down, it will become the right consistency.

While the rice may seem greasy, it's mostly due to the coconut milk. Garnish with the fried cashew nuts and more coriander leaves.

Serve warm with raita and papad.

Notes:
- the ratio of rice:water is 1:2 roughly. This is the proportion I use generally for cooking basmati rice
- the consistency of the rice would differ a bit based on how watery your coconut milk is. Mine was store-bought and very thick
- the consistency of the biryani will also depend on the rice.

In short, I am trying to say this is not a magic formula in terms of measurement of ingredients. You'll have to adapt based on where you live, what type of ingredients you use, and how you prefer your biryani. Use the recipe only as a guideline

Egg Biryani Recipe - How to Make Egg Biryani Indian-Style

Before I go into the details of how I made this egg biryani, I must admit that I am stunned you guys. Stunned that I never thought of making egg biryani before a month back. I have no idea why since I love biryani (and make vegetable biryani at least thrice a month) and TH loves eggs and I just never thought of marrying the two (the eggs and the biryani, not the two of us). So yeah, it had to happen and it did, finally. Now there's a thing with me making biryani. I don't follow any particular recipe, preferring to throw in spices and ingredients as I go. I prefer layered or dum biryani rather than a pressure cooker biryani although the latter is way more quick and convenient.

Anyway, let's talk Egg Biryani now. This one turned out super delicious but it took a tad more time that I normally like to stand in the kitchen for. I believe from start to finish, including chopping and everything, this biryani took about 1 hour 15 mins. I like to finish all my cooking within an hour so yeah, this went slightly over, but then the advantage of making a biryani for lunch is that you don't really need a side dish except a simple onion salad or cucumber raita and papad or chips.

I took pretty detailed pictures and had to cut short a few to make the length of this post reasonable. It may seem like a lot more work than it actually is because this egg biryani has many pieces that finally come together into a single dish. Don't let that deter you. You can do a bunch of stuff simultaneously and I have written the order in which I cooked. Total time will depend on your speed on getting things done though.

Alright then, it's a beautiful day to make some Egg Biryani so let's get cracking. Check out more Biryani Recipes on Edible Garden if you have some time to browse around. My favourites are gobi biryani, soya chunks biryani with sprouts, and Amma's layered chicken biryani. Don't forget to whip up a mirchi ka salan to go with your biryani - yum!

EGG BIRYANI RECIPE

Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 1 hour
Serves 2
Recipe: my own

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup of basmati rice
• 2 tbsp + 2 tbsp of ghee
• Half a fistful of whole spices like cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, star anise, and one bay leaf (use  whatever you have in hand)
• A small bunch of coriander leaves (cilantro)
• A small bunch of mint leaves
• 2 green chillies
• 2-3 cloves of garlic
• 2" piece of ginger
• 1.5 cups of large onions, sliced long
• 1/2 cup of cubed ripe tomato
• 1/2 tsp of red chilli powder (adjust to taste)
• 1/4 tsp of turmeric powder
• 1 tsp of jeera or cumin
• 1 tsp of fennel seeds or sombu (perumjeerakam)
• 1 tsp of coriander powder
• 2 cups of thick coconut milk (optional)
• 1-2 tsp of biryani masala or garam masala
• 1 tsp of ginger garlic paste (freshly made is best)
• 3 eggs
• 1/4 cup of cashew nuts and more coriander leaves and mint leaves, for garnish

INSTRUCTIONS:

This is the order in which I made the egg biryani. Adapt to suit your convenience and time in hand. Check notes at the end of the recipe below for some tips on preparation ahead of time if you are making egg biryani for guests.

0. Wash and leave the basmati to soak in some water before proceeding with the next steps.

1. Start with a medium-sized pan and heat 2 tbsp ghee. Add the cashew nuts and fry until golden. Drain and set aside.

2. To the same pan, add half of the sliced onions. Fry until golden, drain and set aside. We'll use these and the cashew nuts for garnish before serving.

2. Grind together - coriander leaves + mint leaves + green chillies + ginger + garlic + salt.

3. In the same pan with the ghee (add some more ghee if needed), add whatever whole spices you are using. I only had cinnamon, cloves, and cardamom.

4. Once the spices turn fragrant (about 15 seconds), add the ground paste and fry for another 30 seconds or so. Turn off flame.

5. Add the soaked rice and this fried spice mixture along with 1.5 cups (adjust to your cooking method) to a rice cooker or pressure cooker. Leave it to cook while you proceed with the rest of the recipe.

PS: once the rice cooks, fluff it gently with a fork so it doesn't get more mushy.

6. Next, let's boil the eggs. I got this fail-proof method from Martha Stewart to make perfect hard boiled eggs. Place the eggs in a pan large enough to hold them without overlapping. Add enough tap water to cover them fully by an inch. Bring to a rolling boil, let it boil for 1 minute, and then turn off the flame. Cover fully with a lid and let it sit for 15 mins. Take eggs out and peel under running water. There you go - perfect hard-boiled eggs.

Let the eggs cook while you start off with the masala part of the egg biryani.

7. Heat 2 tbsp ghee and add the remaining sliced onions. As they begin to brown, add the ginger garlic paste and saute for 10 seconds.

8. Next, add the spices and powders - coriander, turmeric, fennel seeds, cumin seeds, chilli powder. Saute until they are roasted, about 10 seconds. Top off with the chopped tomatoes and more coriander leaves and mint leaves (this is optional, I happened to have a lot of them fresh in hand so wanted to use it up.

9. Saute until the tomatoes turn soft and mushy and the mixture is cooked. This will take about 5 mins or so.

10. Next, add the coconut milk. You can also use water instead of coconut milk, I just happen to love biryani made with coconut milk. If using coconut milk, add the 2 cups + 1/2 cup of water just to thin it out a bit.

11. Let the mixture simmer on low flame for about 10 mins until the masala becomes thick-ish. Add salt and garam masala or biryani masala now, mix well, and turn off flame. The ghee will be visible on top of the masala. That's when you kinda know it's done.

12. Almost done! Mix the cooked rice to the masala until nicely combined. If you want the marbled look, don't overmix, just lightly mix for an uneven look.

13. Add the sliced, boiled egg on top and cover with rice. Pat down tightly and cover. Let the biryani sit for atleast one hour for the flavours to blend.

Garnished with the fried onions, cashew nuts, and more coriander leaves before serving.

Notes:

1. You can do some of the preparation ahead for making egg biryani, especially for a party or guests
2. Boil the eggs in advance and leave in the fridge unpeeled. Peel and slice before you need to use them.
3. There aren't many vegetables to chop but slice onions and keep them ready.
4. You can also pre-cook the rice and refrigerate it. Heat it along with the masala and it should work fine. This will also allow the rice to stay as separate grains.
5. Serve egg biryani with a simple raita and papad or chips

For Egg Biryani recipe in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu, please use the Google Translate button on the top right of this website.

Easy Vegetable Biryani Recipe (Pressure Cooker-Rice Cooker Method)

I always turn to my trusted rice cooker when it comes to making an easy vegetable biryani on a busy weeknight or lazy weekend. Biryani is often seen as time-consuming and needing many ingredients but it needn't be that way. Often, I just make this one-pot, healthy, and easy vegetable biryani with whatever vegetables I have in hand and it makes a wholesome meal with some raita and papad. I have quite a few different biryani recipes in here so check it out if you want some variety. Here's an easy veg pulao recipe if that's what you are after but this veg biryani with mirchi ka salan makes a fabulous meal - highly recommended! You may also want to try this egg biryani for a spicy treat or a very simple vegetable rice if you are short on time.

So if you are not a biryani purist (and for my sake, I hope you are not!), then this one-pot vegetable biryani that you can make in your pressure cooker or rice cooker may be just the thing you need in your life. I use store-bought biryani masala because I am not the kind pf person who makes biryani masala at home but you can use freshly ground spices if you are feeling up to it. I have done that once or twice but find that biryani masala works just as well. Another option is to temper with whole spices which would give your biryani a much lighter colour but it would taste awesome either ways.

VEGETABLE BIRYANI RECIPE (RICE COOKER METHOD)

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of basmati or any long-grained rice
• 2 cups of mixed vegetables, chopped (I use what I have in hand - broccoli, carrots, beans, cauliflower, peas, corn, baby corn, capsicum, etc)
• 2 tsp of biryani masala (or 3 cloves, 3 cardamom, 1" piece cinnamon, 1 star anise)
• 1 fistful of mint leaves
• 1 small bunch of coriander leaves (cilantro)
• 1/2 tsp of turmeric powder
• 1/2 tsp of cumin seeds
• 1 tsp of coriander powder
• 2-3 green chillies, minced
• 1 tsp of red chilli powde (adjust to taste)
• 2 large onions, sliced
• 1/2 cup of curd (optional)
• 1 tbsp of ghee
• A few cashew nuts or almonds (optional)
• 1 tsp of ginger garlic paste

How to Make Veg Biryani in Rice Cooker:

0. Wash the rice and and soak it in some water while you go about with the rest of the preparations.

1. Heat the ghee in a wide pan and roast the nuts (if using) Drain and add the sliced onions and roast until golden brown. Set aside half of it and add ginger garlic paste. Saute until fragrant.

2. Next, add the green chillies, chilli powder, turmeric, coriander powder, cumin, and some salt. Saute until the spices are roasted - about 1 minute.

3. Top off with the chopped vegetables and mix well. Add the biryani masala and the chopped mint and coriander leaves (see notes on how to use whole spices).

4. Transfer this to your rice cooker pan and add about 2 cups water and the curd - the measurements will vary according to rice cooker used - and the soaked rice. (See notes for pressure cooker biryani method)

5, When the rice is done, open immediately and give it a good stir-through when still hot. Add the reserved roasted nuts and onions. Garnish with more coriander leaves and sprinkle some lemon juice if desired.

Serve with papad or chips and a nice cooling raita.

Notes:

1. If using whole spices instead of the biryani masala, add it first to the hot ghee and then roast the onions. You will also need to increase the amounts of cumin and coriander powder to make sure the spice levels are right. Of course, adapt this to personal preference
2. If using the pressure cooker, I highly recommend only cooking for about 2 whistles, otherwise the vegetables will turn to mush. I generally use the rice cooker for vegetable biryani and it gives great results
3. A biryani is one of those dishes where you need to play around with the ingredients and make it your own. Don't be afraid to experiment, I always do and my vegetable biryanis never look or taste the same every time

For Vegetable Biryani recipe in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu, etc please use the Google Translate button on the top right of this website.

How to Make Chicken Biryani - Layered Chicken Biryani Recipe

Amma makes amazing chicken biryani. Her recipe has evolved and changed over years and now she has two versions, one is the more homely one-pot chicken biryani and the other is a layered chicken biryani, the recipe of which she got from a caterer in our local club and adapted over the years to suit our tastebuds. She often claims that biryani is the easiest thing to make because she doesn't have to make rice and then a kuzhambu or pulusu and then two side dishes, etc etc. Even a simple vegetable pulao needs some sort of a side dish but a biryani doesn't need much else except a simple onion raita and papad on the side. Also, everyone loves a GOOD chicken biryani!

Well, maybe not everyone, because we do have some vegetarians in the family. Which is another reason why she developed this layered chicken biryani recipe. You can cook the biryani rice separately and the chicken gravy separately, to be mixed at the time of serving, or like in my case, I do it on my plate directly! She also adds some vegetables to the rice so that it's more wholesome for the vegetarians. So take this recipe as just a base or an idea and adapt it to suit your needs.

These pictures are almost 2 years old and I had been meaning to take step by step pictures but amma makes this over 2 days sometimes and it's nearly impossible to be around all the time when she's doing a small step here or there. I've tried to make up for the lack of step by step pictures through the detailed instructions.

As Amma does, some work for the biryani can be done in advance. She usually makes the chicken gravy the day before, makes the rice on the day, and then layers them up before serving. This way, you get to control how much spice you have in your biryani, set aside some for the kids/vegetarians and be in control.

Amma's recipe notes have all quantities in bulk to serve the large family gatherings this is usually made for. I have scaled the recipe down to serve 4 people so any obvious mistakes in quantities are mine. As always, the list of ingredients for a biryani will always be long but the entire cooking process is not hard, just more time-consuming than normal dishes.

AMMA'S CHICKEN BIRYANI RECIPE (LAYERED CHICKEN BIRYANI)

Preparation time: 1 hour
Cooking time: 2 hours
Serves 4
Recipe source: Amma

Ingredients:

For the Rice:

• 2 cups of basmati rice
• 2 onions, sliced
• 1 tsp of crushed ginger
• 1 tsp of crushed garlic
• 4 cardamom pods
• 4 cloves
• 1 bay leaf
• A small piace of cinnamon
• 3 star anise
• 1 tsp of cumin / jeera
• 1/2 cup of carrots, cut into small cubes (optional)
• 10 cashew nuts
• 10 raisins

For the Chicken Gravy:

• 1 kg of chicken pieces, with bones
• 3 large onions, sliced
• 1 tsp of minced ginger
• 1 tsp of minced garlic
• 2 tsp of coriander powder
• 1/2 tsp of powdered fennel seeds
• 2 tsp of chicken masala
• 1/2 tsp of garam masala (optional)
• 1/2 tsp of turmeric powder
• 2 tomatoes
• A small bunch of coriander leaves (cilantro)
• A fistful of mint leaves
• 1/2 tsp of sugar
• 5-6 green chillies
• 3 tbsp of ghee or oil
• 1 tsp of pepper powder

How to Make Chicken Biryani:

For the Rice:

Soak the rice for 30 mins. Cook the rice following whichever method you prefer. We usually cook rice for biryani in an open pan but you can use the rice cooker or pressure cooker too. Just make sure the rice doesn't get overcooked. The grains need to remain separate.

Meanwhile, heat the ghee or oil in a wide pan and add the sliced onions along with the whole spices (cinnamon, cloves, bay leaf, cardamom, star anise). Fry the onions stirring frequently.

Grind or crush the garlic and ginger together. Add this to the frying onions and fry until the onions turn a dark golden brown. Drain and set aside. (If using carrots, add along with the ginger, etc and cook together).

In the same pan, fry the cashew nuts and raisins until golden. Drain and set aside with the fried onions.

Once the rice is done, mix it with the above onion mixture, add the fried raisins and cashew nuts on top and set aside.

For the Chicken Gravy

Grind or crush ginger + garlic + green chillies

Heat the ghee or oil and add onions. Fry until golden brown and add the ginger-garlic-chillies paste. Fry for another minute and then add the spice powders chicken masala + coriander powder + fennel powder + pepper + turmeric. Saute for a minute.

Then add the chopped tomatoes and cook until they turn soft. At this stage, the mixture will turn mushy and gravy-ish.

Add the washed and cleaned chicken pieces + salt + sugar + 1 cup water and mix well. Bring to boil and cook closed until the chicken is completely cooked. The meat will let out water so don't add too much. Cook on a low flame until done. Then, garnish with garam masala, coriander leaves, mint leaves and more pepper powder. Mix well and set aside.

The chicken gravy should be a bit watery as you see below. If not, add more water and cook further for a bit longer.

Layering the Chicken Biryani

About an hour before serving, take a large serving dish and add a layer of rice. Top off with some chicken and gravy. Add more rice. Repeat this 2 more times. Keep the dish closed and at the time of serving, gently mix and transfer to plates.

Serve chicken biryani with tomato cucumber raita or onion raita and papad.

For Chicken Biryani recipe in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu, please use the Google Translate button on the top right of this website.

Soya Chunks Biryani | Soya Chunks (Meal Maker) Biryani Recipe

Soya Chunks add great texture to a dish especially for vegetarians. Since Biryani is primarily seen as a non-vegetarian's dish, I thought why not add some kick to a vegetarian biryani by tossing in some soya chunks and adding some moong sprouts to boost. What resulted is a flavourful soya chunks biryani whose recipe I am glad to share with you all. If you love biryani, check also try my popular egg biryani recipe. It's a sure-to-please, easy recipe.

Anu, a good friend of mine wanted me to make something with an ingredient or set of ingredients that I haven't cooked with so far or avoid because we don't like it. Soya chunks are something we like so that was out of the question.

My initial plan was to go make something with Quinoa. I have eaten many Quinoa dishes over the past couple of years but never tried to make anything with it myself. Work interfered and soon I was left with little time to figure out what to do, and that's when I came across a bag of moong bean sprouts in the supermarket. While I make vegetable biryani very often, a biryani with soya chunks and moong sprouts was a new idea so I decided to follow that route.

TH hates sprouts and wouldn't even come anywhere near it, let alone eat a salad or chaat made with sprouts. I had to think a bit creative here. I knew I would have to add something into the mix that he really likes - and soya chunks was the answer.

Soon, the idea for the biryani formed in my head and here we are. A healthy and very flavourful biryani for vegetarians and easily made vegan if you so desire.

Browse all biryani recipes here.

Soya Chunks Biryani Recipe

Serves 2

Ingredients:
2 cups of cooked rice
1 large onion
2 tomatoes, pureed
4 green chillies
1" piece of ginger
4 garlic cloves
1 tsp of freshly ground mixture with 2 cloves, 2 cardamom, 1" piece of cinnamon
1/2 tsp of black pepper powder
1 cup of moon bean sprouts
1/4 cup of soya chunks, cooked in boiling water for 5 mins, drained, and squeezed of extra water
1/2 tsp of jeera / cumin
1 tsp of coriander powder
1/2 tsp of red chilli powder
A pinch of turmeric
1 tbsp of ghee or oil
To taste salt

How to make Soya Chunks Biryani:

1. Grind together the onion, green chillies, ginger, and garlic.

2. Heat oil or ghee and add the cumin. When it sizzles, add the onion paste and fry together until it turns a darker shade of brown.

3. Next, add the red chilli powder, turmeric, and coriander powder, fry for 5 seconds, and add the pureed tomato. Coon until the oil begins to show on the sides - about 10 mins.

4. Now add the bean srouts and the soya chunks. Mix well and heat until the mixture mingles well - about 3 mins.

5. Finally mix in the cooked rice, salt and pepper and mix well.

6. Garnish with freshly chopped coriander leaves / cilantro and serve hot with any raita of choice.

Super Quick Cauliflower / Gobi Biryani Recipe

Yes, I totally made this recipe up. There's no such thing as a Cauliflower Biriyani. No, you are right, cauliflower does get added on to vegetable biriyani occasionally there's no biriyani that's exclusively dedicated to cauliflower.

I am also going to say this up front before you read through the whole recipe and get disappointed. You need Biryani Masala to make this recipe. Its not one of those grind-your-spices-fresh type of recipe because that would make this a non super quick dish, and today we are all about super quick.

Its also a prerequisite to like cauliflower inorder to enjoy this dish.

Gobi Biryani / Cauliflower Biryani Recipe
Serves 3

Ingredients:
1.5 cups basmati rice (or any long-grained rice)
1 large onion + 2 green chillies, ground to a paste
1 large tomato, pureed
A handful of green peas (fresh or frozen)
1 medium sized cauliflower, washed and cut into florets (around 4 cups)
1 tbsp ghee (or oil)
Fresh chopped coriander leaves for garnish (optional)

The Masala
1/2 tsp jeera / cumin
1 tsp dhania / coriander powder
A pinch of turmeric
1 tsp ginger garlic paste
1 heaping tbsp of biryani masala
Salt to taste

How to make Gobi Biryani:

1. Cook the basmati rice in 5 cups of boiling, slightly salted water until cooked but still firm. Set aside.

2. Heat the ghee in a pan and add the onion-green chilly paste. You can also slice the onions and chillies and add it that way but I felt like grinding it so I did. Fry the onion paste for about 2 mins. It will start losing moisture and get thicker.

3. At this stage, add all the masala ingredients in the order given. Fry well for about a minute till it starts smelling gooood.

4. Add the tomato puree, peas and cut cauliflower florets. Give it a good mix and cook closed on low fire until the cauliflower is cooked soft, yet retains its shape (about 5-7 mins). You can sprinkle some water if you feel the mixture is getting too dry.

5. Once done, check salt and then mix in the cooked rice gently until well combined. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve with any raita and papad.

The preparation time for this biriyani is significantly less because you are not pounding any masala last minute. Depending on what biriyani masala you use, you will get a distinct flavour each time - I love that variety!