Ingredients for Vegetable Biryani
Basmati rice - 1 cup (washed, cleaned and soaked in
water for ½ hour)
Desi ghee - ¼ cup
Oil - ¼ cup
Curd - ¼ cup
Cumin seeds - ½ tsp
Turmeric powder - ¼ tsp
Green chilly - 2 (sliced lengthwise)
Coriander powder - 1 tsp
Red chilly powder - less then ¼ tsp
Salt - 1.5 tsp
Saffron - 20-25 threads
Cashew nuts - 2 tbsp
Raisins - 1 tbsp
Ungrinned spices:
Cinnamon - ½ inch piece
Black cardamom - 2
Nutmeg (jaifal) - 2 pinch
Bay leaf - 1
Clove - 4-5
Green cardamom - 3
Black pepper - 8-10
Green vegetables
Cauliflower florets - 1 cup
Green coriander - 2 tbsp (finely chopped)
Capsicum - 1 (cut into 1 inch thin pieces)
Carrot - 1 (cut into 1 inch thin pieces)
Beans - 10-12 (cut into 1 inch pieces)
Potatoes - 2
Tomato - 2
Mint leaves - 10-12
How to make Veg Biryani
Boil rice firstly for making veg biryani. Boil 5
cups of water in any utensil. Add bay leaf, cloves,
cinnamon stick, and peeled black cardamom in water.
When water starts boiling add rice in the water and
cook the rice 80% only because they will be
pressurized later.
Rice gets cooked completely during this process.
Meanwhile fry vegetable in a pan. Heat oil in a pan
and firstly fry potatoes on high flame. Slice them
length wise. Fry until they get light brown color.
Add cauliflower florets and carrot in the pan for
frying. Fry on high flame for 1.5 minute only and
take then out. Fry capsicum for 1 minute only and
take it out in plate (Keep the vegetables crunchy,
don’t fry them too much)
Now strain the rice with help of a sieve. All excess
water will be drained out in the utensil kept below.
Keep the sieve filled with rice on other place so
that they get cooled quickly. Remove bay leaf and
cardamom skin from the rice and make them cool.
Prepare masala in the same pan used for frying
vegetables. Roast cumin seeds in hot oil. Add ginger
paste, green chilies, turmeric powder and coriander
powder and roast a little. Cut tomatoes into small
chunks and add in the masala. Cook until tomatoes
get mashed properly. Add salt, red chilly powder and
coarsely grinned gram masala (2 cloves, black
pepper, ½ inch cinnamon stick, green cardamom) in
the pan. Roast the masala. Now add curd in the
masala and roast for few minutes more. Masala is now
ready. Now add fried vegetables in the masala and
mix nicely. Vegetable for biryani is ready. Rice has
also come to room temperature.
Biryani:
Take one big and heavy utensil, add 1 tsp ghee and
layer half of he rice. Now layer the prepared
vegetables on top of the rice and spread it evenly.
Layer rest of the rice on top the vegetables and
spread them evenly. Sprinkle cashew nuts and raisins
on surface of the rice, add green coriander and mint
leaves too. Pour 4 tbsp melted ghee from top. Soak
saffron in 2 tsp water and sprinkle it on top of the
rice. Now cover the biryani tightly and properly and
dum (pressurize) it for 15 minutes.
Open the lid of utensil and mix all ingredients
nicely. Hot and tasty veg biryani is ready. Serve
biryani with curd, chutney or raita.
Suggestion:
If you prefer eating onions, then take 2 onions
chopped thinly and fry them as well. Layer the
onions on top of the rice. Rests repeat the same
procedure. Mix all ingredients and veg biryani is
ready.