Hyderabadi Chicken Dum Biryani

Today I am here with a favorite biriyani of my son he loves this biriyani very much.its the king of biriyanis known as Hyderabadi biryani.This is a special kind of biryani from Hyderabad, Telangana, India now very popular in all over India.This aromatic and flavorful whole meal is delicious and is perfect for any occasion.

Every region has its own style of biryani,I have already posted many kind of South Indian biriyanis like Kozhikodan biriyani,Ambur biriyani,Thalassery biriyani etc

This Hyderabadi dum biriyani is a mouth watering combination of Aromatic Basmati rice layered over succulent pieces of chicken cooked with homemade spices, yogurt and fried onion then sealed and dum cooked to perfection 😋

What type of chicken is best for making biriyani ?

I always prefer fresh chicken with bone because it tastes so good .cut chicken in to medium pieces and wash it with salt and water so u can avoid the raw taste and smell of chicken.

spices:- I always use freshly ground spices so the taste and aroma will be greater but the packed biriyani masala works well too.Adding some whole spices while cooking rice will enhance the flavor.

Herbs:-Try to use fresh coriander leaves and mint leaves because Fresh herbs works better than dried or frozen one .

Onion:-One of the most important ingredients of a delicious biriyani is onions especially in this biriyani caramelized onions.

Salt and ghee:-these are two another important ingredients.both are taste enhancers .If your rice lacks in salt biriyani is going to be tasteless.to know the salt is enough in water for cooking rice always taste the water, it should have a soupy salt level.while choosing ghee always prefer genuine brands or home made ghee.

Which rice is best for making Hyderabadi Biriyani ?

Rice is one of the most important ingredients for preparing a delicious biriyani.It has to be a good quality aromatic aged long grain basmati rice.

Why you should always rinse rice ?

Wash rice with cold water several times before soaking.rice contains starch particles, dust and pesticides washing will help to remove all this. Rinse the rice in normal water several times.At first you can see a lot of starch and the water will be in white color because wash until the water become clear .The clarity of the run off water indicate most of the starch removed so the rice will not be very sticky after cooking.If you don’t wash rice well it will stick each other once cooked and it will result mushy rice and a gummy texture.

Why you need to soak your Basmati rice?

Its very important to soak washed Basmati rice for about 20 -30 minutes in normal water.soaking will help the rice to absorb some water so you can save the cooking time and flavor.soaking will give maximum, length to the grain so you will get beautiful texture.

How to cook basmati rice ?

You can cook basmati rice in two ways one is Boiling method and other is absorption method .In boiling method boil ample pot of water with sufficient salt and whole spices like cinnamon ,cardamom ,cloves and bay leaves also add one teaspoon of lemon juice and two tablespoons of sun flower oil so the rice wont stick to each other also lemon give freshness.Once the water boiled well add rice and cook till 75% or 90%done depends on what kind of biryani you are cooking and what type of rice you are using(aged rice or not, long grain or short grain etc.)Once done drain the water and spread the rice in a flat vessel.Slightly spread it using a fork.for checking the rice s cooked or not just press it in between your thumb and finger if it breaks in to two parts its done(its called 2 kani chaval).In absorption method always be careful use 1 3\4 or 2 cup water for 1 cup rice or its always better to follow the package instruction.

How much is the ratio of meat and rice when making biriyani?

The usual ratio is 1:1 meat to rice but it depends on peoples preferences like how they want the biriyani to be.meat/chicken or rice more.for meat lovers can use 1kg chicken/meat and 750 g rice for rice lovers can use vise versa.but the normal ratio is 1 kg meat/chicken for 1 kg rice.

How to cook meat/chicken for biriyani?

Succulent pieces of meat/poultry is a main attraction of the perfect biryani.if you are using chicken or meat marinate it 30 minutes to maximum two hours before cooking.You can make gravy of biriyani few hours or a day ahead.the gravy and the chicken or meat should be thick and juicy

The process of Dum

Dum or steaming is the most important process of making biriyani.In this process rice completely absorbs the flavors from gravy and the rice becoming very moist and flavorful .Fort this magic to happen we need to completely trap the steam inside the cooking pot so the rice can puff up in the aroma filled steam. For this we usually cover the edges of the coking vessel with roti dough or you can use aluminum foil to cover the pot then place a lid and a place a weight on top.The dum cook for 30 -35 minutes over very low flame .

Accompaniments:Accompaniments are must with any biriyani .Pappad, Raita, pickle ,kachumber salad and mint chutney are usual accompaniments.

Print Recipe

Hyderabadi Chicken Dum Biryani

This Hyderabadi dum biriyani is a mouth watering combination of Aromatic Basmati rice layered over succulent pieces of chicken cooked with homemade spices, yogurt and fried onion then sealed and dum cooked to perfection 😋

Course

Main Course, Main Dish

Cuisine

Asian, Indian

Servings

people

Ingredients

Ingredients for Biriyani Masala

• 15 numbers cloves
• 2-3 large pieces of cinnammon
• 10-15 pods of cardamom
• 2 pods of black cardamom
• 3 bay leaves
• 1 small mace
• 1/4 part of one nutmeg
• 3 star anise
• 2 tbsp coriander seeds
• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• 1 tsp caraway seeds
• 1 1/2 tsp black pepper

Ingredients for Biryani

• 1 kg chicken cut in to medium pieces (8-10)
• 1 kg basmati rice
• 2 large onion if medium size use 3 thinly sliced
• 2 tsp chili powder
• 3/4 tsp turmeric powder
• 1 tbsp crushed green chili
• 1 tbsp garlic paste
• 1 tbsp ginger paste
• 1 cup yogurt
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 handful mint leaves chopped
• 1 handful coriander leaves chopped
• salt as needed
• ghee

For cooking Rice

• 2-3 cardamom
• 1 bay leaves
• 1 small piece cinnammon
• 2-3 cloves
• 2tbs lemon juice
• 3-31/2 Ltr water to cook the rice
• salt as needed
• 2tb oil

For garnishing

• 4-5 tsp ghee
• 2-3 tbsp saffron milk mix few strands of saffron in warm milk and use
• 2 tbsp oil Preferably the oil which we fried onions
• 2 pinch of biryani masala
• a handful of fried onion

Course Main Course, Main Dish Cuisine Asian, Indian Servings people Ingredients Ingredients for Biriyani Masala 15 numbers cloves 2-3 large pieces of cinnammon 10-15 pods of cardamom 2 pods of black cardamom 3 bay leaves 1 small mace 1/4 part of one nutmeg 3 star anise 2 tbsp coriander seeds 1 tsp fennel seeds 1 tsp caraway seeds 1 1/2 tsp black pepper Ingredients for Biryani 1 kg chicken cut in to medium pieces (8-10) 1 kg basmati rice 2 large onion if medium size use 3 thinly sliced 2 tsp chili powder 3/4 tsp turmeric powder 1 tbsp crushed green chili 1 tbsp garlic paste 1 tbsp ginger paste 1 cup yogurt 1 tbsp lemon juice 1 handful mint leaves chopped 1 handful coriander leaves chopped salt as needed ghee For cooking Rice 2-3 cardamom 1 bay leaves 1 small piece cinnammon 2-3 cloves 2tbs lemon juice 3-31/2 Ltr water to cook the rice salt as needed 2tb oil For garnishing 4-5 tsp ghee 2-3 tbsp saffron milk mix few strands of saffron in warm milk and use 2 tbsp oil Preferably the oil which we fried onions 2 pinch of biryani masala a handful of fried onion

Instructions

1. In a mixer add all ingredients for biriyani masala and grind in to a smooth powder .keep in an air tight container.
2. In a large mixing bowl, add cleaned and washed chicken pieces make sure the water is completely drained.combine chicken with biryani masala, ginger garlic paste, crushed green chili, yogurt, chili powder, turmeric powder, salt and lemon juice . then add coriander and mint leaves, gently mix it with chicken and keep it aside.
3. Rinse rice several times times in lots of water until it is clear. then Soak washed basmati rice in water for 20-30 minutes
4. Mean time Heat oil in a wide frying pan over medium heat.once the oil become hot add thinly sliced onion and fry it until it become golden in color ,set it aside.(Fry onions in batches. Do not crowd the pan.)
5. then in a large, wide and thick bottom vessel boil 3-3 1/2 Ltr of water to cook the rice.Once water started boiling add sufficient salt, cloves, bay leaf, lemon juice, cardamoms and a piece of cinnamon in to it.once it boiled well add two tbsp sunflower oil and washed rice in to it.cook until rice become soft and two kani chaval consistency(70%cooked).then drain water completely.then spread the rice in a wide pan if needed.
6. Transfer chicken with marinade to a large , thick-bottomed vessel, add 3/4 of fried onion to the chicken.mix well .spread it evenly at the bottom .then layer all the cooked rice .Top with fried onions and ghee.and two three teaspoon of fried onion oil (optional) and saffron milk.then sprinkle two pinch of biryani masala .Then seal the top with atta dough or aluminum foil, cover with a lid and place a weight on top of the lid and cook in a low flame for 30 minutes.then switch off the stove rest for ten minutes .serve hot

Recipe Notes

notes:If you are afraid to layer rice with uncooked chicken you can cook the chicken and rice separately   then layer it and do dum cooking for just ten minutes ,that will also work i do that most f the time.

 

use ghee according to your preference i used very less here