Vegetable Biriyani

'Biriyani', the mention of this word alone is enough to fill my mouth with water sufficient to sail a ship !!! Back at home this is not a very frequent dish. Mom used to prepare this maybe once in a month or so.. But once you are abroad or living with a group of friends the scene shifts completely rite?? I am not completely certain of the reasons, but this dish will find its way at least once a week or many a times more than that. Can be the lack/shortage of 'Thalapakattu Biriyani kadai' or other wonderful restaurants that serve you this, in every other street of the city where you live. Or the very pride that you feel in front of your friends when you are done with the preparation & the aroma fills your home.. And most importantly, this one 'one pot meal' along with a simple raita is enough for your Sunday menu or when friends come along for a casual weekend get together. So anyways, the reasons are plenty and so is the way in which this awesome food is prepared.

And the version here is one which I learned from Deeps.. My mom makes the biriyani in slightly different styles, maybe I would post that sometimes later. Of all the homemade biriyanis that I have had, I would given Deeps' version the numero uno position. I simply love the correct blend of the spices & masala.. More importantly, the rice doesn't get burnt or stuck to the bottom of the pan nor does it break. You can see the long grains of the rice coated with masala inviting you very dearly.. Ohh my.. I am literally drooling writing this up. And mind you, veg biriyani was never in my list when there is a never ending palette of chicken, mutton, prawn etc etc etc biriyanis. But believe me, I started loving veg biriyani also very much, after I laid my hands on this version.

But there was only one disadvantage.. Every Sunday, I would be his apprentice and clean up chicken or cut vegetables and he would be the chef. And I did not  learn how to make this. That's when the realization stuck me. Then, there was no stopping.. I donned the hat of the chef, learned and made it on my own. Yes, it came out very well and hence it has found it's way onto this space now. Over to the recpie..

Recipe from Deeps:

Preparation Time : 20 minutes

Cooking Time : 40-45 minutes

I Used:

Basmati Rice             -  3 cups Water                      -  5 ¼ cups (3 * 1 ¾ cups) Onion                       -  3 nos (medium sized) Tomato                    -  1 no (medium sized) Carrot                      -  2 nos (medium sized) Beans                       - 15-20 nos Potato                      -  2 nos (medium sized) Green Peas               -  ½ cup (I used frozen ones) Mint leaves               -  10 sprigs Coriander leaves       -  10 sprigs Green Chilly                    -  2 nos Ginger Garlic paste    -  1 tbsp Lemon juice             -  ½ a lemon's Cinnamon stick         -  1 inch piece Cloves                     -  4 nos Cardamom               -  3 nos Bay leaf                   -  2 leaves Chilly powder           -  1 tsp Coriander powder     -  2 tsp Turmeric powder     -  ½ tsp Biriyani masala          -  1 tsp Garam masala            -  1 tsp Ghee                      -  As needed Salt                        -  As needed

The Way:

1. Rinse the rice and soak it in water
2. Cut the vegetables - onion, tomato, carrot, beans & potato into thin slices
3. Defrost the green peas
4. Separate the mint leaves from the sprigs
5. Chop the coriander leaves & green chillies
6. Heat little ghee in a pan. Add the sliced carrot, beans & potato and fry for a few minutes. This is for the veggies to remain intact & not break when we add rice. Keep this aside
7. Heat ghee in the same pan. Add cinnamon, cloves, cardamom (remove the pods & add the seeds inside), bay leaves (crush them before adding) and saute
8. When the combined aroma of the spices start coming, add the sliced onions. Saute the onions till they become soft & oil separates from them
9. Add ginger garlic paste and saute till the raw smell goes off
10. Now add tomatoes & green chillies and saute till the tomatoes become soft
11. Add the ghee tossed vegetables, green peas & half the mint leaves
12. Add chilly powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, biriyani masala & salt. Add one cup of water and mix well
13. Cover the pan and cook until the vegetables are almost done
14. Once the vegetables are soft and cooked, add rice and the remaining 4 ¼ cups of water
15. Add garam masala, lemon juice, coriander leaves & remaining mint leaves and mix well
16. Now taste the mix for salt and hotness. Adjust to your taste buds accordingly
17. Cover the pan and cook in medium fire for 15 minutes
18. After 15 minutes check if the rice is done and water has evaporated completely. Else  reduce the flame further and cook for another 5-10 minutes (It took me 5 extra minutes)
19. You can see that the rice has neither stuck to the bottom of the pan & nor has broken down. Long beautiful grains of basmati rice gives the biriyani a rich look
20. Once the rice is done, off the flame and leave the pan in the heat of the stove till you serve

Notes:

• Rice : Water ratio of 1:1 ¾ works perfectly well for me. I use India Gate basmati rice for making this biriyani

Linking to the event Cook Like a Celebrity Chef event by Food Corner

Cheers,

Chitz