Vegetable Dum Biryani

Well, nothing tastes better than a plate full of biryani filled with aromatic and exotic flavors. This restaurant-style vegetable dum biryani is a combination of fragrant basmati rice, medium spicy vegetable masala, saffron milk, fried onions, mint leaves, and ghee and will surely tickle your taste buds.

Tips to make the perfect Vegetable Dum Biryani

• I highly recommend using long-grain-aged basmati rice for better flavor and better visual appeal.
• Use fresh vegetables of your choice and cut them into equal sizes so that they can cook evenly.
• Marinate the vegetables using yogurt to enhance the flavor.
• Use aromatic and exotic spices. The most commonly used are cardamom, peppercorns, cumin, saffron, garam masala, and bay leaf. You can also use rose water to flavor the biryani.
• The rice must be cooked only 80% (should have a bite).
• Use ghee or a combination of ghee and oil.
• Add caramelized onions for a crunchy and delicious taste. You can also add cashews.
• Use saffron-infused milk to elevate the flavor. Mix a little saffron in milk and pour it on top. This gives the biryani a nice subtle yellow-orange flavor.
• Finally, the most important tip is to slow cook the biryani to get that perfect marinated-infused flavor.

Serving Suggestions

Once the biryani is cooked, let it rest for 10 minutes. Then using a large spoon or fork, scoop it from the bottom so that the vegetables and masala get mixed slightly with the rice.

Finally, serve this delicious vegetable dum biryani with raita.

Vegetable Dum Biryani

Course: MealsCuisine: Vegetarian, IndianDifficulty: Medium

Servings

4

servings

Prep time

20

minutes

Cooking time

1

hour 

Total time

1

hour 

20

minutes

Restaurant-style vegetable dum biryani packed with veggies, spices, and herbs and a delight to the taste buds in every bite!

Ingredients

• FOR MARINATION

• 1/2 cup curd

• 1 cup fried onions

• 1 tsp turmeric powder

• 1 tsp garam masala

• 1 tsp cumin powder

• 1 tsp red chilli powder

• 1 tsp coriander powder

• 3 tsp salt (as per taste)

• 1 tsp ginger paste

• 1 tsp garlic paste

• 1/2 cup mint leaves, finely chopped

• 1 medium-size green chilli, finely chopped

• 2 cups cauliflower florets

• 1 cup beans, chopped

• 1 cup carrot, chopped

• 1/2 cup green peas

• 1 cup mushroom, sliced

• 1 medium-size tomato, chopped

• 1 medium-size potato, chopped

• 2 medium-size onions, sliced

• FOR COOKING BIRYANI

• 1 Tbsp vegetable oil

• 4 tsp ghee

• 1 bay leaf (tej patta)

• 1/2 tsp black peppercorns

• 1 large cardamom (badi elaichi)

• 2 small cinnamon sticks

• 5 cups long grain basmati rice

• saffron milk (18-20 saffron strands mixed with 4 Tbsp milk)

• FOR RAITA

• 2 cups curd

• 1/2 cup pomegranate

• 1/2 cup grapes, diced

• 1/2 tsp chaat masala

• 1/4 tsp black pepper powder

• 1/4 tsp red chilli powder

• 1/4 tsp black salt

• 1/2 cup mint leaves, finely chopped

Directions

• Rinse rice and soak in enough water for 1/2 hour.
• Take a large bowl; add curd, veggies, spices, and all the ingredients under marination. Mix them well and keep the mixture aside for 20 minutes. (Set aside a handful of mint leaves and 1/2 cup fried onions for later use.)
• In a deep pan or large kadhai heat oil and ghee on medium heat. Add bay leaf, black peppercorns, large cardamom, and cinnamon sticks to a mortar & pestle and crush them. Add these to the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes. Now add the marinated vegetables and saute them for 5 minutes.
• Now cover the pan with a lid and let the spices and marinated vegetables cook for 20 minutes or until the moisture is completely gone.
• Meanwhile, drain the rice and place a pan on medium heat and add 4 cups of water along with the rice. Cook for about 15 minutes or until the rice is 80% done (not completely cooked). Strain the rice, spread it on a plate, and set it aside.
• Return to veggies and take half of the cooked vegetable masala and set it aside. Now layer the biryani by keeping vegetable masala at the bottom, and next layer with cooked rice. Again spread the vegetable masala and then the final layer of cooked rice. Finally add fried onions, mint leaves, and saffron milk. Cover the pan and leave it in dum for 15 minutes on low flame. Once cooked, turn off the heat and allow it to rest for 10 minutes.
• Serve the veg dum biryani hot with raita by the side.