Biryani is a celebration of all that is great about Indian food – the heady aromas, the vibrant colours, the fluffy rice and those addictive curry flavours. Make this Chicken Biryani with your protein of choice – or try a vegetable biryani!
Biryani recipe
One of the most requested recipes is finally here! Another RecipeTin Family effort, it took us seven attempts to get this biryani right.
Seven attempts means seven heated arguments about who would take the leftover biryani because somebody in the RecipeTin family, at any point in time, usually declares themselves to be on a diet to address blog-related weight gain concerns.
And it was worth it. (Belly and all.) Biryani, we can’t get enough of you!
What is Biryani and why do I love it so much?
Essentially, it’s your favourite chicken curry (or vegetable or other protein of choice) buried under a mound of delicately spiced fluffy rice, all made in one pot. The rice is steamed over a low heat so it absorbs the flavours of the curry bubbling away underneath.
So in a nutshell, it’s every curry loving-carb monsters’ dream come true. It’s got my name written all over it!
About this Biryani
You’ll find variations of Biryani all across the Indian subcontinent, from Pakistan to Bangladesh, Afghanistan to India. There are 2 main types – one where the protein and/or vegetables are cooked mixed throughout the rice, and the other version known as Hyderabad-style biryani in India where meat and rice are layered and cook in a sealed pot over fire. The latter is the style of biryani I’m sharing today.
There’s a wonderful Afghani restaurant in my area called Sahar (Newport, Sydney) which serves a Biryani that’s a huge favourite among locals. Hands down, the best ethnic restaurant I know in the upper northern beaches.
How to make Biryani
Chicken marinated in a spiced yoghurt is placed in a large pot, then layered with fried onions (cheeky easy sub below!), fresh coriander/cilantro, then par boiled lightly spiced rice.
The crowning glory is to finish it off with a drizzle of saffron infused water to give it the signature patches of bright yellow rice, as well as ghee (or melted butter) for buttery richness.
The pot is then covered and cooked over a low heat for about 25 minutes during which time the rice absorbs the aromas and flavours of the curry underneath, whilst still being beautifully fluffy.
That moment when you lift the lid and are greeted with this sight…
…. that moment is only second to this: when you dig deep into the pot, ensuring you get some of every layer, and the full force of the aroma from the curry buried deep under the rice hits you, and it takes every single bit of will power to gravitate that spoon towards a bowl instead of attempting to shove that entire giant scoop in your mouth….
OK wait. Did you almost lose control too?
I’m almost done. Bear with me – just want to show you a few more things before handing over the recipe!
Biryani spices
There’s subtle flavourings used for the rice, and a load more used for the curry sauce.
There’s a lengthy list but there’s nothing exotic here, you can find all these spices at everyday supermarkets here in Australia. Some recipes call for Asafoetida which is an Indian spice that requires a trip to an Indian grocer. We tried it with and without, and I swear we could not taste a difference. So we don’t use it. 🙂
Cheeky substitute for fried onions
Thin slices of onion fried until sweet and a bit crispy, this is used as one of the layers in the Biryani as well as a garnish for serving.
If you aren’t a fan of deep frying or are a beginner cook, my cheeky alternative is using store bought fried onion (Asian or Indian stores) or Asian Fried Shallots (pictured below) which are sold at everyday supermarkets. They add the same oniony flavour with the added bonus of extra crunch!
The roots of this recipe
Another recipe ticked off the Recipe Request list, another RecipeTin family effort!!
As always, we love to look to the pros to build a starting point for recipe inspiration. We ate biryani at our favourite specialty restaurants in Sydney, Pakistani chain Student Biryani in Auburn, and the Indian restaurant Paradise Biryani House in North Strathfield.
To learn the techniques, we looked at a few books (love the local library!), dozens of internet pages and Youtube videos from home cooks in India.
Yes the ingredients list is long – but you’ll find everything at the supermarket. And while there are a number of steps to make Biryani, it is actually quite a straightforward recipe. (Video is helpful too!)
And even if yours doesn’t turn out perfect, don’t be put off because even less than perfect biryani is still delicious (we happily scoffed the first few test batches despite the flaws!). – Nagi x
More great curries of the world!
Dal (Indian lentil curry)
Browse the Curry Collection
And serve on the side …
Give this Everyday Cabbage Salad an Indian spin by sauteing garlic and cumin seeds in oil before mixing up with other Dressing ingredients
No Yeast Easy Soft Flatbread. Perfect to use as naan!
Watch how to make it
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Chicken Biryani
Ingredients
- 750g (1.5 lb) chicken thighs , skin on, bone in, halved along bone (Note 1)
Marinade:
- 2/3 cup (150 ml) yoghurt , plain
- 1/2 cup (125 ml) water
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil (or other plain oil)
- 6 garlic cloves , minced
- 2 tsp finely grated fresh ginger
- 1/8 tsp ground turmeric
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp cayenne (adjust spiciness to taste)
- 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
- 2 tsp garam marsala (Note 2)
- 2 tsp coriander
- 1 tbsp cumin
- 2 tbsp paprika , sweet / ordinary (not smoked)
- 1 3/4 tsp salt
Par Boiled Rice:
- 2 tbsp salt
- 10 cloves
- 5 dried bay leaves
- 1 star anise
- 6 green cardamon pods
- 2 1/4 cups (450g) uncooked basmati rice (Note 3)
Crispy Onions (Note 4):
- 2 medium onions (yellow, brown) , halved and finely sliced
- 1 cup (250 ml) oil , for frying
Saffron:
- 1 tsp saffron threads (loosely packed) (Note 5)
- 2 tbsp warm water
Biryani:
- 1 cup coriander / cilantro , chopped
- 1/4 cup (60g) ghee or unsalted butter , melted (Note 6)
Garnish:
- Crispy onions (above)
- Chopped coriander / cilantro
- Yoghurt (Note 7)
Instructions
- Mix Marinade in a large pot (about 26cm / 11″ diameter). Add chicken and coat well. Marinade 20 minutes to overnight.
Par Boiled Rice:
- Bring 3 litres / 3 quarts water to the boil, add salt and spices.
- Add rice, bring back up to the boil then cook for 4 minutes, or until rice is just cooked still a bit firm in the middle. Rice will taste salty at this stage, disappears in next stage of cooking.
- Drain immediately. Set aside. (Note 10 re: leaving whole spices in)
Crispy Onions:
- Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium high heat. Cook onion, in batches, for 3 to 4 minutes, until golden brown. Don’t burn – they become bitter.
- Remove onto paper towel lined plate. Repeat with remaining onion.
Saffron:
- Place in a bowl, leave for 10 minutes+.
Biryani:
- Place pot with chicken in it onto a stove over medium heat. Cover and cook for 5 minutes.
- Remove lid. Cook for 5 minutes, turning chicken twice.
- Remove from heat.
- Turn chicken so skin side is down – it should cover most of the base of the pot.
- Scatter over half the onion then half the coriander.
- Top with all the rice. Gently pat down and flatten surface.
- Drizzle saffron across rice surface in random pattern, then drizzle over ghee.
- Place lid on. Return to stove over medium heat.
- As soon as you see steam, turn down to low then cook for 25 minutes.
- Remove from stove, rest with lid on for 10 minutes.
To Serve:
- Aim to serve it so you get nice patches of yellow rice, white rice, the curry stained rice + chicken (rather than all mixed up). To do this, use a large spoon and dig deep into the pot, and try to scoop up as much as you can in one scoop.
- Turn out into bowl – or onto platter. Garnish with remaining onion and coriander with yoghurt on the side (see Note 7 for Minted Yoghurt)
Recipe Notes:
* Scaling recipe (click on servings and scale) – must scale pot size up/down
* Salt – yes you really need 2 tbsp salt to par boil the rice. The rice will taste salty at this stage but the salt comes out of the rice during the second stage of cooking. Trust me, you need that much salt in the water!
* Spiciness is mainly from cayenne, a bit from garam masala. So adjust to taste.
* Fresh spices – use fresh spices, not ones that have been sitting around in your pantry for years!
* Whole spices – the whole spices are typically left in the rice. They soften when cooked so to me it’s not a big deal, I’ve never found it off-putting. If you’re really concerned, either pick them out just before layering in the pot or wrap the spices in a small muslin or cheesecloth. 11. Storage – Leftovers keep well for 3 to 4 days in the fridge. Reheat in microwave. As rice is not quite as moist with leftovers, best to serve with yoghurt (even plain is fine). Even freezing should be fine, haven’t tried it but rice and curry both freeze great so I see no reason why this wouldn’t freeze well. Make Ahead – These are the things that can be done ahead: Par Boil the rice up up to 24 hours ahead of using. Marinate the chicken and cook it per recipe up to the point before rice covers it up to 2 days ahead. OR leave the marinated chicken in the freezer for up to 48 hours. Make saffron water and onion. Then on the day of, assemble the biryani layers and cook per recipe!
Life of Dozer
This is how he spent most of today. (And yesterday. And the day before.)
Hi
How much of this can be made in advance?
And if using more chicken say over 1.2-1kgs how would you alter cooking time?
Thanks x
Hi Mel! I added make ahead notes in Note 11 🙂 For the chicken, use the recipe scaler by clicking on the Servings and sliding to change the marinade ingredients for the amount of chicken you want to use. Then just cook the chicken for perhaps an extra 5 minutes – you just want it to be mostly cooked through before piling the rice on. N x
Nagi the rice was sooooo salty!!! Any ideas why? I loved the taste apart from how salty the rice was 🙁
HI Mai! Did you definitely measure the water / salt / rice correctly?? I say in the recipe that the par boiled rice is definitely salty but the salt drops during the 2nd cook so the rice is nowhere near as salty, it should be perfectly seasoned!:)
Yes, I definitely made sure to measure everything correctly!!! It was super salty the first time I ate it when I served it, however upon subsequent reheats in the microwave it was fine??? Any ideas?!
Hi Mai – the way this recipe works, the rice drops / sweats out the salt when it is steaming with the chicken. So I’m wondering if the rice wasn’t cooked long enough – did you wait until you saw steam before starting the timer for 25 minutes??? N x
Wow made this for dinner tonight, was so tasty your recipes never fail, always full of flavour and taste so much better than eating out!! I’m not the worlds best cook but I love trying new recipes and yours never disappoint.
Hi Nagi,
Can this be done in a slow cooker (crock pot).
Thanks
Laurella
Hmm! Interesting question!!! I think so but I am not sure how long… I am guessing 2 hours? 🙂
Amazing recipe and love the detailed instructions! Easy to cook for 10 people, family devoured it – even though I had to leave out cayenne, paprika and cardamom and substituted yoghurt with coconut milk and lemon juice + tamarind pulp because of dietary restrictions. Rice was amazingly fluffy and not too salty! I let the chicken legs stew for a bit longer because I had 1,8 kilo, meat was succulent and fall of the bone. YUM
Love that you enjoyed this Renee! Thanks for letting me know – N x
Hi Nagi. I have been making and eating biryani for forty years. Yesterday I used your recipe. Simply wonderful, thank you. Giver Dozer a cuddle from me!
Hello Nagi.
I wanted to do a vegetable biryani using just potatoes probably. In the notes it says to remove the vegetables from heat before adding peas. I do not want to use peas so do I keep the vegetables in the pot and continue with the recipe instead of removing them?
Thanks.
Also, could I know how you did your vegetable biryani? Like what vegetables did you use in your test?
Help please.
could you bake it – not on stove top at all?
Nagiii can you please name substitutes for star anise and bay leaves?
Is it okay to use pandan leaves?
I made this tonight and it was delicious!! The chicken was falling off the bone and it was yummzz. Two questions on the recipe – 1) The bottom of my pot got very burnt! (thank goodness the chicken skin offered a layer of protection) Everything else turned out well (not overcooked)- could it be that my medium fire was still too strong ?
2) There was wayyy too much rice for too little chicken. (We used 1.8lb of chicken thighs which was about 4pieces) How can I scale the recipe for just the chicken? Am thinking I need twice the amount of chicken!
Thanks Nagi! I can’t wait to make this again !
If you place the cooking dish you are making the biryani on top of a skillet, it will prevent the bottom from burning.
HI Pavithra,
I made this in a dutch oven (similar to what Nagi used in the video). Not sure this would fit in a skillet? Thanks!
Sorry, if I wasn’t clear. I place the Dutch oven over a skillet or flat griddle pan so that the heat is indirect. I learnt this trick from my mom.
I made it last night and my husband ate 3 servings! Thank you Nagi!
Thanks for the feedback Nyss! Glad he enjoyed this 🙂 N x
Thanks so much for this!
A clarification concerning the preparation of the skin-on, bone-in chicken, which you instruct to be “halved along bone”.
So is the bone removed after cutting along its length? I’m assuming that is but I’m not sure. I looked at the video and still couldn’t quite figure it out.
Hi Peter! I keep the bone in. So one half has the bone basically exposed from cutting along it 🙂 I’ll describe this in the recipe 🙂 N x
Hello Nagi
I can definitely confirm that the vegetable biryani was delicious, packed with flavours and filling! Yes it is a bit of a process to make it, not hard but time consuming, however well worth the effort! I also appreciate the fact that when you suggest an alternative version of a dish, you have tried and tested it!
Thanks for the feedback Marie! Glad you enjoyed the veg version of this 🙂 N x
I have been making my mom’s biriyani recipe for several years (she is a phenomenal cook) which is different from the Hyderabadi biriyani. Made this today with adjustments to the recipe and cooking time for the chicken. Used boneless, skinless chicken thighs and it came out juicy and did not dry out. Had run out of saffron so used the poor man’s version using turmeric. It came out very well. Will definitely be making it again.
I use the poor man’s version all the time! 🙂 So pleased to hear you approved of this one Pavritha, I feel your mom’s bar must be HIGH!! 😂
Biryani is the dish which can be liked by anyone, I have tried almost 30 types of biryani from many different destinations. But trust me every Biryani has different taste and every taste is incredible itself.
Amen!!
Hi Nagi,
Just wondering if this could be made with brown rice. I don’t usually have any white rice.
Hi Salma! Pretty sure it will be just fine, just cook the rice until just before al dente, not sure how long that will be. 🙂
That looks bloody unreal!
As to the asafoetida inclusion I think it’s usually add as a digestive aid rather than taste. Often it’s in daal recipes. It’s a weird taste on its own but is not detectable in the meal. It stops Dozer from getting unfairly blamed for the flatulent smells.
Best. Response. EVER!!
I have been wanting to make biryani for sooo long but have struggled with what recipe to use. So many versions. I could not have been more thrilled to see this post! Your tastes are incredibly similar to my and my husband’s and I know that you take the time to tweak and perfect recipes like this to get the best iteration. I am all over it, can’t wait. I’ll report back. 🙂
Looking forward to hearing what you think!!
I permanently reside in my beloved Australia now and especially miss the food from my South African heritage, especially the Cape Malay dishes, and what we call Breyani. I made your recipe tonight and almost cried with pleasure and joy! It was so fragrant and totally scrumptious. Thank you, Nagi ❤️👏
OH WOW Natalie! I’m so thrilled you enjoyed this so much, thank you! PS I hear you re: Food joy tears N xx
Is it really two tablespoons of salt for the rice?
Yes 🙂 It’s for the water for par boiling and the rice does taste salty at first but it melds into the curry during the second part of cooking. I promise you will not think the rice is salty once finished!! N x
Thanks for answering my question. I made the Biryani on Sunday, and it was delicious.