Got biryani cravings on a busy weekday? Or maybe you haven’t made biryani before? Oh are there some short noticed guests coming? This biryani recipe is for you!
Aromatic grains of rice, spicy pieces of meat, the incredible flavors of herbs, layered and combined to make biryani. My love for biryani is endless. It’s a dish that I can never get enough of. But the hassle of making separate layers, washing the dishes and clean up afterwards. It isn’t something that could be made on a short notice. Said who? This version is everything but difficult and time consuming. You will only need about 30 minutes and just ONE pot to wash afterwards.
Whom is this recipe meant for?
Although I do not want to make any set rules and restrict this biryani for a specific group of people, I will still point down the ‘chosen ones’ 😉
- Anyone having biryani cravings but has limited time to make it.
- Anyone who is a beginner to cooking.
- Short noticed visitors whom who still wish to feed well.
- Busy mommies/daddies.
- Anyone who hates washing dishes.
- Anyone who doesn’t like using boxed spice mixes.
Ingredients needed
Haven’t got much time to read any further? I thought so. Let’s get straight to the point and have a look at the ingredients that are needed for the biryani. Don’t forget to read the important notes about the ingredients below.
Notes on Ingredients:
- Ginger-garlic paste: I prefer using my homemade ginger garlic paste. You can make it by simply blending equal amounts of (peeled) ginger and garlic into a blender or use mortar and pestle to finely crush it. Otherwise, you can use store bought ginger-garlic paste.
- Red chili powder: For a vibrant looking biryani, use deghi or Kashmiri red chili powder.
- Tomato paste: It could be substituted with tomato puree (quantity mentioned in recipe).
- Whole spices: All the whole spices pictured above could be easily found at any Indian grocery store.
- Rice: I prefer using long grain basmati rice for my biryani. For this recipe, I used Daawat brand of rice (pictured below).
- Chicken: Since this is a quick recipe, I used chicken breast. To avoid dry chicken pieces, do not cut the chicken too small (otherwise it will get overcooked). Cook the chicken first on medium heat to seal the moisture in. Do not overcook the chicken.
- Greens: Coriander, mint and green chili provide a very nice aroma to the biryani. Use a generous amount for an incredible flavor.
Watch the recipe video below for step-by-step instructions
Easy 30-Minutes One Pot Biryani
This no-hassle biryani is so easy, you can make it with closed eyes.
Ingredients
- 2 cups (400 grams) long grain basmati rice (I used Daawat brand extra long basmati)
For the spice paste:
- ½ cup (125 grams) full fat yogurt
- 2 Tbsp ginger-garlic paste (if using separate ginger and garlic pastes, take 1 Tbsp of each)
- 1 Tbsp tomato paste (substitute: 4 Tbsp tomato puree)
- 1 tsp coriander powder
- ½ tsp red chili powder (deghi or Kasmiri preferred) (add more for a spicier biryani)
- â…› tsp turmeric powder
- 3 tsp salt
Whole spices:
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- ½ tsp black peppercorns
- 1 mace (javitri)
- 2 black cardamom pods
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 4 green cardamom pods
Other ingredients:
- 1 big white onion
- a generous handful of coriander
- 20-25 fresh mint leaves
- 1 green chili
- 3 Tbsp ghee (or any other oil/fat)
- 3 cups (700 ml) water
- 2 cups (600 grams) boneless chicken breast (cut into equal sized pieces-not too small)
Instructions
Soaking rice:
- Wash the rice thoroughly until the water that comes out of it isn’t cloudy anymore. Let it soak until needed.
Spice paste preparation:
- Add all the ingredients mentioned under spice paste into a bowl. Mix until a homogeneous paste is formed. Set aside.
Whole spices preparation:
- In a mortar and pestle, add all the above mentioned whole spices. Pound to roughly crush the whole spices. If you do not have a mortar and pestle, you can simply use a heavy object to crush the spices or use them as it is.
Chopping:
- Peal and thinly slice the onion. Finely chop the coriander (with stem) and mint leaves. Slice the green chili.
Cooking:
- Take a big and wide pot. Add ghee and let it heat up on medium heat.
- Add the sliced onion and sauté for about 2-3 minutes.
- When the onion just starts to turn brown, add the crushed whole spices. Sauté for another 2-3 minutes.
- When the onion turns golden brown, add the prepared spice paste. Turn the heat on medium low and sauté for about 4 minutes until oil appears on the surface. Keep stirring so the spices don’t burn. (if the mixture looks too dry and is sticking to the bottom, add splashes of water from time to time).
- Add the chicken and turn heat on medium/medium high. Stir occasionally and cook until the chicken changes color from all sides (about 3 minutes).
- Add the water and let it come to a boil. Drain the rice thoroughly.
- Once the water boils, add the drained rice along with the chopped coriander, mint and green chili. Let it cook uncovered on medium heat for about 5 minutes.
- Once the rice appears on the surface, cover the pot with an aluminium foil first, followed by a good fitting lid. Make sure that it is properly sealed and no air escapes from the pot. Reduce the heat to lowest and let cook for 15 minutes.
- After 15 minutes, uncover and either transfer to a serving dish or fluff using a fork. If the rice is left to sit into the pot for too long, it may turn clumpy.
- Serve with raita and marinated (or lemon drizzled) onion.