Dum Aloo Biryani Recipe | Quick Method

Dum Aloo Biryani Recipe | Quick Method

Earlier I had posted another version of this Dum Aloo Biryani Recipe , which was a bit of lengthy process. Tried this quick version and the results were awesome; taste did not differ much from the other version. Potatoes are one of the most versatile and much loved vegetable by all; this dish makes a splendid vegetarian meal when you have to impress someone and win their heart.  When you have an unexpected guest at home or craving for a spicy meal on a chilly day, this is a stand by.

 I have never tried this method with the larger potatoes, not sure if they cook well even when cubed, I have always used baby potatoes for this method. Stick on to the quantity of ingredients mentioned below to get a perfect taste and to prevent your rice from being burnt.

I suppose many are scared to try dum biryanis for fear of rice being burnt at the bottom, Firstly, moisture is the key to prevent burning, using enough yogurt prevents this, secondly, heavy bottom utensil is needed, if you do not have one, still can make it perfectly by using a tawa at the bottom.

Ingredients

Fried onions 1 onion (thinly sliced and layers separated) (fry in 1 tsp oil till they are browned fully and evenly) (for authentic way of making fried onions readhere)

Fistful of mint leaves (chopped) (1/2 for marinating and half for layering)

Fistful of coriander leaves (chopped) (1/2 for marinating and half for layering)

Few saffron strands (soaked in warm milk)

Rice

1 cup aged basmathi rice (soaked in water for 20 to 30 mins and drained)

1 tsp oil

Salt to taste

1 bay leaf , (Spices to tie in a cloth or can add directly) (same as the one for marinating except black cardamom)

1 bay leaf

4 cloves

3 inch cinnamon stick

4 green cardamoms

½ tsp. shahi jeera / black cumin

1 strand of mace

Few pepper corn

Marination

3 tbsps ghee or oil

1 cup of peeled boiled baby potatoes (preferably all of equal size, if your potatoes are from cold storage, then boil the potatoes and use otherwise they remain undercooked)

½ of the mint leaves mentioned above

½ of the coriander leaves mentioned above

½ of the fried onions mentioned above

2 green chilies (slit)

1 tbsp. ginger garlic paste

½ cup +2 tbsps. of slightly sour yogurt

1 tsp. red chilies powder

1 tsp. Homemade Biryani masala powder (if you do not have replace with simple garam masala powder)* updated (can increase upto 1 tbsp, if you like very spicy)

1 bay leaf

4 cloves

3 inch cinnamon stick

4 green cardamoms

1 black cardamom

½ tsp. shahi jeera / black cumin

1 strand of mace

Few pepper corn

Salt to taste

Method

1.   Heat a pan with 1 tsp oil, fry the onions till they are browned fully and evenly, keep strirring  often to prevent burning. Set aside. While you do this proceed to next step

2.   Marinate potatoes with all the marination ingredients and set aside for atleast 30 mins.

3.   Bring 1 ¾ cups water to boil and add the spices, salt, oil and rice and cook the rice till 90 % done. Important step. do not make your rice mushy.

4.   After 30 mins transfer the potato marinade to a heavy bottom utensil

5.   layer the rice evenly on the potato marinade

6.   Drop few mint and coriander leaves, fried onions

7.   Repeat steps 5 and 6, pour saffron milk and a tbsp of ghee (I recommend this if your rice is cooked right, if you pour the ghee on undercooked or hard rice, it becomes harder during the dum process instead of softening). (if you are unsure whether your rice is done right, just skip the ghee)

8.   Rinse 2 kitchen towels, squeeze off the excess water and cover the rice using the towels.place the lid over the cloth, make sure that the lid is placed properly, so that the steam does not escape out.  If the lid is not airtight that’s ok.

9.   Place this utensil on a hot  tawa and set the flame to medium for 5 mins and very low for 30 mins. If you have a see thru lid, u can see the vapour dripping on the towel.  However Switch off after  40 mins.

10.                Do not open the lid for atleast 15 mins.

Serve hot with raita.

Dum Aloo Biryani Recipe | Quick Method

Notes

1.   potatoes get a crust on the outer layer and soft cooked inside.

2.   You can use any utensil for making this biryani, even a non stick is fine, but do not use a very thin tawa.

3.   Do not use a oversized utensil,  use the right sized utensil required for the qty of rice you want to cook

4.   If your biryani burns, next time try with a different utensil and flame needs to be adjusted, try reducing the cooking time too.

5. adjust the cooking time if you are cooking more qty than mentioned here

For me the biryani never gets burnt, i use either a deep non stick pan, or a corningware casserole , sometimes even a 3 lt pressure cooker ( i do not use its lid.) all work fine for me.