Biryani Rice Recipe (Kuska Rice)

Biryani Rice is a popular Indian rice dish made with basmati rice & biryani essentials like spices, herbs, yogurt and onions. It is nothing but a one pot vegetarian plain biryani rice made without any meat or veggies. Also known as Kuska rice or plain biryani in South India, this is a very flavorful and spicy dish that can be made in a jiffy. Biryani is one of the most loved dishes in India and there are so many kinds of biryanis made.

While a lot of people say a dish without meat is not a biryani and a lot more say a dish that is not layered and dum cooked is not a biryani. However the truth is that there is no one way it is made. But yes an authentic biryani is said to have meat and is always layered & dum cooked.

About Biryani Rice

Biryani Rice is a fake version of the authentic biryani as it has no meat, not layered and is not dum cooked. Down in the Southern parts of India this is one dish that is immensely popular in the budget & medium scale restaurants. It is also called as kuska or plain biryani.

India is a diverse nation and every dish is made in many regional ways. So you will find a biryani rice referred to as Kuska in some regions and the recipes vary widely.

This biryani rice is simply flavor packed and can be eaten without any sides. But in restaurants it is usually served with a gravy known as salna. A lot of people also eat this with Kurma or even with Onion Raita.

Vegetarians eat with a vegetarian side and meat lovers serve it with chicken salna or chicken kurma or any meat based gravy.

To make biryani rice, all the biryani essentials like premium quality rice, whole spices, mint leaves, coriander leaves, onions and yogurt are used. Tomato is one unusual ingredient that is used here mostly because the dish tastes bland without it.

Since there is no much chopping or blending work involved this recipe is super quick to make. You can make this biryani rice in a regular pot, stovetop pressure cooker or in an instant pot.

More Rice recipes
Chicken biryani
Veg biryani
Egg biryani
Potato biryani
Paneer dum biryani

How to Make Biryani Rice (Stepwise Photos)

Preparation

This recipe serves 4. If you want to make 2 servings cut down the ingredients to half. Or store the leftovers in the fridge for 2 days and reheat.

1. Wash and soak 2 cups basmati rice for about 20 to 30 mins. Meanwhile slice 1 medium onion to make half cup sliced onions and chop 1 to 2 medium tomatoes to make half cup chopped. I prefer to deseed the tomatoes before chopping. After 20 to 30 mins drain the rice completely to a colander. Set this aside.

Temper spices & make the base

2. Heat 2 to 2 ½ oil or ghee in a pot or pressure cooker. Add the following spices:

• 1 bay leaf (tej patta)
• 4 to 6 cloves
• 4 to 6 green cardamoms
• 1 star anise (chakri phool, biryani flower)
• ½ teaspoon shahi jeera (or cumin seeds/ jeera)
• 1 strand mace (javitri)
• 1 cinnamon (dalchini) two inch piece

3. When the spices begin to sizzle, add sliced the sliced onions and fry until golden.

4. Add 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste and fry until it smells good.

5. Make sure the raw smell of garlic goes away.

6. Add chopped tomatoes and ¼ cup whisked curd (yogurt). Stir to prevent burning.

7. Stir in the following spices:

• ½ to ¾ teaspoon red chili powder (adjust to taste)
• ¼ teaspoon Turmeric
• Handful of mint & coriander leaves chopped
• ½ to ¾ teaspoon salt
• 1 tsp biryani masala powder (optional)

For the kuska rice, most ppl do not use biryani masala powder. But I highly recommend it.

8. Cook until the tomatoes turn mushy and oil begins to separate from the mixture. It turns aromatic when it is done.

9. Pour 3½ cups water & stir well. Taste test for salt. The water has to be slightly salt. Adjust salt if required. Bring it to a rolling boil on a high heat.

Cook Biryani Rice

10. Add drained rice. Give a gentle stir.

11. Cook on a medium flame until very little water is left. Refer the picture. Lower the flame completely. Cover the pot or pressure cooker with a lid and cook for exactly 5 to 6 mins. I use a pressure cooker. If your rice is undercooked with no moisture at the bottom, you may pour another ¼ to ½ cup hot boiling water and stir gently.

12. When the biryani rice is done, open the lid and fluff up.

Serve with raita or with any of the biryani gravy. This rice goes very well with any veg or non veg gravy. Some serving suggestions for vegetarians are
bagara baingan
mirch ka salan
shorba
Non-vegetarians can serve this with
chicken curry
egg curry

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Biryani Rice Recipe first published in November 2014. Updated & republished in July 2022.