This vegetable biriyani is something that I make on weeknights for quick dinner and it can all be made in a pressure cooker or a heavy bottom pan. I used a sauté pan to do the initial sautéing and then transferred the contents to a rice cooker to cook. This biriyani is very flavorful with the addition of dry spices and the use of mint and cilantro leaves. I absolutely loved the color of the biriyani. The recipe has a couple of tomatoes and yogurt in it and I would highly recommend not skipping them. They add a sour element to the vegetable biriyani that tastes wonderful. I love serving one-pot meals like this to my boys as it has all the vegetables in them. I would have also liked to include some paneer in the recipe, but I did not have any in hand and hence skipped it. Also adding a handful of cooked chickpeas would work great in the recipe. Preparation time – 15 minutesCooking time – 1 hourDifficulty level – easy
Ingredients to make Vegetable Biriyani – Serves 6
To grind together –
Mint leaves – a small bunch Cilantro – half a small bunch Green chilies – 4 (adjust based on your spice preference) Ginger – 1-inch piece Garlic – 3 cloves Fennel seeds – ½ tsp Cloves – 4
For the Vegetable Biriyani –
Basmati rice – 2 cups Water – 3 ½ cups Vegetables – 4 cups (thinly sliced; I used potato, carrot, beans and bell pepper) Onion – 1 large (thinly sliced) Tomatoes – 2 large (chopped) Yogurt – ½ cup Fennel seeds – ½ tsp Bay leaf – 2 small Cinnamon – 1-inch piece Cardamom – 4 Star anise – 1 Turmeric powder – ½ tsp Red chili powder – 1 tsp Garam masala – ½ tsp Salt – to taste Oil + Ghee – 4 tbsp Cashews and raisins - a few (to garnish)
Procedure to make Vegetable Biriyani–
Soak the basmati rice in water for about ½ hour. Drain the rice in a colander and keep it ready.
Grind all the ingredients mentioned under the ‘to grind’ list. Keep it aside.
In a wide pan, heat the oil and ghee and add the dry spices; fennel seeds, bay leaf, cinnamon, cardamom, and star anise. Fry it for a minute until they are aromatic.
Now add the thinly sliced onions and sauté until the onions are translucent.
Add the dry powders; turmeric powder, red chili powder, and garam masala, and sauté for a minute.
Now add the tomatoes and the yogurt and fry until the tomatoes are mushy and the oil is separated from the mixture. This could take 5 to 7 minutes on medium-high heat.
Add the ground paste and mix well. Fry the mixture for about 3 to 4 minutes.
Add the vegetables and mix well. Cover and cook the vegetables until they are halfway cooked. Make sure you cook the vegetables on low heat. Sprinkle a little water if they start sticking to the bottom of the pan.
Add the drained rice and mix gently.
Add the water needed to cook the rice along with salt and then transfer it to the rice cooker. If preferred the biriyani can be cooked on the stovetop. Make sure you cook the biriyani on low heat, covered if cooking on a stovetop.
Once the rice is cooked, take it off the heat and let it sit for 10 minutes.
Fry the cashews and raisins in a teaspoon of ghee and then add it to the vegetable biriyani. Then gently fluff with a fork and serve warm with raita.
Other One Pot meal dishes
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