Hyderabadi Mutton dum Biriyani in restaurant style

Biriyani is a wholesome meal which I guess is everyone’s favorite. It is favorite when made at home or when sitting in a restaurant. But having restaurant style biriyani at home is divine. Yes, I understand that it needs lot of preparation, but it is absolutely worthwhile. Here, in this recipe I tell you how to prepare mutton dum biriyani. However, if you want to prepare something faster and shortcut and off course without compromising with the taste, you can prepare Chicken yakhni Pulao . It is a one-pot meal and requires less time for preparation.

Course: Main course

Cuisine: Indian

Preparation time: 20 mins

Marination time: 4 hours-overnight

Cook time: 1 1/2 hours

Servings: 2-3

Ingredients

For the rice

• 2 ½ cups long grain Basmati rice
• ½ teaspoon of sahi jeera
• 1 tablespoon of oil
• Salt to taste
• 4-5 cardamom pods
• 1” inch cinnamon stick broken into pieces
• 2 star anise
• 1 bay leaf made into pieces
• 4-5 cloves
• 2-3 mint leaves

For marination of mutton

• 600g of mutton
• 1 teaspoon cumin powder
• salt as required
• 1 teaspoon coriander powder
• 1 teaspoon red chili powder
• 1 cup yogurt (curd)
• 1/3 + 1/3 cup of oil
• 1 teaspoon of turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon powdered garam masala or biriyani masala powder
• 1 tablespoon of ginger paste
• 1 tablespoon of garlic paste
• ¼ cup of chopped coriander leaves
• ¼ cup of chopped mint leaves
• 2 onions thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoon of papaya paste(optional)
• 1 teaspoonful of corn flour

Assembling of biriyani

• ½ cup of maida or wheat flour
• ¼ teaspoon of meetha attar
• ½  teaspoon of rose water
• ½ teaspoon of kewra water
• ¼ cup of milk
• 3-4 strands of kesar
• 1 tablespoon of ghee

For serving

• 200g of yogurt
• Salt to taste
• Black pepper
• Chopped cucumber and tomato

Directions

Biriyani is a one pot meal which can be prepared easily if right proportion of meat, rice and spices are known.

Marinating the mutton

1. To make this biryani recipe, first clean and wash the meat under running water. Pat dry with a kitchen towel and keep aside.
2. Now add all the marination ingredients and 1/3 cup of oil in it except the thinly sliced onions. Rub well with your fingers so that the marination spreads evenly. Ideally you should leave marinated mutton in the refrigerator overnight.
3. Remember to remove the mutton from refrigerator at least one hour before you start cooking.

Frying the onions

1. Coat the thinly sliced onions with corn flour. Coating them with corn flour makes the fried onions crunchy.
2. Choose a deep and thick bottomed pot for the biriyani. Remember this pot should be able to accommodate all the rice and meat with some space left at the top.
3. In this pot, add 1/3 cup of oil and heat it.
4. Once the oil is hot, add the thinly sliced onions and fry them till golden or slightly brown. Do not make them dark brown as they continue cooking even after removed from oil. Also, if they become very dark they will turn bitter. In that case, it is better to discard the onions and start again.
5. Remove them on a plate and keep aside.
6. Do not discard the onion flavored oil. The oil can be used to prepare biriyani.
7. Add 2/3 of this fried onions to the mutton marinade and mix properly.

Cooking the mutton

1. Take the mutton along with the marinade in a pressure pot and pressur cook the mutton till it is soft and juicy.
2. Now, transfer the cooked meat to the pot with the fried onion oil in it.
3. The mutton is now ready for cooking the biriyani.

I like keeping everything ready for assembling the biriyani set up.

1. Take the wheat flour and make a dough. The dough will be used to seal the biriyani pot for dum.
2. Roll the dough into a thin rope like structure and place it around the edges of the lid of the pot.
3. Heat the milk with kesar in it. You can also microwave it.

Cooking the rice

1. Wash the rice properly and soak the rice in water for 2-4 hours.
2. Take a pot suitable for cooking the rice.
3. Add water to the pot. To it add salt and taste it. The water should taste salty.
4. To the water add sahi jeera, oil, mint leaves.
5. Take a clean muslin cloth. This is to make a potli/pouch of spices. In the cloth, take the dry spices and make a knot.
6. Now, drop this potli/pouch in water. This is to incorporate the flavors of these spices in the rice as I do not like the bite of these whole spices while eating the biriyani.
7. Let the water come to a boil.
8. Now, add the soaked rice. The rice should be around 60% done which takes about 5-6 minutes.

Assembling the biriyani

1. Once the rice is 60% done, remove the pouch of whole spices. Strain the rice with a strain and transfer it to the pot having meat ready.
2. After, all the rice has been transferred, sprinkle the remaining fried onions, chopped cumin and coriander leaves, rose water, kewra water, meetha attar, ghee and the kesar milk.
3. Now, seal the pot with the lid. The dough in the lid of the pot helps in sealing the pot properly.
4. Let the biriyani cook on high flame for 5 minutes and then lower the flame and cook for another15 minutes.
5. Now, turn the flame off and leave it sealed till ready to serve.
6. Serve the biriyani hot with raita and some cucumber and tomato salad.

Step by step pictorial representation of Biriyani

Marinating the mutton

• To make this biriyani recipe, first clean and wash the meat under running water. Pat dry with a kitchen towel and keep aside.
• Now, add all the marination ingredients to the mutton except the thinly sliced onions. Rub well with your fingers so that the marination spreads evenly and leave it in your refrigerator for 4-6 hours preferably overnight.

Remember to remove the mutton from refrigerator at least one hour before you start cooking.

Frying the onions

Coat the thinly sliced onions with corn flour. Coating them with cornflour makes the fried onions crunchy.

• Choose a deep and thick bottomed pot for the biriyani. Remember this pot sould be able to accommodate all the rice and meat with some space left at the top.
• In this pot, add 1/3 cup of oil and heat it.
• Once the oil is hot, add the thinly sliced onions and fry them till golden or slightly brown. Do not make them dark brown as they continue cooking even after removed from oil. Also, if they become very dark they will turn bitter. In that case, it is better to discard the onions and start again.

• Remove them on a plate and keep aside.
• Do not discard the onion flavored oil. The oil can be used to prepare biriyani.
• Add 2/3 of this fried onions to the mutton marinade and mix properly.

Cooking the mutton

• Take the mutton along with the marinade in a pressure pot and pressure cook the mutton till it is soft and juicy.
• Now, transfer the cooked meat to the pot with the fried onion oil in it.
• The mutton is now ready for cooking the biriyani.

I like keeping everything ready for assembling the biriyani set up

Take the wheat flour and make a dough. The dough will be used to seal the biriyani pot for dum.

Roll the dough into a thin rope like structure and place it around the edges of the lid of the pot.

Heat the milk with kesar in it. You can also microwave it.

Cooking the rice

• Wash the rice properly and soak the rice in water for 2-4 hours.

Take a pot suitable for cooking the rice. Add water to the pot. To it add salt and taste it. The water should taste salty. To the water add sahi jeera, oil, mint leaves. Take a clean muslin cloth. This is to make a potli/pouch of spices. In the cloth, take the dry spices and make a knot.

• Now, drop this potli/pouch in water. This is to incorporate the flavors of these spices in the rice as I do not like the bite of these whole spices while eating the biriyani. Let the water come to a boil.

Now, add the soaked rice. The rice should be around 60% done which takes about 5-6 minutes.

Assembling the biriyani

Once the rice is 60% done, remove the pouch of whole spices. Strain the rice with a strain and transfer it to the pot having meat ready.

• After, all the rice has been transferred, sprinkle the remaining fried onions, chopped cumin and coriander leaves, rose water, kewra water, meetha attar, ghee and the kesar milk.

• Now, seal the pot with the lid. The dough in the lid of the pot helps in sealing the pot properly.

• Let the biriyani cook on high flame for 5 minutes and then lower the flame and cook for another15 minutes.
• Now, turn the flame off and leave it sealed till ready to serve.
• Serve the biriyani hot with raita and some cucumber and tomato salad

Thank you for stopping by. If you like the recipe do not forget to hit like. If you prepare this dish and publish your photos on Facebook and Instagram do tag #theepicureanfeast. Also for queries, you can mail me epicureanfeast2019@gmail.com