Vegetable Dum Biryani

Wow, indeed a fancy mouth watering name for a rice dish and it tastes super delicious. I got inspiration to prepare this dish from a fellow blogger friend Divya. The mixture of whole spices, the sour flavor from the yogurt mixture and aromatic basmati rice all makes the entire house smell fantastic, well it is an understatement. Agreed it is a bit lengthy process and does not fit in my cooking style where I like to get in and out of the kitchen in minutes, this dish is an exception. Try and see it for yourself.

Dum biryani getting assembled for baking

Ingredients
For the rice:
* 2 cups Basmati Rice
* 1/2 medium sized Onion
* 1/2 tbsp Ginger garlic paste
* 2 slit lengthwise Green chillies or per taste
* A few strands of saffron
* Salt to taste
* 1 tbsp Oil

Whole Spices:
* 3 Bay Leaves
* 1 Cinnamon stick
* 4 Cloves
* 2 Cardamom
* 2 Star Anise

Vegetables:
* 1/2 cup Cauliflower florets
* 1 carrot cut into 2 – 3″ length, 1/2 inch thick
* 2 medium potatoes cut 2 – 3″ length, 1/2 inch thick
* 1/2 cup Green peas
* 1/2 green and 1/2 red bell pepper cut lengthwise
* 1/2 medium sized Onion
* 1/2 tbsp Ginger garlic paste

For the marinade
* 1 – 1&1/2 cup Yogurt
* 1/2 Red chili powder – 1 teaspoon
* 1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
* 1/2 tsp Chili powder
* 1 tsp Cumin powder
* 1 tsp Coriander powder
* 1 tsp Kasoori methi leaves (fenugreek)(optional)
* Salt to taste

Dum Birynai Served

Directions

Soak basmati rice for 30 minutes in water. To the yogurt, add all the spice powders and mix well until smooth. Add a little water if required. Add the marinade to the vegetables except peppers. Cover and refrigerate. Marinate the vegetable for at about 30 minutes. In a wide saucepan, add the oil and add all the whole spices. Once the spices start giving out their aroma, add onions, sauté, then add ginger garlic paste, mix well. Now add the rice, give it a stir, add twice the amount of water, salt, bring it a boil, cover it with a lid and simmer to cook until rice is cooked, add saffron in the end to get that pecks of golden yellow color. Fluff the rice with the fork once it gets done.

In a saucepan, add a little oil. Add the onions and saute until they turn translucent. Add the ginger garlic paste and green chillies and fry for a minute. Then add the marinated vegetables along with the yogurt. Cover and cook on low heat for about 15 to 20 minutes. take care to cook on low heat since the yogurt might curdle more and result in a sour mixture. Once the veggies get well cooked, add peppers as they tend to cook faster, then switch off the heat.

In a baking dish, add a layer of rice, almost half the rice followed by a layer of vegetables. Top off with the remaining rice and garnish with some cilantro. Cover tightly with an aluminum foil and cook for about 15 to 20 minutes at 300F. Fluff the veggies and rice with a fork together before serving. Serve hot with a side of raita.

Aromatic, Flavorful, A Crowd Pleaser ~ Dum Biryani

NOTE:
1. I did not top the vegetable with another layer of rice yet it turned out fantastic and super delicious.
2. I added some onions, ginger garlic to the rice while cooking it to give it more flavor.