Hyderabadi Chicken Biryani is world famous dish from India, native to Hyderabad. This non-vegetarian delicacy is an authentic Hyderabadi rice preparation which is a meal in itself.
Coupled with flavors of spices delicately combined with rice and chicken makes an aromatic combination that is hard to resist. How to make this Hyderabadi Ckicken Biryani recipe? This rice dish has two major ingredients – chicken and basmati rice.
The rest is playing around with ingredients and spice mix to create this flavorful Hyderabadi Chicken Biryani.
It is liked by locals and tourists alike in Hyderabad. While people might go all the way to Hyderabad to relish this dish, you can make this mouth-watering Hyderabadi Chicken Biryani recipe in your own kitchen in no time.
What’s great about Hyderabadi chicken biryani is its unique taste and influences from different parts of the world, especially from the Mughals. It’s one dish that’s really close to everyone’s heart and the perfect definition of soul food.
What is Hyderabadi Chicken Biryani?
Biryani is basically rice cooked with meat in layers and on very slow heat or dum. There are many ways in a which a biryani is prepared and each method is unique and have it’s own significance.
There is Hyderabadi Style Biryani, Lucknowi Biryani, Ambur Biryani, Donne Biryani etc to name a few.
Hyderabadi Biryani is prepared in two ways – Kacchi or Pakki Biryani. Kacchi Biryani is where the meat is not cooked separately but gets cooked along with the rice while in the pakki biryani, the meat is cooked prior to layering it with rice.
Tips to make best Hyderabadi Chicken Biryani
Use best quality rice to make biryani. Long grain basmati rice which is atleast 2 years old is considered best to make a good biryani. I use Fortune basmati Rice to make my biryani.
The chicken must be marinated before hand. Since we are not cooking it separately, marinating it beforehand will make it tender and easy to cook.
Use a heavy bottom pan to assemble the biryani. The biryani needs to be cooked for 35-40 minutes on low heat and if the pan is not heavy, it might burn.
The traditional potli masala used to make biryani recipe has many unusual ingredients, but since it is not easy to source them, I have a mix which is easy to find and not compromise on taste.
Choose a pan with a tight fitting lid. This biryani cooks on dum or steam and we want to retain as much steam that is formed inside. Traditionally, a sealing of dough used to be put around the pan and the lid but I don’t think that it is required if the lid fits tightly.
How to choose rice to make best Hyderabadi Chicken Biryani Recipe?
Both the taste and visual appeal of Biryani should stand out in its preparation. Now while this recipe takes care of the taste, the visual appeal comes only through rice grains. Longer the grain, better would be the biryani. I always choose the rice which is extra long and stands out as individual grains.
This gives the visual appeal of a blooming flower and makes eating biryani an enjoyable experience. Hence Basmati rice is the best choice to make Biryani, it stands out individually, without forming lumps while cooking.
In the market, you now even get specially selected long grain Basmati Rice, which is perfect for this Biryani.
The age of the rice is also very crucial to make good biryani. Choose the rice grain which is at least 2 year old. The older the rice, the better it is.
Hyderabadi Chicken Biryani boasts of a beautiful cacophony of flavours that is known the world over. A delicious medley of fine long grain rice spices and chicken pieces, this Hyderabad style dum biryani is very easy to make and a delight to eat. Here is how to make Chicken Biryani Recipe at home.
