Lucknowi Biryani is a North Indian rice dish. It’s a refined, aromatic biryani where marinated meat (usually lamb) is cooked low and slow, then layered with par-cooked basmati rice, saffron milk, and rose water. The whole thing is sealed and gently steamed using the dum method, so the rice absorbs the spiced sauce and fat from the meat.
Category
Dinner
Servings
6
Prep time
1 hour
Cook time
2 hours
Lucknowi Biryani is a North Indian rice dish. It’s a refined, aromatic biryani where marinated meat (usually lamb) is cooked low and slow, then layered with par-cooked basmati rice, saffron milk, and rose water. The whole thing is sealed and gently steamed using the dum method, so the rice absorbs the spiced sauce and fat from the meat.
Ingredients
- 60ml (¼ cup) peanut oil (or other neutral oil)
- 2 red onions, thinly sliced
- Sea salt, to season
- 8cm piece fresh ginger, peeled and sliced
- 8-10 cloves garlic, smashed
- 1 cinnamon stick, broken
- 2 dried bay leaves
- 1 blade mace
- 6 green cardamom
- 2 black cardamom
- 6 cloves
- 10 black peppercorns
- ½ piece fresh nutmeg, chopped
- ½ tsp cumin seeds
- 1kg (2.2 lbs) lamb shoulder, diced
- 2 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
- 140g (½ cup) yoghurt
- 250ml (1 cup) milk
- 60ml (¼ cup) milk, warmed
- 8-10 strands saffron
- 1 tsp rose water
-
80ml (⅓ cup) ghee, melted
- 500g (2½ cups) aged Basmati rice
- 1 small green chilli
- 1 bay leaf
- 3 cloves
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 black cardamom
- 3 green cardamom
- 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
-
sea salt, to taste
Rice
Directions
Cook the onions
Heat 2 tbsp of the oil in a large heavy-based pot over medium heat.
- Add the onions and season with salt. Saute for 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until a deep golden brown colour.
Make the ginger garlic paste and spice mix
Meanwhile, place the ginger and garlic in a small food processor with the remaining peanut oil. Process until a smooth paste (you are aiming for a 50/50 ratio of ginger to garlic).
- Combine the cinnamon, bay leaves, mace, cardamom, cloves, peppercorns, nutmeg and cumin seeds in a spice grinder. Process to a powder.
Cook the lamb
Add the lamb to the onions, season with some salt and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the lamb starts to change colour.
- Add the spice mix and a heaped tablespoon of the ginger garlic paste. Cook, stirring, until the spices have bloomed and the fat from the lamb has started to render.
- Stir in the Kashmiri chilli powder until well combined. Then add the yoghurt and milk, stirring to combine, and bring to a simmer.
- Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until the lamb is tender, but still retains some bite.
Cook the rice
Rinse the rice 3 times, until the water runs clear, then soak in clean water for 25 minutes.
- Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil. Add the chilli, bay leaf, cloves, cinnamon, cardamom and ginger-garlic paste.
- Cook the rice for 6-7 minutes, until the rice is between 70-80% cooked. Strain the rice and spread out on a large tray to cool.
Layer the biryani
Add the warmed milk to a small bowl or jug and add the saffron. Stir gently and set aside to steep.
- Sieve out the lamb from the sauce using a slotted spoon. Pass the sauce through a sieve and set aside for 10 minutes to allow the fat to settle on the top.
Skim the fat off and reserve for later. Return the sauce and lamb to the pot.
- Add a layer of half the rice, removing any of the whole spices. Sprinkle over half of the rosewater, then some of the reserved fat and half of the saffron milk.
Repeat with the remaining rice, rosewater, fat and saffron milk.
Final cook and serve
Cover the pot with a clean tea towel then the lid, securing the tea towel to the top of the lid.
- Place the pot over a high heat for 10 minutes, then place it over a medium-low to low heat for 35-40 minutes. You should aim for an even distribution of heat across the pot (see notes).
- Remove from the heat and set aside for 10 minutes still covered.
- Uncover and fluff up the rice a little, then begin layering the biryani on a serving platter.
Recipe notes
Origins
Also known as Awadhi Biryani, Lucknowi originated from the Persian dish of Pulao, introduced to India by the Mughals, but developed further and refined in the kitchens of the Awadhi rulers of Lucknow. It also uses the“dum”method of slow cooking in a sealed pot, to allow the flavours to infuse the rice.
Cook support
Take the time to cook the onions down to a deep golden colour to help develop the flavours for the biryani, in particular the sweetness from the onions.
Sourcing
Aged basmati is available at good supermarkets, but really try for a top quality biryani aged basmati in your Asian grocer as this is the main ingredient in the dish.
Substitutions
This dish can be made with goat, mutton or lamb, and you could even use lamb on the bone and have your butcher cut it into smaller portions.
Storage
This can be stored in an airtight container refrigerated for several days.
Method
To allow for even heat distribution during the final cooking process, we used a Tawa, but you could also place a flat top grill pan over your gas burner to evenly distribute the heat. Induction should allow for even distribution already.
