Pot Style Vegetable Dum Briyani Recipe
Pot Style Veg dum Briyani is a quintessential Indian dish that has been invented from the royal kitchen of Kings and no wonder it allures you with its intense flavor and authentic style...
An Outlook On Pot Style Veg Dum Briyani:
Pot Style Veg Dum Briyani is an authentic one pot meal that originated from the Indian Subcontinent and it is know for its enticing flavor and captivating aroma. Dum Cooking is an exclusive style wherein the rice, lentils or meat are cooked in a thick bottomed vessel, mostly in a sealed earthen pot or handi in low flame for hours together in order to bring in the desired texture, flavor and aroma.
If you take a glance at the Indian culinary history, there are several stories associated with the invention of Dum Cooking and it is said to have found during the Moghul Period in the late 1700s and the original version of Dum Cooking is termed as Dum Pukht. Not only vegetarian and non-vegetarian briyani, other delicious dishes like Korma, Curries, Nihari and Raan also come under Dum Cooking and has been in vogue since decades. From the royal kitchen of Nawabs and Kings, it slowly entered the elite and sophisticated establishments of Hyderabad and Kashmir. Dum Cooking actually evolved from the version of cooking called Dum Pukht, in which the rice, lentils, meat or vegetables are placed in a clay pot and sealed with a thick layer of dough or cloth for slow cooking. The meaning of Dum is to breathe and Phukt is to cook. Therefore the meaning of Dum Phukt is to let the dish breathe in its original flavor and the essence is being seeped into the dish and that is the highlight of Dum Cooking. Its long process and enclosed cooking method helps in retaining the flavors intact for hours and makes the dish all the more delectable.
Pot Style Veg Dum Briyani is an exotic one pot dish that strikes a chord with kids and adults alike and it is famous all over the country. It is a party dish that remains afresh for long hours and therefore best suited for late night dinners and buffets. You get it in all popular restaurants and it is also prepared commonly at Indian households for festivals and special occasions. It is normally prepared using Basmathi rice and basic vegetables like onion, beans, carrot, peas, cauli flower and potatoes. And it is tempered with regular Indian condiments like bay leaf, clove, anise, cinnamon, cardamom and cashew nuts. You have three layers altogether in the Pot style Dum Briyani wherein the bottom layer consists of the sauteed vegetables. The second layer comprises of the semi cooked basmathi rice garnished with roasted onion, cashew nuts, lush green mint and coriander leaves. And the topmost layer is formed by the same spread of flavored rice just made aromatic with saffron milk and kewra essence which gives the trademark Zing to the Pot Style Dum Briyani.
Saffron and Kewra essence are the two key ingredients that brings out the original taste of Dum Briyani and these two specific items have been used in the Indian cooking since ages and to know more about saffron and Kewra essence kindly refer the recipe of Shahi Veg Korma in the blog. All you need is a medium or large sized handi with the lid (earthen pot) an aluminium foil and a thick bottomed tawa (preferably cast iron tawa) to prepare the Pot Style Dum Briyani.
Here is the recipe of the Classic Indian Pot Style Veg Dum Briyani that can be made in an hour and its outcome is worth the effort.
Ingredients Required To Make Pot Style Vegetable Dum Briyani Recipe
How To Make Pot Style Vegetable Dum Briyani Recipe
Take two cups of basmathi rice in a vessel and wash it twice and soak for twenty minutes approximately. Similarly soak a pinch of saffron strands in two tablespoons of hot milk or water.
Take the electric rice cooker and plug it on and pour in three and a half cup of water and add the soaked basmathi rice to it.
Tip in a bay leaf, two cloves and an inch of cinnamon into the cooker.
Also squirt in a tablespoon of lemon juice along with a half a teaspoon of salt in it.
Pop the lid on after a nice stir.
Turn off the electric cooker in 10 minutes as you need the rice to be partially cooked.
Wash the veggies and peel off the skin from the onion and potato. Chop all the vegetables into even sized pieces and keep side.
Heat a pan and pour in a little oil and when it is heated, slice the onions and deep fry them and keep it in a plate over a paper towel.
Partially fry the cauli flower, beans, peas, carrot and potato one after other and keep aside.
Finally fry the paneer cubes until it becomes slightly brown and keep it too.
At last, fry the measured quantity of cashew nuts till golden brown and place it over a plate.
Heat a pan and just drop a bay leaf into it followed by a piece of cinnamon.
Tip in two cardamoms along with two cloves, an anise and a teaspoon of fennel seeds into the pan.
Dry roast ll the ingredients until they turn aromatic and turn off the stove.
When it cools down, transfer it to a blender and make a coarse powder out of it and keep aside.
Place a large mud pot over the stove and turn on the flame and once it is heated just tip in three tablespoons of cooking oil along with one and a half tablespoon of ghee in it.
When the oil is heated, just add four to five cashew nuts and roast until they turn golden brown and now squirt in a teaspoon of ginger garlic paste to it and stir well.
Just after a few seconds, add the partially fried cauliflower, carrot, beans, potato and peas into the pot with a nice stir.
Adjust the flame to medium mode and sprinkle the required salt and the dry masala powder prepared earlier.
Mix the ingredients well and now add the measured quantities of red chili powder and coriander powder along with a quarter teaspoon of turmeric powder.
Now sprinkle two or three pinches of fried onion and blend well with three tablespoons of curd. Finally toss over the fried paneer cubes with a nice stir.
Pour in half a cup of water and lower the flame. Pop the lid on and let it cook for about eight to ten minutes approximately.
After eight minutes, if you just open the lid you will notice that the vegetables have been cooked up to 80 to 90 percent and the water has also been absorbed almost.
At this stage, take a portion of rice and spread it gently over the pot and spread evenly and make a thick layer out of it.
Sprinkle some roasted onion, mint leaves, coriander leaves and fried cashews over the rice evenly along with half a teaspoon of ghee.
You will get an attractive aromatic layer of assorted spices and now make the second layer of rice similarly by repeating the same process.
At last, finish it off with pouring in the saffron water all over along with a few drops of kewra essence.
Pour in the remaining ghee and now cover the pot with an aluminium foil firmly.
Cover the pot with the lid provided and place a large tawa over the stove and place this pot over it and lower the flame.
Let it cook it low flame for about fifteen to twenty minutes approximately.
After some time, when you open the lid and take out the foil, you will get a nice aroma wafting out from the pot.
Take a serving plate and uisng a long and thin ladle (preferably wood) and take a ladle full of rice from the bottom first and spread it gently onto the plate.
Then take out a portion from the second layer and place it over the plate.
Finally, take out a ladle full of saffron flavored rice from the topmost layer and spread gently.
Now you will get the trademark mixed color rice of Pot style dum briyani.
Serve it with onion raita, anda bhurji and a papad.
Which variety of rice is suitable for pot style dum Briyani?
Though dum briyani can be cooked with any variety of rice the most preferred rice would be basmathi or Jeeraga Samba rice.
What are the other ways in which we can cook the rice partially other than electric rice cooker?
Pressure Cooker Method :
Just add rice and water in the ratio of 1:2 and just cook in medium flame for the first whistle and in low flame for the second whistle and turn off and open the lid after 10 minutes. You will get a fluffy partially cooked up basmathi rice. The same method can be followed with the pressure pan too.
Cooking in the Wok :
Add the rice and water in the same ratio of 1:2 but cook it in high flame with the lid approximately for about 8-10 minutes. After a while, open up the lid and take a few grains and feel it with your fingers. It should have been boiled but should not get crushed and this is the consistency you require for making dum briyani. Turn off the stove and let it cool for a while before you add it to the pot.
Tips To Follow To Make Pot Style Vegetable Dum Briyani Recipe
- Ensure that the rice is partially cooked and grainy before you add it up to the pot for making Dum Briyani.
- Let the curd be fresh and reasonably sour as it gives the desired result.
- As much as possible avoid using frozen peas or other veggies as fresh vegetables make the dish more palatable.
- You can also add sweet corn and bell peppers to the Dum Briyani and it is optional.
- Choose fresh and lush green mint and coriander leaves to make the dish all the more flavorful.
- You can also grill the vegetables for a few minutes if you do not want to fry them in oil.
- To make one layer of rice you may need three to four ladles of cooked rice approximately.
- Soak saffron in hot water or milk to get the best extract out of it.
- We add a few drops of lemon in the rice so that it retains the rice grainy.
- Kewra essence is available in all Indian stores and you can store it in your pantry shelf and need not refrigerate.
- If you have the patience and passion to exactly follow the traditional style of making pot style dum briyani , close the handi around with a thick white cotton cloth and tie up with a thin rope.
- Or you can prepare an extra thick dough with your regular multipurpose flour like maida and cover the handi in the same way.
- You would find it interesting to try out both the methods and the results are really fantabulous.
Ingredients
Directions
Take two cups of basmathi rice in a vessel and wash it twice and soak for twenty minutes approximately. Similarly soak a pinch of saffron strands in two tablespoons of hot milk or water.
Take the electric rice cooker and plug it on and pour in three and a half cup of water and add the soaked basmathi rice to it.
Tip in a bay leaf, two cloves and an inch of cinnamon into the cooker.
Also squirt in a tablespoon of lemon juice along with a half a teaspoon of salt in it.
Pop the lid on after a nice stir.
Turn off the electric cooker in 10 minutes as you need the rice to be partially cooked.
Wash the veggies and peel off the skin from the onion and potato. Chop all the vegetables into even sized pieces and keep side.
Heat a pan and pour in a little oil and when it is heated, slice the onions and deep fry them and keep it in a plate over a paper towel.
Partially fry the cauli flower, beans, peas, carrot and potato one after other and keep aside.
Finally fry the paneer cubes until it becomes slightly brown and keep it too.
At last, fry the measured quantity of cashew nuts till golden brown and place it over a plate.
Heat a pan and just drop a bay leaf into it followed by a piece of cinnamon.
Tip in two cardamoms along with two cloves, an anise and a teaspoon of fennel seeds into the pan.
Dry roast ll the ingredients until they turn aromatic and turn off the stove.
When it cools down, transfer it to a blender and make a coarse powder out of it and keep aside.
Place a large mud pot over the stove and turn on the flame and once it is heated just tip in three tablespoons of cooking oil along with one and a half tablespoon of ghee in it.
When the oil is heated, just add four to five cashew nuts and roast until they turn golden brown and now squirt in a teaspoon of ginger garlic paste to it and stir well.
Just after a few seconds, add the partially fried cauliflower, carrot, beans, potato and peas into the pot with a nice stir.
Adjust the flame to medium mode and sprinkle the required salt and the dry masala powder prepared earlier.
Mix the ingredients well and now add the measured quantities of red chili powder and coriander powder along with a quarter teaspoon of turmeric powder.
Now sprinkle two or three pinches of fried onion and blend well with three tablespoons of curd. Finally toss over the fried paneer cubes with a nice stir.
Pour in half a cup of water and lower the flame. Pop the lid on and let it cook for about eight to ten minutes approximately.
After eight minutes, if you just open the lid you will notice that the vegetables have been cooked up to 80 to 90 percent and the water has also been absorbed almost.
At this stage, take a portion of rice and spread it gently over the pot and spread evenly and make a thick layer out of it.
Sprinkle some roasted onion, mint leaves, coriander leaves and fried cashews over the rice evenly along with half a teaspoon of ghee.
You will get an attractive aromatic layer of assorted spices and now make the second layer of rice similarly by repeating the same process.
At last, finish it off with pouring in the saffron water all over along with a few drops of kewra essence.
Pour in the remaining ghee and now cover the pot with an aluminium foil firmly.
Cover the pot with the lid provided and place a large tawa over the stove and place this pot over it and lower the flame.
Let it cook it low flame for about fifteen to twenty minutes approximately.
After some time, when you open the lid and take out the foil, you will get a nice aroma wafting out from the pot.
Take a serving plate and uisng a long and thin ladle (preferably wood) and take a ladle full of rice from the bottom first and spread it gently onto the plate.
Then take out a portion from the second layer and place it over the plate.
Finally, take out a ladle full of saffron flavored rice from the topmost layer and spread gently.
Now you will get the trademark mixed color rice of Pot style dum briyani.
Serve it with onion raita, anda bhurji and a papad.
