Soya Chunks Dum Biryani

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Submitted: May 16, 2015
Recipe In : Rice,
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Total Time:
Preparation Time: 15-20 mins
Cooking Time: 35-40 mins
Servings: 4-6 | 100 kcal

Soya chunks dum biryani…a special veg dum biryani for all our vegetarians friends…adapted from the recipe of chicken dum biryani, this veg biryani too tastes as awesome as any other dum biryani…

Required ingredients

  • 2 cups soya chunks
  • 3 cups biryani rice – washed and soaked for 30 minutes
  • 2 large onions - sliced
  • 2 medium tomatoes - sliced
  • 1 tbsp freshly done ginger garlic paste
  •  6-8 no green chillies chopped - lessen or increase the no of chillies as per your taste
  • 1/2 cup beaten yoghurt
  • Salt as per taste
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • 1 small ball tamarind
  • 1/2 cup fresh mint leaves – keep it whole, don’t chop it.
  • 1 cup oil

Whole spices

  • 3-4 pieces green cardamom - elaichi
  • 1 inch piece cinnamon – dalichini
  • 3 cloves - laung
  • 1 whole black cardamom - badi elaichi
  • ½ tsp caraway seeds – shah zeera
  • 1 tsp whole black pepper – kali mirch sabut
  • 1 bay leaf – tej patta
  • 1 pinch nutmeg powder- zaiphal
  • 1 strand mace – javitri

Powdered spices

  • 1tbsp chilli powder
  • 1 tsp pepper powder
  • ½ tsp turmeric powder
  • 1 tsp whole cumin – roasted and powdered
  • 2 tsp whole coriander – roasted and powdered

For Garnishing/dum

  • 1 tbsp fried onion
  • 1 lemon cut into small pieces
  • 2-3 green chillies cut into half
  • 2 tbsp pure ghee
  • Few strands of saffron soaked in ¼ cup warm milk
  • A little yellow color mixed in 2 tbsp of water
  • Few drops of rose water or kewra/screwpine

Directions & How to

  • Bring sufficient water to boil, add soya chunks and cook for a minute. Take of the flame and leave them to soften. Rinse them and squeeze off the excess water. Repeat washing and squeezing once again.
  • Heat around 3 tbsp of oil in a non stick pan, add the soya chunks, sprinkle salt and 1 tsp of red chilli powder and fry it well on low flame for 5-7 minutes. Take off the flame and keep aside.
  • Now heat remaining oil in a thick bottom pan, add whole spices, when it splutter, add onions and fry till golden brown.
  •  Add ginger garlic paste, tomatoes, green chillies and cook it on low flame for further 3-4 minutes or till tomatoes becomes soft.
  • Add powder spices and salt. Now mix the fried soya chunks and saute it for around 2 minutes.
  • Add yoghurt, stir and cook it covered for 3-4 minutes. Open the pan and add tamarind ball, cook it covered for 2 more minutes.
  • Switch off the flame and open the lid. There will be oil floating on top. Put all the mint leaves and lemon juice. Don’t stir. Cover the pan, close the flame and let it stand for around 5 minutes. **take care not to open the pan in between, the oil should extract all the flavors from the mint.
  • After around 5 minutes remove the excess oil from the pan either by using a small spoon or by tilting the pan. This should come around 1/4 cup of oil. We will use same oil while giving dum to our biryani.

Cooking the rice

  • In a large pan heat sufficient water, add salt, juice of 1 small lemon and 1bsp oil. When it comes to a boil add rice and cook it till it is 3/4th done. Strain and keep aside.

Layering the biryani and dum cooking it

  • Biryani will be arranged into two layers. First layer will be of cooked soya chunks  and rice layer will go above it.
  • In a deep bottom pan pour the prepared soya chunks.
  • Spread rice over it evenly.
  • Arrange the green chillies, fried onion, and lemon pieces.
  • Sprinkle rose water or kewra, pour over saffron, ghee, yellow food color and oil that we had removed from cooked soya chunks.
  • Seal the pan with a foil paper, cover the lid. Place the pan on a tawa or griddle and cook it on lowest available flame for 10-15 minutes.

Serving

  • Biryani is now ready to serve. While serving, first remove all the rice from the top layer in a container or a casserole. And lightly mix soya chunks layer. Fill half of the serving plate with soya chunks and remaining half with the rice.
  • Serve it hot with any raita of your choice.

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