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Lal Paneer Biryani

This lal paneer biryani is one of the BEST vegetarian biryanis out there! It’s spicy, garlick-y, rich, and creamy, and just absolutely delicious ❤️‍🔥
Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time45 minutes
Total Time50 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Indian
Diet: Vegetarian
Servings: 6 persons
Author: Richa

Ingredients

For chilli paste

  • 7 kashmiri chillies
  • ¾ cup hot water
  • ½ inch ginger peeled
  • 15 cloves garlic peeled

For biryani gravy

  • 3 tablespoons sunflower or any neutral flavored cooking oil
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 inch cinnamon
  • 4 cloves whole
  • 2 green cardamoms
  • 2 cups thinly sliced onions
  • 1 cup finely chopped tomatoes
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon shan biryani masala
  • ¾ cup water divided
  • ½ cup curds whisked
  • 350 gms paneer cut into ½ inch cubes

Biryani rice

  • 1 ½ cups basmati rice 270gms, soaked for 30 minutes
  • 6-7 cups water
  • 1 ½ tablespoons salt
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 inch dalchini
  • 4 cloves
  • 2 green cardamoms
  • 1 piece stone flower pathar ke phool
  • ½ lemon juice & wedge

For Biryani

  • ¼ cup birista golden fried onions
  • 1 ½ tablespoons finely chopped mint leaves
  • 1 ½ tablespoons finely chopped coriander leaves
  • A pinch of saffron soaked in 3 tablespoons of warm milk
  • 1 tablespoon ghee

Instructions

Chilli paste

  • wash chillies and soak in hot water for 30 minutes till they soften. Add to a mixer along with water it was soaked in, ginger, garlic and grind to a smooth paste.

Biryani gravy

  • Heat oil in a pan or kadai, add whole spices - bayleaf, cinnamon, cloves, cardamoms and saute for a few seconds till they sizzle and get fragrant. Add onions and saute on low for 5-6 minutes till they turn light golden.
  • Add tomatoes, ground chilli paste, salt, biryani masala,½ cup of water & cook on low for 5-6 minutes till they turn mushy and oil separates from the sides of the masala. Add curds, ¼ cup of water and cook on low for 2-3 minutes till oil separates from the masala.
  • Add paneer cubes & cook for 2-3 minutes on low till they get coated with the masala.

Layering biryani

  • Add 3 tablespoons of birista, 2 teaspoons of chopped mint & coriander leaves to the biryani gravy.
  • Heat water in a pot, add salt, spices, lemon and bring to a boil on high heat. Drain the soaked rice and add to the pot and bring to a boil. Cook on high heat for 5 minutes just until the rice is cooked 70%. Using a slotted spoon, take out cooked rice and spread evenly on top of the gravy.
  • Add 1 tablespoon of birista, 2 teaspoons each of mint & coriander leaves. Rub the saffron in the milk to extract the flavour and the color and sprinkle evenly on top of rice. Drizzle ghee on top.
  • Heat a tawa and place the biryani pot on top and steam for 15 minutes on low and rest for half an hour before serving.

Video

Notes

  1. It is essential to soak red chillies before grinding so they turn deep red & grind to a smooth paste.
  2. Use aged extra long-grain basmati rice for the most authentic flavor and texture.
  3. Lemon juice/wedge is added while cooking biryani rice to ensure that rice stays white. 
  4. Before serving, allow the biryani to rest for half an hour. Gently fluff the rice using a fork or a silicone spatula. This will help the delicate rice grains to firm up a bit, preventing them from breaking.

Nutrition

Calories: 499kcal | Carbohydrates: 51g | Protein: 14g | Fat: 27g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 50mg | Sodium: 2200mg | Potassium: 294mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 450IU | Vitamin C: 12mg | Calcium: 370mg | Iron: 1mg