Cooking a delicious Vegetable Dum Biryani - Lucknowi Style

Dum Biryani for the Vegetarians!!!!!

Vegetable lovers - here comes the most delicious vegetable biryani from the land of the Lucknowi Nawabs. Lucknow is the capital of Uttar Pradesh, a province in the northern province of India.

The Recipe:

Preparing the rice:
3 cups Basmati rice
4 cups H2O (water)
1 to 2 bay-leaf(s)
2 table spoons of Ghee
2 - 3 cinnamons
2 cloves
2 - 3 cardamoms
Salt as per your taste

Preparing the Vegetable:

3 cups mixed vegetables chopped (Recommended to add Potatoes, Carrots, Peas, Cauliflower, French Beans)
3 - 4 green chillies, depending on the chilliness, you can add or subtract the quantity
Chop 2 medium sized onions
Chop 2 big tomatoes
1.5 table spoon garlic paste
1 table spoon ginger paste
1/2 table spoon turmeric powder
1 black cardamom
4 - 5 table spoons of Ghee or Dalda
One cinammon (a big one)
2 bay leave
2 cloves
4 to 5 Cardamoms c

For Garnishing:
Saffron - one pinch
150 grams butter
1 small onion finely chopped

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Phase 1: Preparing the Rice:

Wash it. We need to be healthy after all.

Let the rice be in water for 25 minutes and after 25 minutes, drain out the excess water.

Heat a tall metallic pot on high flame, put in the Ghee and pour the rice. Add the cinnamon, cloves, bay leaves, cardamom. 
Add salt as per your taste (perhaps 2 - 3 teas spoons).

When the water dries up, reduce the heat to low flame. Let it cook for 3 - 4 minutes and then shut this down.

Now pull out the rice from the metallic pot, and spread it on a plate so that it cools down. 

Next, heat the butter and add the pinch of saffron when it melts.Thats it, stop this too and park it aside.

Phase 2: Cooking your vegetable:

In a tiny pan heat 2 tea spoons of cooking oil. You may use vegetable oil or sunflower . Fry the onions until it is brown.

Add all the spices and fry them for around 2 minutes.

Pour the ginger garlic paste and then the garlic paste.

Next, add the tomatoes, turmeric powder and the green chillies. 

Now is the time to add all the vegetables, so go ahead and add all the vegetables in this cooking vessel along with two cups of water.

Keep on cooking until the vegetables are cooked.


Phase 3: Making the Biryani Layers

Use a deep flat big metallic pot. Heat it on high flame. Add two table spoons of Ghee.

Layer 1: Add the partially cooked rice. (Just half of the quantity)

Layer 2: Pour the vegetable.

Layer 3: Pour the remaining half of the rice. 

Now place a cover / lid on top of the pot, so that it becomes sealed and the steam doesnt go out.

Place this pot on a flat prostrate mettalic pan (tawa) for 20 minutes on medium flame.

That's it. Your vegetable dum biryani is ready. Before you serve it, garnish it with small pieces of onion, some coriander leafs, and salted cashew nuts. Serve it with Raita.

Now eat and enjoy.