HYDERABADI MUTTON BIRYANI (Pakka Method).

INGREDIENTS

Mutton – 700 g (bone-in pieces) (see note for substitution)

Curd (yogurt) – 400 g

Coriander leaves – 1 bundle, roughly chopped

Mint leaves – 1.5 bundles, roughly chopped

Green chilies – 50 g

Oil – 100 ml (for frying birista; neutral oil recommended)

Rice – 300 g (pre-cooked/parboiled for 4–5 minutes or to your chosen doneness please see note)

Onions – 700 g (for frying birista)

Garlic – 40 g, crushed

Ginger – 20 g, crushed

Cloves whole – 15–20

Turmeric powder – 1 tsp

Red chili powder – 1 tsp (½ tsp of you like it less spicy)

Cinnamon – 4nos of 1 inch piece, broken

Green cardamom (elaichi) – 24 pods

Ghee – 50 g + extra for finishing (Nawab Khan recommends ghee as the fat)

Milk – 30 ml for fully cooked method and 70ml for 90% method (see note)

Saffron (one fat pinch)

Rose water 1 tsp (avoid essence)

Kewra water (2 tsp)

Raw green papaya paste – 1 to 1.5 tsp (optional — for very tender mutton, per Nawab Khan)

Optional: fried cashews, raisins for layering (not traditional, but optional)

NOTE — READ BEFORE STARTING

Please read the entire recipe from start to finish before you begin. Decide whether you will make Kacchi (raw rice + raw meat together — not for novices) or Pakki (recommended — cook meat and rice separately, then layer and dum). See the flowchart section below for the dum logic (90% rice → dum on gas; fully cooked rice → dum with no heat).

Basic overview of steps

Make birista

Make the marinade

Add half the birista to the marinade +some of the birista oil + half of the chopped green mixture (corr+mint+ green chilli)

Leave the meat to marinate

Cook the meat

Cook the rice

Layer

Add dum (optional)

Done

FLOWCHART (text version)

START

┌────────────┴────────────┐

│ │

KACCHI BIRYANI PAKKI BIRYANI

(raw mutton + raw rice) (cook mutton + cook rice separately)

│ │

NOT recommended Recommended for most cooks

for novices │

Cook rice separately + cook mutton

│

——————————-

| |

90% COOKED RICE FULLY COOKED RICE

(For dum on GAS FLAME) (For dum with NO HEAT)

| |

v v

Dum on LOW flame for 2–3 min Charcoal smoke dum only

+ rest sealed 10–15 min (no flame; no overcook risk)

METHOD

For novice cooks, this biryani can be executed over three days.

DAY 1 — Make the Birista (Fried Onions)

Slice the onions evenly.

All slices should be the same thickness — uneven slices fry unevenly.

Choose your fat.

Use neutral oil (sunflower)

For authentic flavour, use pure ghee. (Tip: Clarify butter yourself to save — melt butter on low, strain the clear fat as ghee; keep solids for baking.)

Choose the right vessel.

A thick-bottomed kadai fries more evenly and slowly — ideal for birista.

Fry low & slow.

Keep flame low to medium. Never high.

High heat browns the outside too quickly and leaves the inside underdone.

Timing & colour.

Depending on batch size and vessel, frying can take 15–30 minutes (or more for very large batches).

Aim for golden brown, not dark brown. Remove slightly earlier because of carry-over cooking (it will darken after removal).

Final check.

When cooled, birista should be crisp, sweet, and caramel-like, not bitter or burnt. Store in an airtight container until needed.

Reserve birista oil.

Keep the oil used for frying — you’ll use about 30 ml in the marinade on Day 2.

DAY 2 — Marinate the Mutton

Crush birista for marinade.

Take half the birista and crush lightly into flakes (not a paste).

Add birista oil.

Use ~30 ml of the birista oil — very flavourful.

Combine marinade ingredients with the mutton (700 g):

Crushed birista (half batch)

~30 ml birista oil

Curd (yogurt) – 400 g

Turmeric – 1/2 tsp

Red chili powder – 1 tsp

garlic – 40 g (grind to paste)

Ginger– 20 g(grind to paste)

Chopped coriander (reserve 1/3rd qty for layering later)

Chopped mint (reserve 1/3rd qty to use for layering later)

Green chilies – 50 g grind to paste (adjust to if extremely spicy variety)

Raw green papaya paste – 1–1.5 tsp (optional, for very tender mutton, do not use for chicken)

Salt to taste

All the whole spices (cinnamon, clove, elaichi)

Mix thoroughly so every piece is well coated.

Marinate time:

Minimum 2 hours.

Overnight recommended for best flavour and tenderness.

DAY 3 — Cook the Mutton, Prepare Rice & Dum

1. Pressure-cook the mutton

Transfer marinated mutton to a pressure cooker. You can cook in an open pot of you wish but time and gas used will increase.

Cook in pressure for 30–45 minutes depending on desired softness and meat age:

*30 min for younger/softer mutton (if you cook mutton regularly and find it’s soft in 15-20 minutes, please go by your own judgement as quality of meat is not uniform across the state or country, the meat that I purchase takes me this length of time. But with better quality it cn reduce and vice versa)

incase you are unsure you can check at the 20 minute mark and decide from there how soft you want to go. My family enjoys it when it’s closer to fall off the bone texture, every family is different)

45 min for older or very tough pieces

If the mixture gets dry while cooking, add a splash of the reserved rice water to keep it moist.

2. Parboil/boil the rice

Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil with salt on high heat.

Water should taste as salty as sea water, please taste.

Add the rice to this and wait for it to reach boil again still on high heat.

from the moment it boils reduce gas to slowest setting and start the timer for 4 minutes (slightly undercooked) 5 minutes (fully cooked) with the lid on.

start timing at the moment rice reaches a rolling boil, NOT WHEN IT goes in. Water has to be rolling boil, NOT SIMMER. Cover and start the timer.

Choose rice doneness depending on dum method:

90% cooked (approx. 4 minutes from boil for typical basmati) — use this if you will dum on the gas (heat applied later).

Fully cooked — use this if you will only smoke/dum with no heat (charcoal smoke or resting).

Reserve ½ cup of rice water before draining (useful for adjusting gravy/moisture later).

Layering the Biryani (Handi with matching lid)

Always use the handi with the matching lid.

Layering order

Mutton mixture (bottom layer)

Rice

Herbs — fresh coriander + fresh mint + green chillies (optional)

Saffron milk (small splash of warm milk with saffron strands) — and optional coloured milk drizzle if using

Rose water and kewra water

Optional: fried cashews, raisins (not traditional Hyderabadi, but optional)

Repeat the layers until the handi is filled close to the top.

Final steps before dum:

If you will dum on heat, apply an atta seal around the rim and place the lid.

If not doing dum on heat (only smoke or no dum), do not apply atta seal.

Dum (Two options depending on rice doneness)

A. Rice 90% cooked → Dum on gas (heat applied)

After sealing, place handi on very low flame for 2–3 minutes (just enough to finish rice).

Switch off the flame.

Let rest, don’t open for 10–15 minutes (seal must be intact).

B. Rice fully cooked → Dum with no heat (smoke-only)

Use dhungar (charcoal smoke): Light charcoal until red-hot. Place in a small steel bowl. Place the bowl inside the handi on top of the rice (or on a small steel plate). Pour a teaspoon of oil over the coal to create smoke.

Immediately cover the handi (with or without atta seal; if you’re not putting it on flame you do not need the seal).

Allow the smoke to infuse for the desired time. Because rice is already cooked, you can smoke longer without risk of overcooking.

To make the atta seal.

To make atta seal take 100% atta to 50% water. Knead to form a dough. Roll the dough out to a long thin snake like cylinder that is as long as the circumference of your chosen vessel.

Eg: 200 atta to 100 water. Or 150 gm atta to 75gm water.

Charcoal/dhungar safety & sealing tips

If you use charcoal inside, place the hot coal in a bowl first, then into the handi to avoid direct contact with food.

Apply atta seal if you will also place on low heat; if only smoking and not heating, a tight lid is adequate and atta seal is optional.

Rest & Final Finish

After dum, do not open the seal for at least 10–15 minutes.

Open carefully, drizzle extra fresh ghee for aroma and richness.

Gently fluff the rice — do not break grains.

Serve hot with raita or mirchi ka salan. Garnish with reserved fried onions (100 g), chopped coriander, and optional cashews/raisins.

CHEF NOTES / TECH TIPS

On birista frying: uniform slices, low-medium heat, thick-bottomed vessel, golden colour, remove early due to carry-over cooking.

Use of ghee: Nawab Khan’s authentic approach uses only pure ghee. Neutral oil can be used for birista if necessary, but ghee is preferred.

Raw green papaya is optional: 1–1.5 tsp paste in marinade breaks down fibres gently — use only for very tender mutton.

Vessel: Copper handi preferred for authenticity and even heat.

Rice timing: Start timer as soon as rice hits boiling water; ~4 minutes → ~90% (adjust by rice brand/age).

If you parboil rice for dum on gas: finish with 2–3 minutes on a very low flame sealed to complete rice cooking.

Optional add-ins: fried cashews & raisins — not traditional Hyderabadi but many households add them.

Incase you wish to substitute mutton for chicken or any other protien like beef etc you may do so.

For chicken the cook time will reduce to 25-30 minutes. There’s no need for pressure cooker.

For beef I would again suggest pressure cooker. Same cook time as mutton possibly longer depending on the toughness and age of the cut.

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