Channa Biryani | Chole Biryani | Chickpea Pilaf | Jeera Samba Kondaikadalai Biryani

Channa Biryani | Chole Biryani | Chickpea Pilaf | Jeera Samba Kondaikadalai Biryani is a protein packed healthy rice dish which could be prepared in a jiffy, once you have the pressure cooked chickpeas on hand. It is ideal for lunch box as well as for lazy holidays. It can also be prepared as a part of the party menu and becomes really exotic when paired with a perfect side.

Chole | channa, being the main ingredient in this biryani, it is needless to say about the nutrient value of this yummy meal. As channa is rich in protein & dietary fibre, it is good for everyone. Luckily channa being a favourite among kids, we can prepare this biryani without any second thought for their lunch box too.

Today I prepared this biryani with seeraga samba rice and you can prepare it with basmati rice as well. Recently I start to stock jeera samba rice more when compared to basmati as my family likes the taste  of  biryani made with seeraka samba rice.

Here we go for the recipe…

Ingredients:

• Seeraga samba rice – 2 cups
• Water – 4 cups
• Channa | chick pea | kondaikadalai – ¾ to 1 cup
• Ginger garlic paste – 2 tbsp
• Onion (Big) –  2 Nos (chopped lengthwise)
• Tomato – 2 Nos.(Medium)(chopped)
• Green chilli – 2 Nos.
• Curd – 1 tbs
• Chilli powder – 1 tbsp
• Garam masala powder – 1 tsp
• Turmeric powder – ¼  tsp
• Coriander leaves (finely chopped) – ¼ cup
• Mint leaves (finely chopped) – ½ cup
• Salt to taste

For seasoning:

• Bay leaf – 1 No.
• Cinnamon – 1 inch piece
• Cloves – 2 Nos
• Cardamom  - 2 Nos.
• Fennel seeds – 1 tsp
• Oil – 2 tbsp
• Ghee – 1 tsp

Method:

1. Wash channa in water and soak with enough water overnight or for 6-8 hours.
2. Wash the soaked channa again until the water becomes clear and pressure cook with enough water and salt for about 5 whistles or until cooked soft.
3. When the pressure subsides, open the cooker, drain channa alone and keep aside.
4. Wash the rice using water and keep aside.
5. Cut onions, tomatoes, mint & coriander leaves and keep ready.
6. Take a pressure cooker, pour the oil and wait till the oil gets heated. Add the items given under “seasoning” one by one and wait until all these splutter to get the aroma from the seasoning.
7. Add a half of chopped mint leaves, onion and Green chilli (just break into 2 or 3) and sauté well until the onion becomes translucent. Then add the ginger-garlic paste and sauté till the raw smell of the masala goes off.
8. Add finely chopped tomato and add some salt so that the tomato will get cooked easily and sauté till the tomato gets smashed well.
9. Then add all the masala powders and sauté till the oil oozes out from the masala. Next, add curd and sauté well until the mixture gets glossy appearance.
10. Then  add the drained channa & sauté well. To this add the washed rice and sauté for 3 minutes and then add the balance mint &  coriander leaves.
11. Add required salt  and  4 cups of water. You can check for salt & spice at this stage and add if needed. Stir well and close the lid. Wait for 1 whistle, then simmer the flame for 3 minutes. Open the cooker after releasing the pressure slowly. Then follow the same procedure as we have done for all other Biryani recipes.

Healthy, yummy  Channa Biryani is ready to serve! We had this channa biryani with cucumber raita…

Note:

• You can use basmati rice and follow the same procedure instead of Jeera samba rice.
• You can increase or decrease the quantity of channa as per your choice but 1 cup is more sufficient for 2 cups of rice.

Tags: Channa biryani recipe, Pressure cooker Biriyani recipe, how to make chole biriyani at home, Vegetarian biryani with seeraga samba rice, Kabuli Channa biryani with jeera samba, jeera samba kondakkadalai biryani recipe, seeraga chamba rice chole biriyani, jeera chamba chickpea biryani, How to prepare chickpea biryani with seeraga samba rice?, kondaikadalai biryani, channa biryani with basmati rice, channa pulao with cucumber raita, hotel style biriyani recipe, pressure cooker biryani recipe, seeraga samba biryani recipes

Read more ...

Vegetable Biryani | Vegetable Pilaf | Jeera Samba Veg Biryani

Vegetable Biryani | Vegetable Pilaf | Jeera Samba Veg Biryani  is the easiest one-pot healthy meal, that too when it is prepared using pressure cooker.  In my opinion, any biryani prepared in a pressure cooker is no way inferior to that prepared in a traditional way.  This pressure cooker biryani gives us a hand on busy days as well as on lazy holidays. I used to make it quite often but somehow I couldn’t make an attempt to add this in my blog even after receiving a request  for the  recipe of vegetable biryani from my friend. At last it happened today...

Let me move on to the recipe without any delay!

Ingredients:

• Seeraga samba rice – 2 cups
• Water - 4 cups
• Mixed veggies – 1 to 1 ¼ cup
• Onion (Big) –  2 Nos (chopped lengthwise)
• Tomato – 2 Nos.(Medium)(chopped)
• Green chilli – 2 Nos.
• Curd – 1 tbs
• Chilli powder – 1 tbsp
• Coriander powder – ½  tbsp
• Garam masala powder – ½ tsp
• Turmeric powder – ¼  tsp
• Coriander leaves (finely chopped) – ¼ cup
• Mint leaves (finely chopped) – ½ cup
• Salt to taste

To grind:

• Ginger – 2” piece
• Garlic   - 3 pods
• Fennel – ½ tsp
• Kuskus            - ¼   tsp

For seasoning:

• Bay leaf – 1 No.
• Cinnamon – 1 inch piece
• Cloves – 2 Nos
• Cardamom  - 2 Nos.
• Fennel seeds – 1 tsp
• Oil – 2 tbsp
• Ghee – 1 tsp

 Method:

1. Wash the rice using water and keep aside.
2. Wash the vegetables of your choice and cut into 1” thick pieces and keep aside. Here I’ve used 1 Carrot, 5 Beans, 1 small capsicum, 4 Cauliflower florets & a handful of green peas.
3. Cut onions, tomatoes, mint & coriander leaves and keep ready.
4. Also grind the items given for grinding into a fine paste by adding little water, if necessary.
5. Take a pressure cooker, pour the oil and wait till the oil gets heated. Add the items given under “seasoning” one by one and wait until all these splutter to get the aroma from the seasoning.
6. Add a half of chopped mint leaves, onion and Green chilli (just break into 2 or 3) and sauté well until the onion becomes translucent. Then add the ground paste mentioned above under “To grind” and sauté till the raw smell of the masala goes off.
7. Add finely chopped tomato and add some salt so that the tomato will get cooked easily and sauté till the tomato gets smashed well.
8. Then add all the masala powders and sauté till the oil oozes  out from the masala. Next, add curd and sauté well until the mixture gets glossy appearance.
9. Then  add the chopped veggies, sauté well. To this add the washed rice and sauté for 3 minutes and then add the balance mint &  coriander leaves.
10. Add required salt  and  4 cups of water. You can check for spice also at this stage and you can add if needed. Stir well and close the lid. Wait for 1 whistle, then simmer the flame for 3 minutes. Open the cooker after releasing the pressure slowly. Then follow the same procedure as we have done for all other Biryani Recipes.

Your delicious, hot, yummy  Vegetable Biryani is ready to serve! I have packed this veg biryani with mixed veg raita for lunch!!

Note:

• You can use basmati rice and follow the same procedure instead of Jeera samba rice.
• You can increase or decrease the quantity of vegetables as per your choice.

Tags: Vegetable biryani recipe, Pressure cooker Biriyani recipe, how to make Vegetable biriyani at home, Vegetable biryani with seeraga samba rice, Vegetable biryani with jeera samba, jeera samba Vegetable biryani recipe, seeraga chamba rice Vegetable biriyani, jeera chamba Vegetable biryani, How to prepare Vegetable biryani with seeraga samba rice?, veggie biryani, Veg biryani with basmati rice, Vegetable biryani with raita, hotel style Vegetable biriyani recipe, pressure cooker Vegetable biryani recipe

Read more ...

Vegetable Rice | Veg Masala Rice

Vegetable Rice | Veg Masala Rice…the recipe I followed  neither falls under a pulao nor a biryani variety. When you want something like biryani but not with too much of masala, this is the recipe you are looking for J. This rice is ideal for lunch box and can be enjoyed simply with any raita or chips.

Today I planned of making veg fried rice and hence I cooked basmati rice before. Then I realized I didn’t have spring onions on hand. I didn’t want to continue the fried rice without spring onions, so I followed  this recipe and it turned out yummy.

Ingredients:

• Basmati rice     - 1 cup
• Onion (finely chopped) – 1 No.
• Green chilli (slitted) – 2 Nos
• Tomato (finely chopped)– 1 No.
• Garlic (finely chopped)  - 1 tbsp         
• Ginger (finely chopped)  - 1 tbsp
• Capsicum - 1 No
• Carrot  - 1 No.
• Green peas -  1/4 cup
• Red chilli powder- 1 tsp
• Turmeric powder – ¼ tsp
• Coriander (finely chopped) – 2 tbsp
• Mint (finely chopped) – 2 tbsp
• Lemon juice – 1tbsp
• Salt to taste

For seasoning:

• Oil  -  2 tbsp
• Cinnamon – 1” piece
• Clove – 2 Nos
• Cardamom – 2 Nos.

Method:

1. Wash & soak basmati rice for about minimum 15 minutes.
2. Cook the basmati rice with 1:2 water and salt. Spread the cooked rice in a flat bowl and drizzle some oil over  it so that it will not stick.
3. Cut the vegetables into thin, long pieces and keep them ready.
4. In a flat bottomed non stick pan, pour oil and season with the items for seasoning.
5. Sauté onion and green chillies till onion becomes golden brown in colour.
6. Add finely chopped garlic, ginger and sauté till you get nice aroma.
7. Add chopped coriander and mint leaves and sauté for a minute.
8. Add tomato and sauté till it becomes soft.
9. Finally add  the vegetables and sauté for few minutes.
10. Then add masala powders & salt and sauté well in oil for few minutes.
11. Then add little water and cook the vegetables covered in simmer for 5 minutes.
12. When the veggies get cooked well, add the cooked basmati rice & lemon juice and mix the rice gently with vegetable masala without breaking the rice. Keep covered with a lid for 5 minutes.

Your tasty Veg Masala Rice is ready to serve! It can be served with any raita or  chips.

Note:

• This can be prepared with left-over rice too.
• I have used fresh peas in this recipe, if you want you can even add frozen/ dried ones.

Read more ...

Raw Jackfruit Biryani | Raw Jackfruit Pilaf | Palaakkai Biryani | பலாக்காய் பிரியாணி

Raw Jackfruit Biryani | Palaakkai Biryani is yet another version of using raw jackfruit and I should say this is one of the most delicious rice dishes one could make equivalent to non-veg biryani.  As I have mentioned in my earlier post for Raw Jackfruit Curry, my grandma used to make stir fry, kootu, korma, etc., with this raw jackfruit but never made this biryani. I planned to try this so many times before, but always ended up making ” Palaakkai pirattal”, one of the favourite dishes of my family as an accompaniment for sambar. This year I didn’t want to miss the opportunity of tasting this yummy biryani and also posting this recipe on the blog!

Here is the recipe!

Ingredients:

• Basmati rice – 2 cups
• Raw Jackfruit – ½ No. (small)
• Onion (finely chopped) – 2 Nos.
• Tomatoes (finely chopped) – 3 Nos.
• Ginger garlic paste – 1 tbsp
• Red chilli powder – 1 tsp
• Coriander  powder – 1tsp
• Turmeric powder – ¼ tsp
• Biryani masala powder – 1 tsp
• Curd – 2 tbsp
• Coriander |Cilantro (finely chopped) – 2 tbsp
• Mint leaves (finely chopped) – 2 tbsp
• Salt to taste

To grind:

• Coconut gratings – 2 tbsp
• Red chillies – 2 Nos.
• Fennel seed – ½ tsp
• Khus Khus – ½ tsp

For seasoning:

• Oil | ghee – 2 tbsp
• Bay leaf – 1 No.
• Cinnamon – 1” piece
• Cloves – 2 Nos
• Cardamom – 2 Nos
• Fennel seeds – 1 tsp

Method:

1. Peel the skin and by applying oil on both hands cut it into bite-sized pieces. Transfer the pieces to a bowl of water as we do for raw banana. This prevents the jackfruit pieces  from darkening.
2. Pressure cook the jackfruit pieces by adding salt, turmeric powder and enough water for about 3 to 4 whistles.
3. Allow the pressure to release, open the cooker and drain out the pieces and discard the water and keep  aside.
4. Wash basmati rice in water, drain the water and keep aside.
5. Grind the items given “For grinding” into a thick, fine paste by adding little water and keep aside.
6. In a pressure pan, heat oil and season with the items given “For Seasoning”.
7. Add onions and sauté till it becomes golden brown.
8. Add  ginger garlic paste and sauté till the raw smell goes off.
9. Add tomatoes and sauté till the tomatoes get mashed well.
10. Add all the masala powders and sauté till the masala gets cooked well.
11. Add the ground paste and curd and cook till the oil oozes out from the masala.
12. Now add the pressure cooked jackfruit pieces & salt and cook in simmer for about 5 minutes stirring in between.
13. Add the chopped coriander leaves | cilantro, mint leaves and basmati rice. Mix everything well and sauté for about 2 minutes.
14. Add  4 cups of water and combine everything. You can check for spice & salt at this stage and you can add if needed. Stir well and close the lid.
15. Wait for 1 whistle, then simmer the flame for 3 minutes. Open the cooker after releasing the pressure slowly. Then follow the same procedure as we have done for all other Biryani Recipes.

Your delicious, hot, spicy  Jackfruit  Biryani is ready to serve! We had this yummy biryani with mixed veg  raita!! After tasting this biryani, I really felt very bad for not trying this one for many years! It is that goodJ!

Note:

• Jackfruit should be cooked for some time with masala in simmer (step 12), otherwise it will be bland.
• Keep in mind while adding salt at the final stage since we have added salt while pressure cooking jackfruit.
• It is enough if we add cut raw jackfruit pieces measuring ¾ to 1 cup for  2 cups of rice.

Tags: Raw Jackfruit Biryani recipe, Palaakkai Biryani, Pala Pinju Biryani, Kathal Biryani, pala moose biryani, raw jackfruit recipies, Jackfruit Recipes, Biryani with raw jackfruit, How to prepare birayni using raw jackfruit? , Raw Jackfruit Pilaf, Palakkai Pulao

Read more ...

Mushroom Biryani

Now a days, mushroom biryani has become a part of our weekly menu since it is very tasty and easy to make. My son also likes it for his lunch box. He is a picky eater and has a lot of limitations on his lunch-pack menus. He strictly avoids some items like curd, vegetables in sambar, kara kuzhambu, anything related with garlic, kootu and anything which would be sticky. He likes all the variety rice but when compared to lemon rice, tamarind rice etc., mushroom biryani is far better in all nutritional aspects. Rich in protein and is palatable for all ages. For parties, the richness in taste equals that of non-veg  biryani.

Here you go with the recipe.

Ingredients:

• Basmathi rice – 1 cup
• Onion (Big) – 1 (chopped)
• Tomato – 2 Nos.(Medium)(chopped)
• Green chilli – 1 No.
• Mushroom – 1 packet
• Curd – 1 tbs
• Ginger, garlic, fennel & kuskus  paste – 1 tbs
• Chilli powder – 1tbs
• Garam masala / Biryani powder – 1 tsp
• Coriander powder – ½ tsp
• Turmeric powder -1/2 tsp
• Coriander leaves (finely chopped) – 1tbsp
• Mint leaves (finely chopped) – 2 tbsp

For seasoning:

• Bay leaf – 1 No.
• Cinnamon – 1 inch piece
• Cloves – 2 No
• Cardamom  - 1 No.
• Fennel seeds – 1 tsp
• Oil -2 tbs
• Ghee – 1 tsp

Method:

Wash the basmathi rice and leave it as such after draining the water. I usually avoid soaking in water because the basmathi rice will get broken very easily.

Take a pressure cooker, pour the oil, wait till the oil gets heated. Add the items given under “seasoning” one by one and wait until all these get cracked to get the aroma from the seasoning.

Then add onion and Green chilli (slice this into 2 or 3) and sauté well until the onion becomes translucent.

Then add the paste mentioned above (ginger+garlic+fennel+kuskus) and sauté till the raw smell of ginger garlic goes off.

Add finely chopped tomato and add some salt so that the tomato will get cooked easily and sauté till the tomato gets smashed well.

Then add all the masala powders and sauté till the oil oozes  out from the masala. This is an important part.

Next, add curd and make sure it gets mixed with the masala and the mixture should get the glossy appearance.

Now, add cleaned, cut mushrooms , sauté well,  add half portion of coriander  & mint leaves , make the mushroom get coated with the masala.

Finally add rice and mix it gently with the mushroom masala without breaking the rice , add the remaining coriander, mint leaves.  Sauté till the rice  absorbs the moisture , then pour water in 1:2 ratio. Add the required salt. Check for salt and spice at this stage so that they can be added now. Stir well and close the lid. Wait for 1 whistle, then simmer the flame for 3 minutes. Open the cooker after releasing the pressure slowly. Don’t get panicked because the biryani seems to be slightly watery but it will be ok in next 5 minutes. Just mix the rice gently so that the masala will get mixed up evenly with rice. Then again, close the lid without weight. In next 5 mins, the biryani will be ready to serve and can be served with any raita, chips or chicken chettinad masala.

Note:

1. The rice:water ratio 1:2 will give soft, well cooked rice. If you want the rice to get well separated and don't want to take the risk of biryani getting mushy, you can reduce the water measure to  11/2 cups, wait for 1 whistle, simmer for 5 minutes. Immediately, release the pressure and follow the above procedure.
2. The secret in making any biryani lies in preparing the masala. We should be patient enough to sauté everything in slow flame and the masala should get cooked well. Then any biryani will be superb!!

Read more ...