My family hails from Hyderabad, the capital of the Southern State, Andhra Pradesh. With strong Moghul influence as well as strong Indian traditions, the food in unique and mighty tasty. One of the most popular dishes, if not the most popular dish, to come from Hyderabad is biriyani. A unique blend of ultra fragrant spices, mixed with tender meats (or veggies if preferred) steamed into submission to create a dance of flavors that make you salivate like Niagara Falls and swoons over the wafts of smokey spices. Like many recipes, this was passed down to me from my family so, check out my recipe below for Chicken Biriyani and try not to get too hungry in the process!
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Chicken Biriyani
- Total Time: 2 hours 20 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Description
Hyderabad Chicken Biriyani is a fragrant and flavorful dish featuring tender chicken and aromatic spices, layered with basmati rice and cooked to perfection.
Ingredients
- 2 lbs. (900 g) thigh pieces, cubed and cut off the bone (skin is acceptable, unless you want to be very healthy. Save the bones for added flavor)
- 1 box Shaan Sindhi Biriyani mix
- 1 large onion thinly sliced (slowly pan fried in oil until golden brown)
- 3 cloves of garlic roughly chopped
- 1 1/4 cups (300 ml) of Basamati Rice (washed & soaked for 30 minutes)
- 1 1/2 tbs salt
- 2 tbs. (30 ml) ghee (clarified butter or butter if not available)
- Oil
- Chicken marinade (1 tbs. salt, 1/2 tbs. turmeric, 2 tbs. extra hot red chili powder, 1/3 cup (80 ml) yogurt, 1 tbs. dried mango powder)
Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix the follow: chicken cubes, chicken bones and chicken marinade for 1 hour.
- In a pot, boil salted water and add a tsp of oil. When the water starts to boil, add the soaked Basmati Rice. Watch the rice roll over ONCE in the water and drain the water immediately. After the water has been drained, add the box of Shaan Sindhi Biriyani mix and 1 tbs. of salt.
- In a pan, add 1 tbs of oil and heat the pan. When the oil is hot, add the chopped garlic. When the garlic is partially cooked, add the marinaded chicken. Cook partially cooked (shouldn’t be fully cooked at all) remove from the heat after 7 minutes on the heat.
- In a large pot, add the ghee. Then layer the thigh bones on the bottom. Next add a layer of the rice, and then top with another layer of chicken. Continue this until you top with final layer of rice (should be about 3 layers of rice and chicken each). Smooth out the layer of rice and then sprinkle the fried onions on top.
- Add a some water to mixture (until you see a some settle under the top grains of rice). Place the cover on top of the pot, cover with two clothes (please avoid the flame), and put a weight on top. Cook on medium low for about 30 minutes or until all of the water is absorbed.
- Remove from the heat and let it sit for another 10 minutes.
Notes
- For added flavor, keep the chicken bones in the biriyani while cooking.
- You can substitute chicken with vegetables for a vegetarian version.
- Serve with raita or a side salad for a complete meal.
- Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Prep Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 50 minutes
- Category: Main Course
- Cuisine: Indian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 500
- Sugar: 2
- Sodium: 750
- Fat: 15
- Carbohydrates: 60
- Fiber: 3
- Protein: 35
- Cholesterol: 100
If You Liked This Recipe, You’ll Love These
- Kolkata-Style Spicy Chili Chicken
- Quick Chicken Curry
- Chicken Khao Soi: Curry Noodle Soup
- Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Soup
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does this recipe use a pre-made spice mix rather than individual spices?
The recipe calls for one box of Shaan Sindhi Biriyani mix as the spice base — this is a family-passed-down recipe, and that mix is part of what makes it authentic to this particular Hyderabadi home kitchen tradition. It’s stirred into the drained, partially cooked Basmati rice along with 1 tbsp of salt before the dum layering begins. 
What is the trick with cooking the Basmati rice before layering?
The rice is soaked for 30 minutes, then added to salted boiling water with a tsp of oil. You watch for the rice to roll over exactly once in the water, then drain it immediately — this partial cooking is critical so the rice finishes properly during the 30-minute covered dum steam rather than becoming mushy.
Why does the recipe call for keeping the chicken bones in during cooking?
The thigh bones are layered at the very bottom of the pot and cooked along with the biriyani specifically for added flavor — the marrow and collagen from the bones enrich the overall dish. The recipe also calls for saving the bones from the cubed thigh pieces for this purpose.
How is the dum (sealed steam) technique done here?
Once the layered pot has some water added (just until it settles under the top grains of rice), you place the lid on, wrap the pot in two cloths (kept away from the flame), and place a weight on top to seal in the steam. Cook on medium-low for about 30 minutes until all water is absorbed, then let it rest off heat for 10 minutes.
