Hyderabadi chicken dum biryani
Hyderabadi Chicken Biryani is a fragrant and flavorful rice dish made with tender, marinated chicken, aromatic basmati rice, fresh mint, coriander, fried onions, and traditional spices. The chicken and partially cooked rice are layered together and slow-cooked on dum, allowing the flavours to blend beautifully. The result is a rich, aromatic biryani with fluffy rice and juicy, perfectly cooked chicken.
Hyderabadi Chicken Dum Biryani
Serves: 4–5
Marination: 2–4 hours
Cooking: ~45 minutes
Ingredients
Chicken marinade
1 kg bone-in chicken
1 cup thick yogurt
2 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
1½ tsp red chilli powder
½ tsp turmeric
1½ tsp biryani masala
3–4 green chillies, slit
½ cup chopped mint
½ cup chopped coriander
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 cup fried onions
3 tbsp oil
Salt to taste
Rice
750 g aged basmati rice
2 bay leaves
4 green cardamoms
4 cloves
1-inch cinnamon
1 tsp shahi jeera
Salt generously
For layering
½ tsp saffron
¼ cup warm milk
3 tbsp ghee
Extra fried onions
Extra mint and coriander
Method
1. Marinate the chicken
Mix the chicken with yogurt, ginger-garlic paste, chilli powder, turmeric, biryani masala, chillies, herbs, lemon juice, fried onions, oil and salt. Coat everything well and refrigerate for at least 2–4 hours. Overnight gives deeper flavour.
2. Prepare the rice
Wash and soak the basmati for about 30 minutes. Boil plenty of water with the whole spices and plenty of salt. Add the rice and cook until about 70–75% done—the grain should still have a firm centre. Drain immediately.
3. Layer
Spread the raw marinated chicken evenly in the bottom of a heavy pot. Put the partially cooked rice over it without mixing.
Drizzle over the saffron soaked in warm milk, ghee, remaining fried onions, mint and coriander.
4. Seal
Cover tightly with a lid. For the traditional method, seal the lid around the edges with wheat-flour dough so steam cannot escape.
5. Dum cook
Keep the pot on medium heat for about 5–10 minutes, then place it on a tawa and reduce to the lowest flame. Cook for around 30–40 minutes. Don't open the lid while cooking.
6. Rest and serve
Turn off the heat and leave it sealed for 10 minutes. Open carefully and gently mix from the bottom so the chicken masala and rice come together without breaking the grains.
Serve hot with raita and mirchi ka salan.
The most important things:
Use bone-in chicken.
Don't fully cook the rice before dum.
Don't skip the fried onions.
Keep the dum heat very low.
Don't repeatedly open the pot.
Make sure the chicken is fully cooked before eating.