Hyderabadi Chicken Dum Biryani – Chicken Dum Biryani

Hyderabadi Chicken Dum Biryani – Chicken Dum Biryani – Authentic Hyderabad Chicken Dum Biryani – HOw to make Chicken Dum Biryani  with stepwise pictures – One of the traditional biryani dish originating from Hyderabad where rice is slow cooked in a process called”dum” with aromatic long grain fragrant basmati rice, authentic spices and fresh cut meat smothered in ghee and fresh herbs!

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5 from 1 vote

Hyderabadi Chicken Dum Biryani

One of the traditional biryani dish originating from Hyderabad where rice is slow cooked in a process called"dum" with aromatic long grain fragrant basmati rice, authentic spices and fresh cut meat smothered in ghee and fresh herbs!

Prep Time1 hour hr

Cook Time45 minutes mins

Resting time10 minutes mins

Total Time1 hour hr 45 minutes mins

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Hyderabad, Indian

Keyword: biryani, chickenbiryani, dumbiryani

Servings: 4 people

Author: Mullai Madavan

Ingredients

Ingredients - spices

• 3 each Bay leaf
• 6 each Cloves
• 3 each Cinnamon stick about 1 inch sticks
• 1 each Black cardamom
• 3 each Green cardamom
• 4 each Black stone flower / kalpasi
• 2 each Star Anise
• 1 pinch Nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon Cumin seeds

Ingredients - rice, salt & water

• 2 cups Basamati rice
• 8 cups Water
• 2 & 1/2 teaspoons Salt (exact measure)

Ingredients - Marination

• 1 kg Chicken wholecut, incl thighs, drumstick and breast
• 1/2 cup Yogurt (thick curd)
• 1 tablespoon Ginger Garlic paste
• 1 teaspoon Red Chilli powder spicy
• 1 teaspoon Coriander powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Turmeric powder
• 1 & 1/2 teaspoon Salt
• 4 each Green Chilli chopped
• 1/4 cup Fried Onions
• 2 teaspoon Oil
• 1/4 cup Mint leaves chopped
• 1/4 cup Coriander leaves chopped
• 2 teaspoon lemon juice

Ingredients - fried onions

• 2 cups Onion thinly sliced
• 1 tablespoon Corn starch powder
• 2 cups Oil

Ingredients - for layering & garnish

• 1/2 cup Mint leaves chopped
• 1/2 cup Coriander leaves Chopped
• 5 strands Saffron
• 1/4 cup Milk
• 3 tablespoon Ghee

Ingredients - for sealing

• 1 cup Atta /All purpose flour/ Maida any one of the flour works
• 1/2 cup Water

Instructions

Prep work

• Soak basmati rice for 45 minutes in enough water. Sprinkle corn starch over the sliced onions and deep fry in oil until golden. Marinate chicken with yogurt, salt, lemon juice, red chili powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, oil, green chillies, mint leaves, coriander leaves & little of the fried onions. Knead the flour with enough water to make a soft dough.

Cooking the rice

• Heat 8 cups of water in a heavy bottomed pan along with all the whole spices. Bay leaf, cinnamon, cloves, black stone flower, black cardamom, green cardamom, cumin seeds, black peppercorns, star anise and nut meg. When it comes to a rolling boil add the soaked rice and keep the flame at high. Boil the rice over high flame for exactly 5 minutes. The rice will be cooked to about 70 % by this stage. Switch off. and immediately drain all the water using a colander. 

The layering

• Now its time to layer… take a heavy bottomed pan, first layer with the marinated chicken along with the marinade juice and some chopped mint and coriander leaves. Add a little of rice, followed by some fried onions, chopped mint and coriander leaves. Repeat the same for one more layer. Now drizzle the saffron soaked in milk over the rice or food color mixed in milk. Finally little drizzle of ghee over the top. Now place the dough over the edges around the pan. Seal with the lid.

The Dum Process

• Now start cooking this over high flame for exactly 5 minutes. Move the pan to a smaller burner and set the burner to the lowest flame setting. Let it “Dum” for 45 minutes. “Do not disturb mode” After 45 minutes switch off the stove. Remove the pan from the stove and place it on the counter to rest for 10 minutes.

The final Garnish

• Open the lid, drizzle with ghee, garnish with coriander leaves and transfer the biryani to big tray to cool and bit. Gently fluff without messing the layers.  Serve hot with gravy and raita!

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Those questions that we ask GOOGLE when making Dum Biryani 😀  these are some which i pay attention to when making biryani…. mastering these will make you a pro!

What rice to choose? The best suited rice for this recipe would be a good quality basmati rice, i have chosen Indian gate basmati rice works out perfect.

How long to Soak ? Soaking the rice is a must for this dish, i would prefer to soaking atleast 45 minutes.

How long to cook the rice ? For 2 cups rice use 8 cups of water… bring it to rolling boil with all the spices… used 4 teaspoons salt (kosher/ crustal salt/coarse kallu uppu/salt) exactly 5 minutes over very high flame… the rice will be 75% cooked.

What kind of spices to use? Cumin,  cardamom (green & black) ,Cinnamon, Cloves, Star Anise, Black stone flower, Black peppercorn, Bay leaf, pinch of nutmeg

Does saffron make a difference? Traditional Hyderabadi dum biryani uses saffron soaked in milk… but a bad quality saffron could spoil the entire dish…make sure the quality of your saffron is good orelse use little food color instead mixed in milk.  Safe!

How much chicken to be use and what kind to use? 1:1 rice : meat ratio always the best. Fresh whole cut chicken with mixed parts actually makes the biryani more flavorful.

Does marination really necessary? Yes, at least a few hours of marination helps for more flavorful juicy tender chicken.

Fried onions or sauteed onions? Definitely fried onions make it really tasty compared to lightly sauteed onions.

How long should you dum the biryani ? – If you soak your rice for 30 to 45 minutes you will need to dum for 45 minutes over very low flame this is after you cook over high flame for first 5 minutes completely sealed with dough.

Does kewra/ pandan leaves essence or biryani essence or rose essence necessary? Some prefer extra flavor…but these are highly concentrated flavors and might not suit at times… my advice is to skip it or add just a few drops ..only if you like the smell.

What kind of pot to use? A heavy bottomed pan is a  must. I have used my wide stainless steel pressure cooker pan and used a sturdy lid to sit on the dough to seal it.

Lets start making this Hyderabadi Chicken Dum Biryani…. which takes about 2 hours from start to finish.

PREP WORK

Soak basmati rice for 45 minutes in enough water.

Sprinkle corn starch over the sliced onions and deep fry in oil until golden.

Marinate chicken with the ingredients mentioned above for atleast 2 hours.

Marinate chicken with yogurt, salt, lemon  juice, red chili powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder & little of the fried onions.  Make small slits in the chicken for the masala to penetrate.

additional tip

We add oil to keep them moist… and also some of the chopped green chilies, mint and coriander leaves. Sometimes chicken may turn out dry after cooking and adding little fat /oil will keep it moist and tender, chopped raw green chilies add extra heat while cooking.

Knead the flour with enough water to make a soft dough.

COOKING THE RICE

Heat 8 cups of water  in a heavy bottomed pan along with all the whole spices. Bay leaf, cinnamon, cloves, black stone flower, black cardamom, green cardamom, cumin seeds, black peppercorns, star anise and nug meg.

When it comes to a rolling boil add the soaked rice and keep the flame at high.

Boil the rice over high flame for exactly 5 minutes.

The rice will be cooked to about 70 % by this stage. Switch off.

The rice will look long, grainy and if you press the corner will be soft the middle part will be half white and firm.

Immediately drain all the water using a colander. Keep the rice ready.

THE LAYERING 

Now its time to layer… take a heavy bottomed pan, first layer with the marinated chicken along with the marinade juice.

Add in some chopped mint and coriander leaves.

Add a little  of rice, followed by some fried onions, chopped mint and coriander leaves.

Layer again with rice, fried onion, chopped coriander and mint leaves.

Repeat the same for one more layer. Now drizzle the saffron soaked in milk over the rice. ( I have used food color)

Finally little drizzle of ghee over the top.

Last layer… dump whatever leftover fried onions, mint and coriander leaves.

Now place the dough over the edges around the pan.

Seal with the lid.  BIRYANI RECIPE COLLECTION

Make sure to press to seal completely. Give some pressure to make the lid stick to the lid.

THE DUM 😳 

Now start cooking this over high flame for exactly 5 minutes. Move the pan to a smaller burner and set the burner to the lowest flame setting.  Let it “Dum” for 45 minutes. “Do not disturb mode”

After 45 minutes switch off the stove. Remove the pan from the stove and place it on the counter to rest. Do not open yet… resting time has be around 10 minutes.By this time that dough would have cooked too… it will be hard to lift the lid off the pan.

Run a knife around the pan to separate the dough and lift the lid.

Your biryani is all ready… drizzle some more ghee and garnish with more mint and coriander leaves.

Transfer immediately to a tray … lightly fluff with a fork, do not mix… gently fold and transfer to a plate to keep the layers intact!

Notes

• This biryani is made India Gate Basmati rice and using kosher (coarse crystal salt) if following the exact measure.
• If using a different brand soaking time and cooking time may vary.
• Ideal marination time for chicken would be 6 to 8 hours or atleast 2 hours for the flavors to mingle.
• Folks at home hate saffron in biryani, so skipping it… using food color instead. You may use a good quality saffron just for the color and flavor.