Fauzia's Kitchen Fun

Hyderabadi Mutton Biryani

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Hyderabadi Mutton Biryani

A meat biryani dish that is a speciality of Hyderabad. The meat is marinated and then layered with half-cooked rice in a tight pot and then cooked together, which makes this a little bit adventurous but an incredibly easy and delicious recipe nonetheless. 
Servings 5 people

Ingredients
  

Ingredients for Meat Marination

  • 1 kg lamb/mutton pieces on the bone - marinate for an hour with 1 tsp meat tenderiser plus 1 tsp. each ginger & garlic pastes
  • 1-2 green chillies chopped
  • 1 tbsp salt
  • 1 tsp chilli powder
  • 1 tsp cumin seeds
  • small handful of chopped coriander
  • small handful of chopped mint
  • 2 tsp coriander powder
  • 1 tsp cumin powder
  • 5 onions – sliced and fried use half in marinating and half later during layering
  • 1 tsp black pepper powder
  • whole spices mace bay leaf, black cardamom, green cardamom, cloves, cinnamon stick
  • juice of half of a lemon
  • 2 1/2 cups yoghurt
  • 1/2 cup oil

Ingredients for Rice

  • 3 cups basmati rice washed 2-3 times then soaked for half an hour
  • salt
  • saffron & food colouring - soak the saffron in about 1 tbsp of warm milk or water
  • oil
  • whole spices

Instructions
 

  • Marinate the meat in all the marination ingredients overnight (remembering to reserve half of the fried onions for layering later). You can also reserve some chopped herbs (coriander and mint), some chopped chillies and lemon juice to be used during layering)
    When ready to cook, remove the marinated meat from the fridge at least an hour before you begin to allow it to come to room temperature. In the meantime, prepare the rice.
    Boil water with salt and oil and the whole spices, then add the soaked rice. When the rice is about 40% cooked (roughly 4 minutes), remove half of it, drain and set aside…then continue boiling the remaining rice until it is about halfway or 50% cooked (roughly a minute or 2 more). Drain and set aside.
    In a thick bottomed vessel pour a bit of ghee or oil which will help prevent the mixture from sticking to the bottom of the pan and then spread the marinated meat. On top of this spread the 40% cooked rice followed by some of the remaining crushed fried onions, coriander leaves, mint leaves and lemon juice.
    Spread the 50% done rice over this, then drizzle the soaked saffron and food colouring, plus a bit of ghee or oil. Seal the vessel with a damp cloth and a tight lid to keep the steam intact. First, cook on high flame for 10-15 minutes. Transfer the vessel to a hot tava (flat roti pan) to prevent the biryani from burning and continue cooking on medium heat until you notice steam trying to escape from the sides. At this point, lower the heat to minimum and cook for another 45 minutes.
    When ready to serve, open the pan and gently fluff up the rice, mixing the meat with the rice. Serve with raita and green chutney. Enjoy! 🙂

Join the Conversation

  1. ur recipe says- In a thick bottomed vessel pour a bit of ghee and spread the marinated meat.
    so that means i should not cook the mutton yet ?

    1. It would take about the same time to cook. Just make sure the layer of meat at the bottom is even, not piled up in a thick layer.

  2. Sister salam ! I tried tis reçipe. The rice got over cookd n the flavor didnt cum up the rice. Both tastd out n separate

    1. W/Salaam, sounds like you boiled the rice too long (over-cooked it) before adding it to the chicken. Normally this is the BEST biryani recipe for me, do give it a second try and cook the rice slightly less next time, it needs to be about halfway cooked before layering.

    1. I guess that goes with practice, approximately boiling rice for 5-6 minutes will get it to half-way done.

  3. please can you tell exactly the amount of ingredients for the whole garam masala in the marinade ?

    your website is the best keep it up and all the best

    1. Thank you! I would go with:

      quarter tsp mace
      1 bay leaf
      1 black cardamom
      1 green cardamom
      4 cloves

    1. W/Salaam, medium flame until steam begins to escape then lower to the lowest point and allow to cook for 45 minutes.

  4. salaams,
    Is it possible to cook the biryani in the oven instead of on a tava on the stovetop? If so, on what temperature, and for how long? Thanks so much – I love your site!

  5. Assalam Dear,
    Assalam Dear,
    Pls help me with the measurement for serving 15 people, ie. that onion, youghurt and the important spices. I want to make it this saturday.
    The picture of your biriyani is tempting me to try it !!!!!!

    1. W/Salaam, the recipe serves 6
      W/Salaam, the recipe serves 6-7 people, if you double it it will easily serve 14-15 people. Everything else in the recipe will need to be doubled too. 🙂

  6. Is your mug measurement the
    Is your mug measurement the same as your cup measurement? Your “my measurements” page doesnt hav mug measurement like this recipe calls for..

    1. My cup measurement for rice
      My cup measurement for rice is 175gm. The mug is slightly bigger, 200gm. But not much of a difference. 🙂

    1. W/Salaam, cover the pan with
      W/Salaam, cover the pan with a damp cloth or towels then cover with the lid so the pan/vessel is tightly sealed.

  7. Sister, people say that
    Sister, people say that keeping tenderiser on meat for long makes it very mushy n unappealing after being cooked. Please tell that whether keeping in tenderiser for i hr. and then washing it off to apply main marinade would do ??
    Also, how much tenderiser powder to use for 1Kg of goat meat ?

    Thanks. The recipe is simply Great !!

    1. I normally always prefer
      I normally always prefer natural tenderisers so I use 2 tbsp of grated raw papaya in place of tenderiser. You could try rinsing the tenderiser off if you like, or add it in about 2 hours before you need to use the meat so it doesn’t tenderise too much. About 2 tsp should be more than enough if using the powdered kinds.

  8. salaam sister,the oil
    salaam sister,the oil mentioned in the marinade for the meat,is that for frying the onions or adding to the meat.

    1. W/Salaam, that oil is just
      W/Salaam, that oil is just added to the meat itself. What I usually do is I fry the onions and then use THAT same oil in the marinade to make sure the dish has an intense flavour. 🙂

  9. Best Recipe. I loved it.
    Best Recipe. I loved it. Thanks for sharing the wonderful recipe with us.

  10. Salaam.
    Salaam.
    Thank you for your recipes . Helps a lot.
    One question > im a bit hesitant in putting raw meat beneath rice, if I need to pressure it even partially, how wud you advise on doing it?

    1. W/Salaaam, this particular
      W/Salaaam, this particular recipe is cooked in this method. It is a bit risky but if the instructions are followed and the meat is tender then the results turn out perfect.

  11. Salams sister, I haven’t used
    Salams sister, I haven’t used any meat tenderisers is that okay?

    1. W/Salaam, you can although
      W/Salaam, you can although beef takes longer to cook and might not cook through properly using this recipe.

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