How To Make Vegetable Biryani Recipe In Pressure Cooker At Home?

There is no Indian household that does not love making and having Biryani together for a perfect family get to together. Even those who avoid rice for it’s fat content find Biryani hard to resist. I know many homemakers moms and working mothers who want to try versions of making veg Biryani easier than the authentic Dum style. Dum style (both Kachchi and Pakki method) is rather time-consuming and has a long list of dry spices which may not be present at home always. So working moms, especially, prefer a shorter way of cooking Biryani in Pressure cooker to get the tasty rice with vegetables popping up. Making in pressure cooking is easy and you can add or subtract ingredients according to your taste and preference. Whereas Dum recipe has it’s won set of masalas and veggies that one has to follow.

For my family, I make this simple recipe that has seasonal veggies and few essential dry spices. The recipe I am sharing here yields the right blend of aroma and steaming rice that brings water in your mouth. Of course, you’ll have to do little bit preparation in advance. Make sure you have all the spices and vegetables ready.Cooking with Basmati rice will be the best. I personally prefer aged Basmati rice for Biryanis for it’s dainty taste.

As people love biryani with a little tangy sour taste, they had tomatoes or curd or both. I have added lemon juice in this recipe as it also helps in digesting the rice. Coconut milk , dry fruits and capsicum are optional ingredients.

So let’s get started with the recipe. You can follow each step with the images provided.

Veg Biryani Recipe In Pressure Cooker

• Preparation Time: 10 minutes
  
• Cooking Time: 40 minutes
  
• Total Time: 50 minutes
  
• Servings: 4 plates
  
• Measurement = 240 ml

Required Ingredients

• 1 ½ cup of Basmati rice
  
• 1 potato cut in small cubes
  
• 1 medium sized carrot chopped thinly
  
• Fistful of green peas
  
• 1 large onion thinly sliced
  
• 1 ¼ tsp ginger garlic paste
  
• Fistful of mint leaves
  
• Fishful of coriander leaves
  
• 2 green chilies chopped thinly or slit
  
• 1 to 1 ½ tsp lemon juice
  
• 1 ½ tsp to 2 tsp Vegetable Biryani Masala
  
• 2 ½ cup water
  
• 2 to 3 tsp oil
  
• Capsicum ( green, yelllow and red) for garnishing
  
• 1 Bay leaf ( Tej Patta)
  
• 4 green cardamoms
  
• 1 star anise
  
• 2 one inch cinamom stick
  
• 6 cloves
  
• ½ tsp of shahi jeera
  
• Few pepper corn

How To Make Veg Biryani In Pressure Cooker At Home?

1. Rinse rice in clean water till the starch is released. Filter away water. Now soak rice for about 10 minutes.

2. Meanwhile prepare other items. Chop all the veggies, mint and coriander leaves.

3. Heat the pressure cooker with oil.

4. Add dry spices like bay leaf, cardamoms, star anise, shah jeera, cloves,cinnamon. Saute nicely till they crackle.

5. Now add onions to this. Saute till it gets light brown. Adding ½ tsp salt at this time will quicken the frying of onions. Add green chilies.

6. Then add ginger garlic paste to this. Mix well and saute till the fried aroma comes.

7. Add all the chopped vegetables. Stir well while you saute them.

8. After you saute veggies for about 2 minutes, they’ll turn light brown. At this point, add mint leaves, Biryani masala and saute.

9. Now add 1 cup of water.

10. Add salt according to taste.

11. Squeeze one lemon in a tsp and add 1 tsp juice to this.

12. Keep stirring the ingredients.

13. Now when the water boils slightly, add the soaked rice.

14. Stir well before closing the lid.

15. Now close the lid and put the whistle properly.

16. Keep on low flame and let it whistle once.

17. After one whistle turn off the stove.

18. The pressure will come down in around 10 minutes. Open the lid.

Now Hot Veg Biryani is ready to serve!!!

Veg Biryani tastes best with curd salad. Pickles, papad and all kind of raita goes best with Biryani. For garnishing you can fry some capsicum pieces separately and arrange attractively on the serving plate. Or simply put some coriander leaves.

Tips and Precautions To Be Taken

1. Instead of adding water to the vegetables, add coconut milk. This will give a rich texture to the rice which is loved by some people.
   
2. While cooking Biryani, take care that the rice is not over cooked. The grains should be well separated and not more than 75% cooked.
   
3. If you think rice is not cooked after one whistle, add some water and heat with slightly opened lid without whistle. Around 5 minutes will be sufficient for cooking.
   
4. Some beginner in cooking add capsicum with the vegetables. Capsicum tastes good only when fried like in fried rice. As the biryani cooks with water, it is good you avoid capsicum. However cauliflower tastes good in Biryani among other vegetables.
   
5. As in Dum style, one can add some fried dry fruits like badam, cashew and kismis in the end. Although this is not layered Biryani, yet the additional dry fruits will add to the taste.

Although Dum style has it’s own unique blend of flavors, pressure cooker made Biryani too tastes very delicious. The dried spices are actually more important than the vegetables. As we cook in steam, the spices mix with the rice and the aroma is no less yummy than that of Dum pulkht style.

I have seen people adding some ground nuts also to this recipe. Crunchy groundnuts will also enhance the taste. Others also add few drops of ghee to make it richer in taste.

This simple Biryani makes a perfect dish for your guests, lunch boxes and picnics. Although it takes efforts, it is very palatable and makes one feel very filled.