Monday, August 27, 2007

Vegetable Biryani



This Biryani is made with a special kind of rice which is called the "Seeraga Samba" rice. This rice is of Tamil Nadu origin, a southern state of India. The Rice is very Aromatic by nature just like the Basmati. Since it resembles Cumin which is called "Seeragam" in Tamil, it is called Seeraga Samba. Most of the traditional biryani, may it be veg or Non-veg are made with this rice in Tamil Nadu.



I have prepared a traditional style biryani here.

Ingredients

2 cups Seeraga Samba rice
4 cups water
3 large red onions
2 tbsp white poppy seeds (soaked in water for 15 minutes)
1/2 cup tomato puree
1 cup of chopped, mixed vegetables (carrot, peas, beans and capsicum)
4 green chillies
1 tsp Ginger garlic paste
4 cloves
2 bay leaves
1 cinnamon stick
2 crushed green cardamom
1 strand of mace
2 tbsp yogurt
1 tsp Turmeric
4 tbsp Ghee (clarified butter)
1 tsp Biryani masala (store bought)
fresh chopped cilantro
fresh chopped mint
Salt

Preparation

Grind the soaked poppy seeds along with 1 large onion into fine paste. In a wide pot add ghee and fry the cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, mace, bay leaves till aroma raises. This should be done on medium low heat. To this add ginger garlic paste, green chillies and chopped onions and fry them till golden. Add the ground poppy mixture and fry well. Let the mixture separate oil

Now add yogurt and let the yogurt also separate oil out of it. To this add tomato, chopped mint, turmeric, biryani masala, salt and fry well. If required add more ghee or oil.
Finally add the vegetables and rice along with water and give a stir. The water should come to boil. Once it boils, simmer the gas and cover with lid. Do check at intervals to see if the water has evaporated. Remove from gas stove and let it cool. Don't stir while the rice it hot. It tends to break. Garnish with chopped cilantro.



This can be prepared in a rice cooker too. After adding rice and water, transfer the contents in to the rice cooker. Aromatic Biryani is ready in minutes.


Onion Raita

This biryani is relished with onion raita/ onion pachadi

Ingredients

1 cup thick yogurt
1/3 cup chopped onions
Salt

Preparation

Mix the onions and salt to yogurt. It goes great with biryani.

This is my JFI- Rice entry.

58 comments:

Anonymous said...

I am always ready for all kinds of pulav or biryani. Love them with simple raita. Hey btw, is everyone safe back home, after the blasts?

Namratha said...

This looks good Sharmi, I had no idea you could make Biryani with a different kind of rice too. I bet this tastes great! :)

Padma said...

That looks nice Sharmi, even I am astonished that you used to make biryani..nice pics....

Sreelu said...

Sharmi,
looks delicious, what is mace strand, never heard of it

musical said...

Yum yum! lovely entry by the lovely hostess :). Hey, is this the same as regular Samba rice? i cook that very ofen to go with Varan and daals. oh, and i saw the comments, do you have family in Hyderabad.....hope everything is safe there. when will things change......

Manasi said...

This is a new type of rice! Looks great!!! It's been a while since i made Biryani!! I'm tempted!!

Anonymous said...

Hi Sharmi, Never made biryani with any other rice except basmati. will have to try this rice next time - hope I find it here.

I didnt know that you are from Hyderabad too. My family home is very close to where one of the bombs went off but thankfully everyone is safe. Hope the same for you.

Sharmi said...

Hima, Ya all are fine and safe. but I fell horrible and sad that all this is happening.

Namratha, the rice is very aromatic and gives the real feel of having a biryani.

Sreelu, mace is the outer coating of nutmeg. see this
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mace_%28spice%29

Sharmi said...

Musical, does you samba rice have an aroma? I dont know if they export this rice. I got some from India.
BTW, Ya all are safe. hope every thig changes for good. Now India is becoming famous for Bomb blasts.

Nz, its good to know all are safe. Now on hyderabadis will get scared to go to places like parks and movie halls.

Anh said...

Sharmi. Your biryani makes me drool. Hum, I wish I could have a taste.

Anonymous said...

One pot rice always comes to my rescue during busy days. Can I substitute basmathi to samba rice?

FH said...

I read about this Samba rice in a cookbook but I have never used it before.Let me see if I get it in the Indian store.Biryani looks delicious, rice looks short grained than Basmati, interesting!:)

Sig said...

That is a good lookin biryani Sharmi... I didn't know about this rice or that is the popular choice for biryani in TN. Just the other day I had an argument with my mom, when she said there is a type of rice called Jeeraka (Cumin in Malayalam) Rice, I told her it is not a type of rice, but just cumin flavored rice. :). Guess moms always know better, huh? :)

Latha Narasimhan said...

Nice recipe sharmi! Yes biryani tastes good with Tamilnadu rice.

Manjula said...

Colorful pictures and a wonderful recipe.
I saw 'Jeera rice' in the Indian Stores. Is it same as the rice you used here?

Anonymous said...

hi... just wanted to say, i made your chana pindi and potato fry and they came out lovely...thanks for your recipes

SMN said...

Hey sharmi ver nice biryani recipe.. the way u hv described seems like what i get in Bangalore "Jeera Rice" very aromatic.. just like basmathi..
Must tell u nothin can beat Rice..it matters a lot..if i dont eat rice one single day i start carving for it Believe me! life Saver..

TBC said...

Nice entry for ur event;-)
I too have my entry waiting to be sent to you.Will do so tomorrow.
That's a goodlooking biryani

Raaga said...

lovely... I will try this :-)

Mansi said...

Perfect entry for the host!!

Sharmi said...

Lakshmi, sure you can substitute Basmati rice.

Asha, I didnt find it in the Indian store here.

Sig, Moms are always right. Experience makes them perfect.

Sharmi said...

Manjula, I cannot say if it the same. You have to see if it is basically imported from Tamil Nadu and is called biryani rice translated as Jeeraga samba.

Sharmi said...

Thanks Chitra, I will take is as a compliment!!

Swaruchy said...

wow this Biryani looks yummy Sharmi....This is one variation in the recipe I saw...sounds and looks great...will try it out :-)))

Richa said...

hey, biryani looks YUM, slurrrrp, always a fav :) the onion slices as u've displayed is a must have at my place too!

musical said...

Sharmi, glad to now that everyone is fine back home. The Samba rice i have not aromatic, but tastes really good. I got it from a specialized Indian store long ago. But i guess this is not seeragam Samba rice.

Viji said...

Sharmi I am coming over there. This is my favorite. Viji

Anonymous said...

hey this is different.i didn't know we have this variety also. it's nice will try.

timepass said...

Looks yummy

Menu Today said...

Hi Sharmi,
Biriyani looks nice !!!
I love this rice. My mother use this rice for variety rice.
last week I prepared biriyani with this rice. Thanks for sharing.

Anupama said...

Hi Sharmi,
Just saw your JFI Rice post and am really interested in participating. I love the logo and all the other photos of rice and rice fields .Your event will definitely be a hit.

archana said...

Biryani looks yum, my favorite :)

bha said...

Apt entry by the host....biriyani looks nice

Mandira said...

the biryani looks delectable sharmi, totally droolworthy!

Kribha said...

Veg Biryani looks so comforting. Wish I could have some right now. My mom also uses seeraga samba rice for both veg and chicken biryani's. I also prefer the flavor of this rice than basmathi rice. Unfortunately, I don't get it in Atlanta. Nice pictures.

TBC said...

Hey Sharmi,
I have sent you my entry for JFI. I hope you get it. It may be in your spam folder 'cos that's where all my mails usually go! :-(

Saju said...

that biryani looks wonderful. I can almost smell the aroma.
I also wanted to tell you to pop over to my blog as there is something for you there.

Cynthia said...

As always, Sharmi, your food is delicious.

Mansi said...

Hi Sharmi,

I've tagged you for a meme...check my blog for details and get ready to write your own!!:)

Chef Jeena said...

Lovely recipe Sharmi the rice looks real tasty I bet it is just as nice as basmati! Great pics Sharmi. :)

hiltonheadpopcorn said...

I just had my first INdian DIsh last night. I wish I could tell you what it was. But I am going to try a lot more!
Tom

Finla said...

I love all kind of rice dishes.
And just with a raita, then it is the best

Tee said...

How did I miss this post of yours!!! Your biryani is looking so tempting right now...i wish there was some way of taking it from the screen and enjoying it, that would also save me the trouble of cooking dinner tonight :) is seeraga samba rice sold as Jeera samba rice here?...i have seen this one in the indian store, but was not sure how it is, so did not buy it.

Radha said...

I can almost smell the aroma of that biryani....lovely picture :-)

Sia said...

i love one pot meals... never heard of Seeraga Samba. i will try to digg out more info.
will mail u my entry soon. photobucket site where i store my pics is under mainteinance:(

Suganya said...

Hi Sharmi....
This looks delish!.... Nice pictures...I love seeraga samba rice...Love this recipe...

Sharmi said...

Tee, ya I think it should be the same. Check out the aroma if possible before buying.

sunita said...

The biryani looks good...nice entry.

Unknown said...

hi sharmi....

Enticing recipe! Love Seeraga Samba....So Happy to see ur comments in my blog

Apple said...

Looks yummy n attractive Sharmi..Nice pics too

Anonymous said...

Hi..biryani looks nice...have not heard about this kind of rice though...

have also sent my JFI entry...

Retno Prihadana said...

What a wonderful and tasty dish!

sra said...

Sharmi, I don't know how I missed this post. I just bought a packet of Jeeraga Samba, it's called Chitti Mutyalu in Telugu. I wanted to send a second entry to JFI with this, but didn't find the recipe. I love the way it looks and feels in your palm.

Prema Sundar said...

My aunt used to make biriyani with seeraga samba rice and it has a unique taste and flavour that seems to be missing in biriyani rice. I have also tried preparing biriyani with this rice... it tastes great.
lovely recipe for biriyani.

Kajal said...

Yes this special type of rice called as Seeraga is perfect for Biryani. Looks very delicious my dear. If I am your neighbor than I have no tension for go out for different taste. Love you.:)))

SeeC said...

Look at the rice. Looks gorgeous.
yummy !

Prajusha said...

veg. biriyani looks delicious with raita.

Unknown said...

very good and easy making
vegetable biryani recipe