Ambur Biryani

Aambur, is a town in the district of Vellore in Northern Tamil Nadu. Its a signature Biryani is made originally from zeera sambha rice.

As the story goes, Ambur/Vaniyambadi biryani is a type of biryani cooked in neighboring towns of Ambur & Vaniyambadi in the Vellore district in the north-eastern part of Tamil Nadu, which has a high Muslim population. It was introduced by the Nawabs of Arcot who once ruled the place. There are also some stories that believe that Mughal soldiers once while they were down in the southern region of India, craved Biryani and ended up with this recipe as they had to make up their favorite dish with locally available spices and rice, hence the use of Zeera sambha.

The Ambur biryani is accompanied with ‘dalcha’, khatte baingan curry or raitha. It has a distinctive aroma and is considered light on the stomach. The usage of spice is moderate and curd is used as a gravy base. It also has a higher ratio of meat to rice.

Now continuing with my story, as most of you who follow me know that I love tryong new recipes of Biryani. So this one day, while watching an Indian TV channel, my hubby, Mr. Parveez  came across a restaurant serving Ambur Biryani and it happened to be a Friday morning, [every Friday without a miss, I cook biryani for dinner] and he facetimes me from his office while I am out for grocery shopping, “Baccha , can you look up for Ambur Biryani and make that today?”

While I am always happy to try something new, I also get upset if I have to rearrange my shopping list. To my surprise, when I found the recipe, it didn’t use any fancy ingredients and I basically had them all at home. Making the Biryani was so easy, that I looked through the recipe twice after being done to make sure I wasn’t missing on anything. Its definitely pleases the crowd and easy to make too. So, if you are a Biryani fan like me, this is a must try.

Print Recipe

Ambur Biryani

Ambur Biryani is a Mughlai dish from Aambur, a district in TamilNadu, in Southern part of India.

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Cuisine

Indian, Mughlai

Prep Time

10 minutes

Cook Time

40 minutes

Passive Time

45 minutes

Servings

people MetricUS Imperial

Ingredients

• 1 Kg Chicken with bones, cut to medium size pieces
• 1 cup Yogurt Preferably hung for 30 minutes
• 5 No. Tomatoes medium size, roughly chopped
• 2 tbsp Ginger garlic paste
• 1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder
• 1 cup Coriander leaves
• 6 No. cloves For the Yakhni
• 6 No. Green cardamom For the Yakhni
• 1 No. Cinnamon Medium size, For the Yakhni
• 1/2 tsp Shahi zeera For the Yakhni
• 2 No. Bay leaves For the Yakhni
• 5 No. Onion medium sized, Thinly sliced
• 7 No. Whole Red chilies soak for 10 minutes and grind to a paste
• 1/2 cup Oil
• 1 tbsp Ghee
• 7 No. Green chilies slit, more or less according to your taste
• 4.5 cups Long grain Basmati Rice Washed and soaked for 20 minutes
• 1/4 tsp Shahi zeera For the Rice
• 2 No. Star Anise For the Rice
• 1/4 tsp cardamom powder For the Rice
• 2 tbsp Kewra water For the Rice
• 1 tsp Salt More or less according to your taste

Cuisine Indian, Mughlai Prep Time 10 minutes Cook Time 40 minutes Passive Time 45 minutes Servings people MetricUS Imperial Ingredients 1 Kg Chicken with bones, cut to medium size pieces 1 cup Yogurt Preferably hung for 30 minutes 5 No. Tomatoes medium size, roughly chopped 2 tbsp Ginger garlic paste 1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder 1 cup Coriander leaves 6 No. cloves For the Yakhni 6 No. Green cardamom For the Yakhni 1 No. Cinnamon Medium size, For the Yakhni 1/2 tsp Shahi zeera For the Yakhni 2 No. Bay leaves For the Yakhni 5 No. Onion medium sized, Thinly sliced 7 No. Whole Red chilies soak for 10 minutes and grind to a paste 1/2 cup Oil 1 tbsp Ghee 7 No. Green chilies slit, more or less according to your taste 4.5 cups Long grain Basmati Rice Washed and soaked for 20 minutes 1/4 tsp Shahi zeera For the Rice 2 No. Star Anise For the Rice 1/4 tsp cardamom powder For the Rice 2 tbsp Kewra water For the Rice 1 tsp Salt More or less according to your taste

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Instructions

1. Add oil to a pan and add bay leaves, shahi zeera, cinnamon, cardamom and cloves. Add onions and cook till the onions turn golden/brown.

   
2. Take 2 TBSP of onions out for garnishing later. Add ginger garlic paste and saute for 2-3 mins.

   
3. Add the red chili paste. Saute for 2 minutes.

   
4. Add chicken to the pan and saute for 10 minutes.

   
5. Add turmeric and red chili and tomatoes. Add ½ cup water. Cook till the tomatoes have soften.

   
6. Add coriander leaves and green chilies to the pan, followed by salt.

   
7. Add yogurt to the pan. Cook till the oil separates. Turn off the gas. The yakhni is ready.

   
8. Take another pan. Add ghee. Add the cardamom powder, shahi zeera and star anise. As soon as the zeera starts crackling, add water. Add kewra water to the water and let the water come to a boil.

   
9. Meanwhile, drain the soaked rice. Once the water boils, add the rice to the pan. Add salt. Let the rice cook till its half done. It should be soft from the middle and a little hard from the sides, if you take a grain in hand. Drain the water.

   
10. Now, take the drained rice and mix it softly with the yakhni prepared. You should always take a spatula in each hand and mix it softly from the bottom.

    
11. Garnish it with the onions we kept on the side. The Biryani is ready for dumm. Cover the top with a cotton cloth and place the lid. Another way is to put a dough seal all around the pan so the steam doesn’t escape. If you are placing it in the oven, the oven needs to be pre heated at 350F/180C. Let it dumm for 45-50 mins. If you are placing it on a burner, you need to place the pan on a tava instead of placing it on naked fire. It needs to be on medium for the first 5-7 mins and then on low for another 30 mins.

    
12. The Biryani is ready. Serve with a side of raita or daalcha. Enjoy!!!