Eid ul Fitr is a day of celebration, gratitude and coming together over food that has so much meaning. Families and communities gather together in joy, celebrating the end of Ramadan, a month of fasting, prayer, and spirituality. My husband has been vegan for eight years due to dietary reasons, and I’m always adapting the recipes he grew up with so he doesn’t have to miss out on the traditional flavours and warmth he grew up with. This is the best vegetarian biryani. It’s made with creamy Becel Vegan, it’s rich, aromatic and deeply satisfying. A dish fit for a king, and by using Becel Vegan, it becomes a dish everyone at the table can enjoy! Eid Mubarak from our family to yours!
How Does Vegetarian Biryani Taste?
Any time I develop a recipe from being animal based to vegan, I’m asked how the vegan version will taste. As someone who loves food, loves flavour, and is a bit of a perfectionist with how my meals turn out, I can promise you this vegetarian biryani will be loved by all!
I’ve included all the traditional biryani spices, coconut yogurt for just the right amount of tang, and Becel Vegan to add that buttery richness we all know and love.
For a spicier biryani, add more of the biryani masala, though I found 1/4 cup to be the sweet spot, and more chopped fresh green chilis. You may also add more dried red chilis to the whole spices, to be ground.
Vegetarian Biryani Ingredients
The majority of the ingredients used in this recipe can be easily found in stores. If you’re unable to find shah jeera or kewra water, check your local South Asian grocery store, or skip them altogether. You may add a few drops of rose water if that’s easier to find, I recommend 1/4 tsp max!
Shah jeera and Kewra water can also be found online, simply click the highlighted words to head to the link!
If you’re looking for Eid Recipes, you may like these!
Notes
Head to my instagram post, linked under the recipe, for a beautiful visual of how this dish turns out, and feel free to leave a comment below or send me a DM on instagram if you have any questions!
The Best Vegetarian Biryani
Ingredients
Fried Onions
- 3 medium yellow onions sliced thin, for frying
- 1 container Becel Vegan for frying the onions
Saffron Milk
- 2 Tbsp almond milk warmed slightly
- 1 tsp saffron crushed
Biryani Masala
- 1 Tbsp cumin seeds
- 1/2 Tbsp shah jeera
- 2 tsp fennel seeds
- 8-10 pods green cardamom
- 2 pods black cardamom
- 1 stick cinnamon about 3 inches, broken up
- 2 star anise
- 1/2 blade mace
- 2 large bay leaves
- 2-3 dry red chilis or more, to taste
- 1 dry kashmiri chili
Vegetable Masala
- 2 Tbsp Becel Vegan
- 3 large roma tomatoes roughly chopped
- 1 Tbsp freshly ground ginger
- 1.5 Tbsp freshly ground garlic
- 2-3 green chilis to taste
- 3 medium Yukon gold potatoes washed, peeled and cut into 1.5 inch pieces
- 1 1/2 cup cauliflower florets about 1/4 of a medium cauliflower
- 1/3 cup frozen green peas
- 1 large carrot peeled and cut into sticks
- 1/3 cup coconut yogurt
- 1/4 cup biryani masala
- 4 dried plums aka aloo Bukhara
- 1/4 cup fried onions from above
Rice
- 2 cups Sella, Marjan or Basmati Rice rinsed and soaked for one hour
- 1.5 Tbsp Becel Vegan
- 1 Tbsp salt
- 1.5 inch cinnamon stick
- 2 small bay leaves
- 1 whole green chili
- 3 green cardamom
Garnishes
- 3/4 cup fresh cilantro finely chopped
- 1/3 cup fresh mint finely chopped
- 1-2 lemons sliced
- 2 Tbsp pomegranate arils
- 1/2 tsp kewra water optional
Instructions
For the Fried Onions
- Heat the contents of one container of Becel Vegan in a large wok or kadahi
- Fry the onions in batches, being mindful not to overcrowd the wok. This gives the onions a nice crisp, and even colour.
- Stir the onions gently, and do not step away from the wok as you fry! They can go from golden to dark brown in the blink of an eye.
- Fry each batch until golden brown, about 7 minutes. Strain on a paper towel, and set aside.
For the Rice
- Rinse and soak the rice for at least 30 minutes, up to an hour.
- Fill a large pot with 8 cups of water.
- Add the whole spices and Becel Vegan.
- Bring the water to a boil, then add the strained rice.
- With the lid off, let the rice simmer on medium heat for about 7 minutes. Until the rice is about 90% cooked. To check: break a grain of rice in half, the outside will be softer while the inside just a little undercooked.
- Strain the rice well, and set aside.
For the Biryani Masala
- Roast all of the whole spices in a dry wok on medium heat, until fragrant, about 5 minutes.
- Remove from the wok and add to a spice grinder. You may add more or less of the chilis to the grinder, depending on your spice tolerance.
- Grind to a fine powder, set aside.
Tomato Masala
- Add 2 Tbsp of Becel Vegan to a large skillet on medium heat.
- Add the diced tomatoes and cook until the tomatoes have broken down.
- Add in the ginger, garlic, dry red chili, green chilis. To amp up the spice level, finely chop one or more green chilis before adding. To add just the fragrance of the chili, with minimal to no spice, add the chilis whole.
- Add in the coconut yogurt, biryani masala, dried plums and 1/4 cup of the fried onions.
- Next add in all of the vegetables, and mix to coat well.
- Set the stove to medium low, cover the skillet and cook until the vegetables are cooked through completely but still hold their shape. About 10-15 minutes.
Bring It All Together
- In the same pot used to cook the rice, add 1/2 of the rice. Cover the rice with the biryani masala, a handful of cilantro, half of the mint, 4-5 lemon slices, and 1/4 cup of fried onions.
- Layer the remaining rice over the masala, and sprinkle with cilantro, the remaining mint, fried onions, and the almond milk and saffron mixture.
- Save about 3 Tbsp of cilantro, 2-3 lemon slices, and 1/4 cup of fried onions for garnish after plating.
- Cover and steam on a very low medium for about 10 minutes, until the rice has cooked through completely.
- Drizzle over the kewra water once the biryani is ready, just before serving.
Plating
- Scoop the biryani out of the pot using a small plate, or wide spatula to help keep the rice grains intact. Scoop from the bottom, as opposed to the middle, so to capture the scented rice and masala mixture nicely.
- Plate onto your serving dish, garnish with fresh cilantro, fried onions, and pomegranate arils.
- Enjoy!