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The Best Vegetarian Biryani

This biryani is packed with flavour, and fully vegan! My husband loves a biryani and this one is our go to. You're going to love it, and so will your guests!
Print Recipe
Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Course Dinner, Main Course, mains
Cuisine Indian, Pakistani
Servings 4 to 6 people

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!
Keyword biryani, chicken and rice, eid, indian, pakistani, ramadan, vegan, vegetarian