Awadhi Chicken Biryani recipe with step-by-step photos and a video recipe. Awadhi Chicken Biryani (also known as Lucknowi Chicken Biryani) is made with long grain basmati rice, meat, herbs, and mild spices. This biryani has subtle flavors and a sweet aroma. A popular recipe from Awadhi cuisine. This cuisine is the native cuisine of the city of Nawabs, Lucknow, in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.
Prep Time10 minutesmins
Cook Time40 minutesmins
Total Time50 minutesmins
Course: Main
Cuisine: Indian
Servings: 4people
Calories: 760kcal
Author: Preeti
Equipment
Heavy bottom pot or Wok
Ingredients
2cupsbasmati rice(aged, long-grain)
2onionssliced, to make birista (fried onions)
For making the chicken gravy
500gchicken ,cut into cubes
3onionssliced
2tablespoonginger garlic paste
salt to taste
¾cupthick curd/yogurt
1teaspoonred chili powder
¼teaspoongreen cardamom powder(elaichi powder)
¼teaspoonmace powder(javitri powder)
2green chilies
1 tablespoon Ghee + 2 tablespoon refined oil
Whole spices to cook the chicken gravy
1bay leaf
1teaspooncumin
1-inchcinnamon
4green cardamoms
5cloves
To cook biryani rice
1tablespoonghee/clarified butter
½teaspoonkewra water
½teaspoonrose water
salt to taste
Whole spices to cook the biryani rice
1bay leaf(Tej patta)
1-inchcinnamon(Dalchini)
5cloves(Laung)
3green cardamoms(Choti Elaichi)
For layering
saffron milkto prepare - add a pinch of saffron in ½ cup of warm milk
1teaspoonmace powder(Javitri powder)
1teaspooncardamom powder(Elaichi powder)
2-3dropskewra water
2-3dropsrose essence
2teaspoonghee/clarified butter
handful of mint leaves (optional)
Instructions
Preparations
Wash & soak the basmati rice in water for 30 minutes.
Make barista (fried onions). Heat oil in a deep bottomed pan over medium high heat. Fry the sliced onions until golden. Stir continuously, so that the onions are evenly brown.
Take it out and spread on a kitchen tissue. You can skip this step if you are using a store-bought birista.
Making the chicken gravy
Heat 1 tablespoon ghee (clarified butter) & 2 tablespoon refined oil in a deep bottom pan on medium heat.
Add the whole spices & sauté it for a minute.
Next, add the sliced onions & sauté until onions are golden.
Add the chicken pieces and cook until chicken changes its color from pink to white.
Now add ginger garlic paste & salt. Cook for 2 minutes until raw smell from ginger and garlic leaves.
Add curd & combine. Cook until the mixture comes to a boil.
Cover and let it cook on low-medium heat until oil starts to leave from the sides. It will take around 10 minutes. Stir it in between.
Add red chili powder, cardamom powder, mace powder & green chilies. Mix it well. Cover and cook until oil separates from the gravy.
Add 1 cup water & mix it well. Lower the heat and cook for 15-20 minutes. Or until the chicken is cooked.
Cooking the biryani rice
On another burner, heat 5 cups of water in a vessel on high heat. Add ghee/clarified butter, kewra water, rose water, whole spices & salt.
Let the water comes to a boil.
Drain the soaked basmati rice & keep it aside.
Next, add the basmati rice to the boiling water. Stir it gently.
Let the water comes to a boil. Press the rice grains. It will be soft but it will split when you press it with your fingers.
Remove from heat & drain the rice to a colander. Keep it aside.
Layering the chicken and rice
Check whether the chicken is cooked or not. Chicken should be completely cooked before we start layering. Remove from heat.
I have used the same pot to layer the biryani.
Remove the chicken pieces. You can see the oil in the base of the pan. This oil has all the flavors. Remove half of the oil from it. Put it in a bowl. We will use this oil later.
Let's start the layering. Make sure there is oil at the base before you start layering the biryani.
First layer half of the cooked rice.
Next, layer the cooked chicken.
Sprinkle some fried onions, mace powder, cardamom powder, kewra water, rose essence & ghee/clarified butter.
Layer the rest of the rice & spread it evenly.
Sprinkle some cardamom powder, mace powder, kewra water, rose essence, mint leaves(optional), fried onions, saffron milk, oil that we reserved after removing the chicken, & ghee/clarified butter.
Cooking the Lucknowi chicken biryani on Dum
Close the lid & seal with wheat flour dough.
Place an iron tawa/griddle on the burner & keep the biryani pot over it.
Cook on medium-high heat for 5 minutes.
Lower the heat and cook on the lowest heat for 10 minutes.
Remove from heat and keep it aside for 10 minutes.
Open the seal. Always remove the seal when you are ready to serve the biryani.
Serve Lucknowi biryani hot with raita, salad, and a lemon wedge
Video
Notes
Always soak basmati rice for 30 minutes before making biryani.
Cook the chicken on low heat and make sure it is completely cooked before you start layering the biryani.
Always make sure that the biryani rice should be 90% cooked and the rest 10% will be cooked on dum.
While cooking biryani on dum make sure you are using a heavy bottom pan.
Also, cook the biryani on the lowest heat during dum cooking.
If you do not want to seal it with the dough you can cover the pot with aluminum foil and cook on dum.
You can also place a heavy-fitting lid & then cook it on dum.
You can skip adding mint leaves as it is not added in Lucknowi biryani. I like to have some mint leaves in my biryani.