While most people might be eating a traditional meal of turkey and mashed potatoes for Thanksgiving, my family and I will be joining my mom’s side of the family to eat Indian food. This seems a little unusual to most people, but it’s part of our family traditions. Because of this, I wanted to share one of my favorite dishes we have for Thanksgiving: biryani.
Biryanis are rice dishes that have vegetables, meats, and/or paneer cheese. This recipe will be a vegetable biryani.
Sabz Biryani
Makes 4 to 6 servings
1 tablespoon Hyderabadi Ginger-Garlic Paste
4 cups steamed Basmati rice
¼ teaspoon saffron threads
¼ cup milk (any kind)
½ cup coarsely chopped mixed raw nuts, such as almonds, pistachios, cashews, and walnuts
2 tablespoons melted ghee (butter), or 1 tablespoon each ghee and peanut oil
2 (1-inch) sticks cinnamon
6 whole cloves
5 green cardamom pods, crushed lightly to break the skin
2 bay leaves
1 medium onion, cut in half lengthwise and thinly sliced
1-3 fresh green chile peppers, such as serrano, minced with seeds
3-4 cups washed and chopped mixed fresh vegetables, such as green beans, carrots, potatoes, eggplant, and peas
1 cup nonfat plain yogurt, whisked until smooth
1-2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
½ cup finely chopped fresh cilantro, including soft stems
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh mint leaves
½ teaspoon ground green cardamom seeds
Biryanis are rice dishes that have vegetables, meats, and/or paneer cheese. This recipe will be a vegetable biryani.
Sabz Biryani
Makes 4 to 6 servings
1 tablespoon Hyderabadi Ginger-Garlic Paste
4 cups steamed Basmati rice
¼ teaspoon saffron threads
¼ cup milk (any kind)
½ cup coarsely chopped mixed raw nuts, such as almonds, pistachios, cashews, and walnuts
2 tablespoons melted ghee (butter), or 1 tablespoon each ghee and peanut oil
2 (1-inch) sticks cinnamon
6 whole cloves
5 green cardamom pods, crushed lightly to break the skin
2 bay leaves
1 medium onion, cut in half lengthwise and thinly sliced
1-3 fresh green chile peppers, such as serrano, minced with seeds
3-4 cups washed and chopped mixed fresh vegetables, such as green beans, carrots, potatoes, eggplant, and peas
1 cup nonfat plain yogurt, whisked until smooth
1-2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
½ cup finely chopped fresh cilantro, including soft stems
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh mint leaves
½ teaspoon ground green cardamom seeds
- Prepare the ginger-garlic paste. Prepare the rice. Meanwhile, soak the saffron in milk for 30 minutes or longer. Place the nuts in a small skillet and dry-roast them over medium heat, stirring and shaking the pan, until golden, about 3 minutes. Reserve.
- Heat the ghee (or ghee and oil) in a large non-stick wok or saucepan over medium-high heat and add the cinnamon, cloves, cardamom pods, and bay leaves. Cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until browned, about 7 minutes. Mix in the ginger-garlic paste and green chile peppers and cook, stirring, 1 minute.
- Add the vegetables and cook, stirring, 5-7 minutes. Then add the yogurt, a little at a time, stirring constantly to prevent it from curdling, and cook until most of it is absorbed, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. To assemble the biryani, baste the bottom of a clear oven-safe dish with some of the juices from the vegetables and spread half the rice in the pan. Layer all the vegetables over the rice and top with the lime juice, cilantro, and mint. Then spread the remaining half of the rice over the vegetables.
- Drizzle the saffron milk over the rice and cover well with aluminum foil. Bake the rice until the grains are soft and the flavors are well-blended, about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven, fluff the rice lightly with a fork, garnish with the roasted nuts and cardamom seeds, serve, and enjoy!
