Malabar Chicken Biryani

The famed Malabar Chicken Biryani is made by layering an aromatic and herby chicken masala with fluffy rice, crunchy fried onions (birista), nuts, dried fruits and ghee in a large pot. This is then sealed and cooked slowly in steam (dum method) to get this incredibly aromatic and toothsome chicken biryani that is quite literally the stuff of legends. 

Biryani, a mixed rice and meat dish is probably the most popular dish in Indian cuisine. There are innumerable variations and methods of cooking something as simple as a pot of biryani, but the Malabar Chicken Biryani holds a special place in my heart.

There might not be any other dish that evokes as much passion and dedication in the hearts of Indians as the biryani. Everyone has a recipe that they swear by, and think is the absolute best. But the truth is that quite like the vast and diverse Indian landscape, biryani recipes can vary vastly over state lines or even cities. To name just a few, we have the Awadhi or Lucknawi biryani, Hyderabadi biryani, Ambur biryani, Chettinad biryani, Calcutta/Bengali biryani, Sindhi biryani, and a personal favorite, the Malabar biryani or Kozhikodan biryani. Opinions are also split along the lines of the favorite protein that goes in the biryani; whether it is chicken (murgh), gosht (mutton or goat), machchi (fish) or beef.

My adopted hometown of Kozhikode (Calicut) is known for many things. Amazing local cuisine, beautiful beaches, and a sense of unparalleled camaraderie that goes beyond economic and faith divisions. Calicut also boasts of a long and illustrious past that included a bustling trade in spices with Chinese, Arabs and later on, the Europeans. The local cuisine therefore is known for the sumptuous meat dishes that has Arab influences, and this chicken dum biryani is our crown jewel. Locals and visitors alike also wax eloquent about Kozhikodan halwa and chips (made with green plantain or ethakka), but those are subjects for another blog post.

Coming back to today’s recipe for Malabar or Kozhikodan biryani, the protein of choice is usually chicken. This is a pakki method of cooking biryani, in which the rice and meat are cooked separately, then layered and steamed to meld the flavors (dum cooking).

Malabar biryani is rich with a liberal use of ghee and aromatic with a medley of spices like cinnamon, cloves, cardamom and nutmeg, to name a few. Surprisingly, this biryani is not mouth-numbing “hot” but spicy in a good way. It does not include red chilies, either whole or in powder form. This deviation from a “typical” Indian recipe is what sets the Malabar biryani apart from the others.

The biryani has a few important components – the rice, chicken masala and garnishes, all of which must come together harmoniously to make an incredible pot of biryani. I will explain each of them in detail below. Except for the rice, all the other components can be prepped up to a day or two in advance.

Biryani Rice

Unlike other biryani recipes that use the long-grained basmati, the traditional choice for Malabar biryani is a thin, short variety of aromatic rice known as khaima or jeerakasala. It is similar to the jeeraka samba rice commonly used in Tamil and Sri Lankan biryanis. I usually end up using basmati rice though because I cannot find good-quality khaima in the US. So you can use whatever variety you have, either khaima, jeeraka samba or basmati. The rice is lightly toasted in ghee and then cooked in a liberal quantity of water until around 90% done. The extra water is then drained and the rice is cooled slightly. Unlike the absorption method of cooking, this method of cooking rice in an open pan in excess water and draining it like pasta will always give you fluffy, separate grains of cooked rice, which is very important in dum biryani recipes. (I also cook my everyday rice this way unless I am super lazy and decide to use my rice cooker instead).

Chicken Masala

The chicken is first cooked in onions, ginger, garlic, fresh cilantro, mint and green chilies (which adds the necessary heat and is customizable to suit your taste) and yogurt. Normally, tomatoes are not used, but some people do add them (but if you need to add tomatoes, make sure to reduce the amount of yogurt in the recipe). Bone-in pieces of chicken are preferred. If you are able to get it, a whole chicken cut into large-ish pieces is perfect for the biryani.

Garnishes – birista, nuts, raisins and herbs

Birista refers to thin, deep-fried slices of onion that is used to add flavor to the biryani. Birista can be made and stored to use in other dishes like pulaos, curries and soups as well. Cashew nuts and golden raisins fried in ghee and a smattering of fresh herbs (cilantro and mint) are also added to the biryani before cooking on dum.

Dum Method

The rice, chicken and garnishes are layered in a large, heavy-bottomed pot, then sealed, and cooked on a low flame so that the steam is formed inside and the different flavors are melded together beautifully. In the olden days, the pot’s lid would be sealed with a sticky dough. A Dutch oven tightly covered with aluminum foil will work too. If you are scared that the food might burn if you try to cook it on the stove top, you can also “bake” the biryani in the oven, to mimic the dum cooking. Ah, the comforts of modern life!

Here’s the recipe for my favorite Malabar Chicken Biryani.

Read through the recipe before beginning so that you can make sure that you have everything you need. It may seem like a lot of steps, but several of them can happen simultaneously, and the end result is so worth it!

Malabar Chicken Biryani

 

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Prep time

1 hour

Cook time

1 hour 30 mins

Total time

2 hours 30 mins

 

The famed Malabar Chicken Biryani is made by layering an aromatic and herby chicken masala with fluffy rice, crunchy fried onions (birista), nuts, dried fruits and ghee in a large pot. This is then sealed and cooked slowly in steam (dum method) to get this incredibly aromatic and toothsome chicken biryani that is quite literally the stuff of legends.

Author: Anjana Devasahayam

Recipe type: Main, Entree

Cuisine: Indian

Serves: 6-8

You will need:

For biryani masala,

• Cinnamon - Two 2” sticks
• Cloves - 6-8
• Cardamom pods - 5-6
• Mace - a small piece (dried skin of nutmeg)
• Nutmeg - a small piece, around ½ tsp (whole, not powdered)
• Star anise - 1, small
• Black peppercorns - 2 tsp
• Cumin seeds - 2 tsp
• Fennel seeds - 1 tsp
• Khus khus (white poppy seeds) - 1 tbsp

For marinating chicken,

• Whole chicken - 3½ - 4 lbs, skin removed
• Yogurt - ½ cup
• Turmeric powder - ½ tsp
• Biryani masala - 4 tsp
• Salt - 2 tsp
• Lemon juice - 1 tbsp
• Oil - 2 tbsp

For chicken masala,

• Oil - ⅓ cup
• Red onions - 3 large, very thinly sliced
• Ginger-garlic paste - 2 tbsp, heaped
• Cilantro leaves - 1 bunch, around 1 packed cupful
• Mint leaves - ⅓ cup
• Green chilies - 6 (add more if you like it spicy)
• Biryani masala - 1 tbsp
• Water - 1 cup
• Salt - to taste

For the rice,

• Biryani rice - 3 cups (basmati, khaima or jeeraka samba varieties)
• Ghee - 3 tbsp, divided
• Cinnamon - 1” stick
• Cloves - 3
• Cardamom pods - 3
• Dried bay leaves - 3
• Water - 6 cups
• Salt - to taste
• Lemon juice - 1 tbsp

How to:

1. Biryani Masala: Add all the biryani masala ingredients to a large skillet and roast gently on low heat until fragrant. Cool and grind to a semi-fine powder. Store in an airtight bottle until needed. You can easily scale the recipe up to make a large batch of this masala.
2. Chicken Masala: Cut up the chicken into large pieces. Wash in water and drain water completely.
3. In a large bowl, rub the chicken liberally with the marinade ingredients. Cover tightly with lid and refrigerate for a couple of hours or overnight, if possible. Take the chicken out and bring to room temperature before preparing the chicken masala.
4. For chicken masala, make sure you have all the ingredients on hand before starting. Make a paste of cilantro, mint and green chilies by grinding with a little water. Set aside.
5. Heat oil in a large, thick-bottomed pan like a Dutch oven or kadhai. Add onions and saute until lightly browned. This will take a while because we have a lot of onions, but keep stirring once in a while to prevent onions from burning or sticking to the bottom.
6. Then add the ginger-garlic paste and saute until the raw smell goes away. Keep stirring and saute until onions are fully browned.
7. Now add the prepared cilantro-mint-chili paste and mix well. Stir and cook until the mixture is thickened and dark. Now, the base for our chicken masala is done.
8. Add the chicken pieces in a single layer and cook for a couple of minutes per side to seal the juices.
9. Add biryani masala and the rest of the marinade. Stir to combine everything well and cook for 5 more minutes.
10. Add water and salt to taste. Reduce heat once the curry comes to a gentle boil, cover and let it cook until the chicken is tender, around 20-30 minutes or more, depending on the size of the pieces. Keep stirring the curry once in a while.
11. Open the lid and thicken the gravy to your liking. Taste and adjust seasoning. The chicken masala can be prepared a day or two in advance and refrigerated until needed.
12. Biryani Rice: While the chicken is cooking away, you can start on the rice. Wash rice well in cold water 2-3 times or until the water runs clear. Drain rice in a sieve.
13. Heat 2 tbsp ghee in a large skillet. Add the drained rice and toast on medium heat, stirring constantly. All the rice should be nicely coated with ghee. Remove from heat and set aside.
14. Place a large pan on medium heat and heat 1 tbsp of ghee. Add cinnamon, cloves, cardamom and bay leaves and fry them lightly.
15. Now add water, salt and lemon juice. Bring to a boil and add the toasted rice. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook until rice is almost done, but not mushy.
16. Drain rice immediately and discard the cooking liquid. Fluff rice gently and spread on a large platter or baking sheet to cool slightly.
17. Garnishes: Heat oil in a pan. Add cashew nuts and raisins and fry until raisins are puffy and cashew nuts are golden. Remove with a slotted spoon to a bowl and set aside.
18. In the same oil, fry the sliced onions until fully browned. Drain onto a paper towel lined plate. As it cools, the onions will crisp up. The fried onions or birista can be made and stored several days ahead.
19. Dum Cooking: Select a deep, thick-bottomed pan like a Dutch oven or pressure cooker. Make sure the pan is oven-safe if you decide to use the oven for dum cooking the biryani.
20. Spread a tablespoon of ghee in the bottom, and then a thin layer of chicken gravy in the pan. Spread half of the rice on top. Arrange the chicken pieces on top along with some of the gravy. Sprinkle half of the garnishes (fried onions, nuts, raisins, chopped cilantro and mint leaves) on the chicken. Spread the rest of the rice on top. Sprinkle the rest of the garnishes over the rice. Sprinkle a teaspoon of biryani masala powder, if you have any left over. Dollop the last tablespoon of ghee on top.
21. Cover the pan tightly with foil, then with a heavy lid. Cook biryani on low heat placing the pan over a heat diffuser for 20 minutes. Or you can bake for 20 minutes in an oven that has been pre-heated to 325 deg.F.
22. Serving: Let the prepared biryani sit for 10 minutes before removing the lid. Gently fluff the biryani to combine everything together. Serve with sides like raita, chutneys, pickles, pappads, etc. The chicken biryani is usually served with a boiled egg on top.

Notes:

1. I have made my own biryani masala or garam masala here, but you can use store-bought ones too. You can easily make a large batch of masala for a few rounds of biryani-making.

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Enjoy this lovely chicken dum biryani on a special day or any time you feel like indulging in something special!

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