Lucknowi or Awadhi biryani comes from the nawabi kitchens of Lucknow, where cooks perfected the pukki style: meat and rice cooked separately and then layered and finished on dum. It is the opposite of the fiery Hyderabadi kacchi biryani, prized instead for restraint, perfume and the separate, delicately flavoured grains.
The chicken is first cooked in yogurt and whole spices to make a light, aromatic korma-like base with its own stock. Parboiled basmati is layered over it with saffron milk, kewra, rose water, fried onions and ghee, and the pot is sealed with dough. The result is subtle and fragrant, with gentle heat and moist, tender meat.
Biryani is the centrepiece of Eid, weddings and Sunday feasts, served with burani raita or a simple onion salad. In Lucknow, it would be followed by phirni or shahi tukda. The chicken base can be made a few hours ahead, and the rice parboiled just before layering, so the pot can go on dum while guests arrive. Opening the seal at the table, with the burst of saffron and kewra aroma, is part of the ritual.
At a glance
| Region | Uttar Pradesh |
|---|---|
| Cuisine | Awadhi |
| Diet | Non-vegetarian |
| Course | Rice |
| Prep time | 40 minutes |
| Cook time | 75 minutes |
| Total time | 115 minutes |
| Serves | 6 |
| Spice level | Medium |
| Difficulty | Hard |
| Gluten-free | Yes |
| Key ingredients | chicken / basmati rice / yogurt / saffron / fried onions |
Ingredients
For the chicken
- 1 kg chicken, curry cut
- 1 cup thick curd
- 1 1/2 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
- 1 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
- 1 tsp white pepper powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 4 tbsp ghee
- 4 green cardamom, 2 black cardamom, 6 cloves, 1 cinnamon stick, 1 blade mace, 2 bay leaves
- 1 cup fried onions (birista), crushed
- 1/2 tsp garam masala
- 1 cup water
For the rice
- 2 1/2 cups aged basmati rice, soaked 30 minutes
- 1 tbsp salt
- 2 green cardamom, 4 cloves, 1 bay leaf, 1 tsp shahi jeera
For layering
- A generous pinch of saffron in 1/4 cup warm milk
- 1 tsp kewra water
- 1/2 tsp rose water
- 3 tbsp ghee
- 1/2 cup fried onions
- 2 tbsp chopped mint
- Atta dough to seal the lid
Method
- Marinate chicken with curd, ginger-garlic paste, chilli powder, white pepper and salt for at least 1 hour.
- Heat ghee in a heavy biryani pot on medium. Add the whole spices and let them crackle for 30 seconds.
- Add the chicken with its marinade and the crushed fried onions. Cook on medium-high for 10 minutes, stirring, then add water, cover and simmer 15 minutes until the chicken is almost cooked and the gravy reduced to about 1 cup. Stir in garam masala.
- Meanwhile bring 3 litres of water to a rolling boil with salt and the rice spices. Add the drained rice and cook 6 to 7 minutes until 70 percent done – the grain should break with a firm white centre. Drain.
- Spread the rice over the chicken in an even layer. Drizzle with saffron milk, kewra, rose water and melted ghee, and scatter fried onions and mint.
- Cover with the lid and seal the edge with a rope of atta dough.
- Place the pot on a tawa over high heat for 5 minutes, then lower to the minimum and cook on dum for 25 minutes.
- Rest 10 minutes off the heat before breaking the seal. Serve by scooping from the side so each portion has rice and chicken.
Tips
- Parboiling the rice correctly is the crucial step; overcooked rice turns mushy on dum.
- Fry your own onions thin and slowly until deep golden; they flavour both the chicken and the rice.
- The salt in the boiling water should taste like sea water – the rice gets no other seasoning.
Serve with
Burani raita, onion-cucumber salad and mirchi ka salan or a light korma.