Vegetable Biryani (Easy and Authentic)

Authentic vegetable biryani

All Indian food is delicious, but there is one dish that makes us Indians drool in anticipation above all others: a biryani.

This opulent rice dish with layers of aromatic rice over a spicy curry sauce checks every box: it is rich, well-rounded and it delivers all the flavor your tastebuds ever craved in a single bite.

Biryani is a Muslim dish and although my mom did cook it, she did so very rarely. My college friend, Shahnaz, knowing how I adored it, would sometimes treat me to her mom's biryani, which we ate sitting cross-legged on the floor of her Mumbai apartment, stuffing it into our mouths with our fingers. The whole experience was delicious and decades later I still remember exactly how that biryani tasted.

Desi shares my love for biryani so when we'd eat out he would always order chicken or mutton biryani. When I became vegan I transitioned to veg biryani. But the dish I was served at restaurants was often one-dimensional, more like a pulao, which is a plainer rice dish, tasty but without the luxe, extravagant flavor of a biryani. So I created my own, very authentic-tasting vegan biryani recipe designed to be as alluring as the mutton or chicken biryani Shahnaz's mom made, without the meat or ghee or yogurt.

This is the vegetable biryani I make every couple of weeks now and Desi, who frequently requests it, has never said he misses the meat. It has a richly spiced sauce studded with tofu and vegetables layered under fluffy, cardamom-and-saffron-scented basmati rice. I am so excited to share it with you!

This is also the biryani recipe that spun off the half a dozen or so vegan biryani recipes I've shared with you over the years, including vegan keema biryani, vegan dum aloo biryani, and mushroom biryani. The way I ensure it tastes as authentic as possible is by closely following the ingredients and method for making a Hyderabadi biryani, which is one of the best biryanis you can eat in India. A few thoughtful substitutions for the non-vegan ingredients ensures there is no loss in flavor or texture. You can make this dish without tofu but the tofu adds protein back to the dish.

I designed this biryani so it's really easy, even for a diligent beginner who follows the recipe. You will need to cook the rice and the sauce separately before you put them together and steam them one last time, but the whole process is straightforward and easy. There are so many recipes on the web that cook the rice along with the veggies and while that might appear easier you wouldn't be making a biryani - you'd be making a pulao.

Also be sure to use a good quality biryani masala for the best flavor!

If you are a seasoned cook, you might appreciate the tips and tricks I share below to cook this iconic dish in record time with no compromise on flavor. The recipe is gluten-free and if you are soy-free or nut-free, see the FAQs below for small tweaks. Here's how you make it.

My top tips

• Soak the rice for 30 minutes, no more, no less. The longer the rice soaks, the softer it will get and the less time you will need to cook it. Rice soaked 30 minutes on the dot will result in long, perfectly cooked and aromatic grains of rice. If you soak the rice longer you will get mushier biryani.
• Don't add leafy greens to biryani. Leafy greens are delicious in recipes like palak paneer but they will dilute the flavor of biryani. The only greens in this recipe should be the herbs like mint, dill and cilantro. I have suggestions for other veggies you can add to veg biryani in the recipe FAQs below.
• Serve biryani correctly. Don't just scrape off the top of a biryani with a serving spoon - dig all the way to a bottom with the spoon and lift out the rice along with the curry sauce and veggies for each serving.
• Use a good quality biryani masala. You can buy biryani masala at the store but making your own is so easy. I have a fantastic homemade biryani masala recipe that takes minutes to make and will reward you with the best tasting biryani you ever ate.

How to make vegetable biryani

Soak saffron

• Soak the saffron strands in ¼ cup non-dairy milk. I like doing this at the beginning of the recipe so the saffron strands have time to infuse their color into the milk. This saffron milk, scattered over rice, creates lovely streaks of yellow rice that mingle with the white grains. This gives the biryani an authentic, restaurant-style look.

Soak and cook rice

• Place the rice in a colander or strainer and wash it under running water until the water runs clear. This removes some of the starch clinging to the grains, which can cause rice grains to stick together. Place the rice in a bowl and cover it with an inch of water. Let it stand 30 minutes. I work on the biryani sauce while the rice is standing.
• Strain the rice after 30 minutes.

• Bring a large pot of salted water to boil with bay leaves, cloves, cinnamon stick, cardamom pods, and caraway seeds. Adding spices to the water infuses the water, and the rice, with more flavor. When the water is at a rolling boil, add the drained rice.
• Cook the rice for 6-7 minutes until the rice is about 80 percent done--tender but with a good bite to it still.

• Strain the rice in a colander and rinse it immediately in cool water to stop the rice from cooking further in the steam it releases. Set aside.

Make biryani sauce

• Heat oil in a large Dutch oven or large pot with a tight-fitting lid. Add the caraway seeds, cloves and cardamom.

• Add the carrots, potatoes and squash to the pot followed by the ginger garlic paste, salt and mix. It's good to give these veggies a head start because they will take longer to cook than mushrooms and bell peppers. Cover and cook the veggies for 5 minutes or until they are almost cooked. Stir the veggies frequently to ensure nothing sticks to the bottom of the pot.

• Add the bell peppers and mushrooms and mix. Cover and continue cooking another five minutes.

• Add the herbs--cilantro, dried mint and dried dill. Mix them into the veggies. These strongly scented herbs will add wonderful flavor and umami but you won't really be able to tell these flavors apart while eating.

• Add the vegan yogurt, ground coriander and cayenne or paprika to the pot and mix them in. Yogurt is used to add moisture and richness to a biryani sauce. If you don't have yogurt, blend ½ cup cashews with one cup water and the juice of a lemon.

• Stir in half the fried onions, raw cashews and biryani masala spice blend. Mix everything together.

• Add in the tofu, if using, and mix it in. Add a cup of water to the pot and stir it all together to make the biryani sauce. When masala comes to a boil, check salt and add more as needed. Turn off heat.

Assemble the vegetable biryani

• Scatter the cooked rice over the masala and spread it in an even layer. Sprinkle the reserved saffron milk over the rice followed by a bit of fresh or dried mint, a few pinches of biryani masala and the remaining fried onions.
• Cover the pot with a tight lid and cook over high heat for five minutes. Turn the heat to low and continue cooking 10 more minutes. This method is called "dum" in India - it's a slow-cooking method that allows the flavors in the biryani to mingle and merge via the steam.
• Let the biryani stand 10 minutes, uncovered, before serving. Don't be tempted to peek early - the rice has to continue steaming for a bit after the heat is turned off.