Vegan Kofta Biryani

5 from 1 vote

This aromatic vegan kofta biryani is so delicious (and so easy!). Juicy vegan koftas, flavored with Indian spices and herbs, are layered and cooked with long-grain basmati rice.

Prep Time15

Cook Time30

Total Time45

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Indian

Diet: Gluten Free, Vegan, Vegetarian

Servings: servings

Calories: 478kcal

Author: Vaishali · Holy Cow Vegan

Equipment

Dutch oven or large pot (with lid)

Ingredients

For the basmati rice

1½ cups basmati rice (uncooked)
2 bay leaves
4 cloves
4 green cardamom pods
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
Salt to taste

For the biryani sauce

1 tablespoon avocado oil or any neutral oil
1 medium red onion (sliced thinly)
¼ cup fresh mint (finely chopped)
¼ cup cilantro (finely chopped. Replace with fresh dill if you don't like cilantro)
1 heaping tablespoon ginger garlic paste
1 tablespoon ground coriander
½ teaspoon turmeric
½ to 1 teaspoon Kashmiri chilli powder or cayenne or paprika
¼ cup tomato paste
1 heaping tablespoon biryani masala
1½ cups water (or vegetable stock)
24 vegan kofta balls
Salt to taste
½ cup fried onions (like French's)

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Cook the rice

Place basmati rice in a bowl and cover with water. Let stand for 30 minutes. Strain the rice and add it to a pot along with the whole spices--bay leaves, cloves, green cardamom and cumin seeds. Add salt to taste.
Add 1 ½ cups water and bring to a boil over medium high heat. Once the water has boiled, cover the rice with a lid, lower heat to a simmer, and let the rice cook 10 minutes without stirring. The cooked rice will look a bit underdone, but that's okay. It will continue to cook with the biryani sauce.

Make the sauce

While the rice is cooking, heat a tablespoon of oil in a large pot. Add sliced onions and ¼ teaspoon salt and saute until the onions brown.
Add the ginger garlic paste, cilantro and mint to the onions. Stir to mix. Add the tomato paste, ground coriander, Kashmiri chilli powder or cayenne or paprika, and tomato paste. Mix well and saute for a couple of minutes. Stir in the biryani masala.
Add 1 ½ cups water to the pot and mix to form a curry sauce. Bring the sauce to a boil and let it continue to simmer for a couple more minutes.
Add the vegan kofta meatballs to the sauce and stir them in. Check salt and add to taste. Turn off heat.

Assemble and cook kofta biryani

Layer the cooked basmati rice over the meatballs in an even layer. Scatter fried onions over the rice. I also like scattering a little bit of fresh or dried mint on top for more flavor.
Turn heat back on to low, cover the pot with a tight lid, and let the biryani cook, undisturbed, for 15 minutes. Let it continue to stand, without opening the lid, for 10 more minutes. Open, fluff the rice with a fork, and serve hot.

Nutrition