Ambur Biryani Recipe (With Mushrooms)

Preparing red chilli paste

1. Firstly rinse and then soak 4 to 5 dry red chilies in hot water for 20 to 30 minutes. Cover and keep aside. If you prefer you can remove the seeds before soaking them.
2. After the red chilies have softened, place them in a small grinder jar. Add 1 to 2 tablespoons of the soaked water.
3. Grind or blend to a smooth paste. Keep the red chili paste aside.

Cooking rice

1. When you keep the red chilies for soaking, then also rinse 1 heaped cup seeraga samba rice in water first. Then soak in enough water for 20 to 30 minutes. Meanwhile, when the red chilies and rice are soaking, prep the other ingredients like cleaning and chopping mushrooms, onions and tomatoes etc.
2. After 20 to 30 minutes, drain the water from the rice and keep aside.
3. Also bring 3.5 cups of water to a boil in a pan. When the water comes to a boil, add tej patta, green cardamom, clove, cinnamon and salt.
4. Bring the water to a rolling boil and add the soaked rice.
5. Do not reduce the heat and let the rice cook on medium to high heat. Cook the rice without covering the pan with any lid.
6. Once the rice is ¾th cooked, then switch off the heat. The rice has to have some bite in the center when you eat it.
7. Strain the rice in a colander. You can even rinse the rice in running water, so that they stop cooking. Keep the cooked rice aside.

Making gravy for Ambur Biryani

1. In another pan heat 3 tablespoons oil. Keep the heat to a low and then add tej patta, green cardamoms, cloves and cinnamon.
2. When the spices splutter and become fragrant, then add thinly sliced onions.
3. Saute the onions on medium heat. Stir often while sauteing them for even cooking.
4. When the onions start becoming golden, then add ginger-garlic paste.
5. Stir and saute for a few seconds or till the raw aroma of ginger and garlic goes away.
6. Next add chopped tomatoes and saute them for a minute.
7. Then add chopped mint leaves and chopped coriander leaves. Mix well.
8. Now add 2 cups of sliced or chopped mushrooms. Mix the mushrooms with the rest of the masala.
9. Keep the heat to a low or sim. Then add fresh curd. Quickly stir the curd while you add it.
10. Next add turmeric powder and coriander powder. If you want then you can skip adding turmeric powder and coriander powder.
11. Then add the ground red chilli paste. Mix very well.
12. Add ½ cup water. Stir and mix well.
13. Season with salt as per taste. Mix again. Check the taste of the liquid and it should taste slightly salty.
14. Cover the pan with its lid and simmer the gravy on a medium heat till the mushrooms are cooked. This takes about 7 to 8 minutes on a low to medium heat.
15. You should see some oil specks floating on top and the gravy will also reduce a bit.

Assembling and layering ambur star biryani

1. Now in the same pan which has mushroom gravy, add the cooked rice. You can prepare two layers or four layers of the rice and gravy.
2. Seal the pan with an aluminium foil. Also heat a tawa on a low heat for 5 minutes.

Dum cooking ambur biryani

1. Place the lid on the pan. Then keep the pan on the hot tawa or skillet and dum cook on a low heat for 30 to 35 minutes.
2. If baking – then bake the ambur biryani at 180 degrees celsius in a preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes. Please remember to use an oven proof glass utensil like the pyrex bowl for baking in the oven. You will have to assemble the biryani as mentioned above in the oven proof utensil. Cover with aluminium foil and then bake.
3. Give a resting time of 5 to 7 minutes and then serve the ambur star biryani. There should be no gravy or liquid at the bottom of the pan. If you see some gravy in the biryani, then continue to dum cook for some more minutes.
4. Serve Ambur star biryani hot or warm with onion-tomato raita or onion raita or plain yogurt.