How to Make Paneer Dum Biryani

Another recipe for Paneer lovers is out. Love biryani but you’re a vegan? Not a fuss! Biryani can be enjoyed vegan as well. here in this recipe we’re going to use marinated paneer cubes which is layered with cooked rice and then dum cooked. The paneer cubes are cooked twice so that they don’t become chewy or hard. So just go through this recipe of Paneer Dum Biryani and enjoy the long weekend!

Image Source: cookingshooking

Also Read: How to Make: Mutton Dum Biryani

Ingredients:

For Fried Onions:

• 2 medium sized onions or 1 cup sliced onions
• 4 tbsp. oil
• For cooking rice:
• 1 cup basmati rice
• 4 cups water
• 1 tsp salt
• 1-inch cinnamon stick
• Bay leaf
• 2-3 cloves
• 2-3 green cardamoms
• 1/4th tsp Shahi jeera
• For Paneer Marination
• 250 gms paneer
• 8 tbsp. curd
• 1 tsp ginger paste
• 1 tsp garlic paste
• 2 green chillies
• 1 tbsp. coriander leaves, chopped
• ½ tbsp. mint leaves, chopped
• 1/4th tsp turmeric
• 1/4th tsp red chilli powder
• 1/4th tsp Garam masala
• 1/2 tsp coriander powder
• 1/4th tsp Shahi jeera
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• Salt as per taste
• Layering ingredients:
• 3 tbsp. milk
• Saffron strands
• 1 tbsp. ghee
• 1 tbsp. coriander leaves, chopped
• ½ tbsp. mint leaves, chopped

Also Read: Soya Veg Biryani for Rice Lovers!

How to make Paneer Dum Biryani?

For cooking the rice:

1.  Rinse the rice well in a bowl and then soak the rice in water for half an hour.
2.  Drain the rice and then keep it aside.
3.  Boil 4 cups of water in a bowl. Add the whole spices mentioned in the list above and add some salt.
4.  Add the rice but don’t stir it.
5.  Cook the rice on high flame.
6.  When the rice is 3/4th cooked then turn off the heat. Drain the rice and keep it aside covered it with a lid.

For Frying Onions

1.  Slice the onions finely and heat some oil in a pan. Add the sliced onions to the oil when the oil is hot.
2.  Sit and sauté the onions till they are golden. Add few pinches of salt. Keep stirring so that the onions don’t get burnt.
3.  Once they are all golden, remove them from the heat and keep them on a tissue paper. Keep them aside.

Also Read: How to Make: Nawabi Pulao

Marination and Layering

1.  Warm some milk on the gas and add the saffron strands to it. Stir and keep it aside for some time.
2.  Whisk some curd till it becomes smooth.
3.  Add the ginger paste, garlic paste, chopped green chillies, coriander powder and mint leaves and mix them well in the curd.
4.  Add the spices mentioned in the list. Add 1 tsp of lime juice.
5.  Add salt and then mix it again.
6.  Add the fried onions to the mixture and the paneer cubes. Mix the them well and then keep them aside for half an hour.

Layering and Cooking

1.  Add the oil to the pan and add the marinated paneer neatly in the pan.
2.  Add another layer of rice now on the paneer. So here we made two layers.
3.  Add the remaining fried onions on top of the rice layer. Add the chopped coriander leaves and mint leaves.
4.  Sprinkle the saffron flavoured milk.
5.  Similarly make the rest of the layer in the same sequence. You can make the layers as per the quantity of the mixture and the rice.
6.  Cover the pan with a moist cloth and place the lid.
7.  Cook for 5 minutes on medium flame first and then lower the flame.
8.  Cook it for 15 minutes. You can also use a preheated over for this at 180 degrees Celsius.
9.  Serve the Paneer Dum Biryani hot with raita and salad.

Also Read: Corn Fried Rice Recipe