Goat Biryani Recipe

One of our dear old family friends begged me to teach her how to make biryani. This week, she came over and I shared our treasured family recipe. I've learned several variations of biryani over the years, but this goat meat version from Pali Apa's (Lulu's aunt) is my favorite. As a bonus, it's probably the easiest to start with when learning how to make biryani. The key to the dish is the freshness of the meat, but it's also important that the rice is flavorful and fluffy and each grain separates easily. 

This might be surprising, but biryani is probably one of the most praised and popular Indian dishes in Vietnam. There is a small Indian expat community in Saigon, and they have been selling this dish as street food for many years. Love for this dish outside of the subcontinent is not just limited to Vietnam. Many times when we have company, I've been asked how to make this traditional Hyderabadi (the city where my husband's family is from) delicacy. So if you've been searching for a good biryani recipe, give this a try, and if you've never had it before, you're in for a treat.

Kheer Recipe (Indian Rice Pudding)

Kheer is saffron-flavored rice pudding. The difference from the Western version is that the ratio of rice to milk is a lot lower. Only a few handfuls of rice grains are needed. The rice is simmered in a large quantity of milk until the grains burst and become very starchy.

Add a little sweetener and the dish is almost done. The last touch is saffron, which gives that beautiful yellow hut to the rice pudding.

Indian Style Black Eyed Pea Rice (Pulao Recipe)

Feeding a vegetarian crowd isn't as difficult as it may seem. I usually pair a legume with rice, which is the perfect balance for a vegetarian diet. I've been getting fresh black-eyed peas (also known as "cow peas") at the local stand, and instead of serving them as a boring bean salad, I incorporated them in a rice dish, flavored with Indian spices. I've made this dish in the past; it's called "pulao". Our family loves the burnt rice at the bottom of the pot, called "kurchan".

First, I sautéed black-eyed peas in onions, garlic, cider vinegar and red chili powder. They're very firm, so they take slightly longer to cook then the parboiled dried variety. I let them simmer until tender, then finished cooking them with steamed basmati rice and baby spinach.

Pulao Recipe (Indian Vegetable Rice)

Pulao is an Indian rice dish filled with sabji ("vegetables" in Urdu). In this version, I flavored the rice with only three vegetables: lima beans, carrots and green peas. Lima beans are packed with protein and are very filling. The combination of lima beans and rice makes a perfectly balanced meal for a vegetarian diet.

I served this one-dish meal family style with raita or chutney on the side. This weekend, we prepared a large pot and everything was gone at the end of lunch time! My favorite is the fried "burnt" rice at the bottom of the pot, called kurchan.

How to Cook Basmati Rice

Ah, basmati rice. I don't think there is a food that better represents the similarities and differences of Indian Subcontinent and East Asian cultures. Rice is the staple starch in both of these Asian regions, but the preparation couldn't be more different. In the Far East, sticky jasmine rice is typically prepared with every meal. Chopsticks are the utensil of choice, which helps explain the popularity of rice that can stay clumped together on the journey from the bowl to the mouth.

By contrast, the quality of cooked basmati rice is judged primarily by how separate the grains remain. Traditionally, people of the subcontinent eat with their hands, and the various dals and kormas do a great job of creating cohesion.

Preparing basmati rice at home is not nearly as challenging as it may seem, but as is the case with many simple dishes, precision and care are required. Like pasta, if it's cooked past "al dente", basmati rice will become mushy.

I didn't have much experience with basmati rice until I got married. After more than five years, I have not only learned how to make it, I have come to love it. In our home, we make both sticky Asian jasmine rice and Indian basmati rice everyday to satisfy the different palates. We typically eat it with dal, but the girls love to have basmati rice with a little butter and sumac. Sumac is a common Middle Eastern spice and has a deep reddish, purple color. You can see it sprinkled over the rice in the photos.

If you don't have well cooked basmati rice on a regular basis, you don't know what you're missing. I know that for a long time I didn't!