Biryani is one dish that everyone in my family loves. So when everyone was in the mood to have biryani. I decided to make it but I wanted to try out something new yet traditional and that’s when I remembered the Biryani recipe contest that recently took place on one of the most amazing food groups on Facebook.

The cover page of the group displayed the winner of the competition and that’s Ms. Sarita Bhat. I quickly decided to check out her recipe and I hit a jackpot. Her recipe was on Beary Biryani / Sultana Biryani from the Beary Community of Karnataka. (Honestly, it’s the name of the recipe itself that caught my attention.) She fondly calls the Beary Biryani as Sultana Biryani and there is an interesting story behind that, for she learned to make the Beary biryani from her dear friend Sultana who happens to be a great cook.

History about the Beary biryani:

Beary (also known as Byari) is a community concentrated mostly along the southwest coast of India i.e. in coastal Dakshina Kannada, Karnataka. It is an ethnic community that has its own unique traditions and distinct cultural identity. The Beary’s are mainly traders by profession and hold an important place among the other coastal Muslim communities.

The Beary Biryani is a specialty of the Beary Community and is also known as the cousin of the Mangalorean biryani.  Unlike the Mangalorean biryani, the Beary biryani has the subtle yet distinct flavor of fennel, coconut, and other spices like cloves, cinnamon, javitri, star anise, and poppy seeds.

Personally, I have witnessed the hospitality of the beary community on one of my recent trips to Karnataka. So trying out this dish became even more special.

SULTANA BIRYANI (Beary Muslim Style Biryani)

Ingredients:

Chicken – 1 Kg
Boiled Eggs – 3
Coriander & mint leaves – 1 Handful
Onion – 2 (thinly sliced)
Tomatoes – 2 (chopped)
Curd – 2 tbsp

Ghee + oil
Garam masala powder – 1 tsp

Masala Ingredients

Coriander Leaves – 1 bunch
Mint – 1 bunch
Green Chillies – 9 or according to your taste
Ginger – 1 piece
Garlic – 8 cloves
Cardamom – 4
Cumin – 2 tsp
Coriander seeds – 4tsp
Cinnamon – 1 small stick
Cloves – 4
Javitri- 1small
Cardamom-6
Star anise- 2 petals
Fennel Seeds- 1tsps
Peppercorns -1tsps

Coconut paste

Coconut – 1cup
Fennel seeds – 1tsp
Poppy seeds – 1tsp

* Grind all to a fine paste.

Garnishing

Fried onions- 2
Coriander leaves – ¼ bunch (Chopped)
Mint – ¼ bunch (Chopped)
Garam masala powder – 2tsp,

* Mix all together.
Rose water – 2 tsp

For Biryani Rice

Basmati Rice – 3 cups

Cardamom – 3
Cinnamon – 1 small stick
Cloves – 3
Fennel seed -2 tsp
Peppercorns- 1 tsp
Star-1 pcs
Green chili – 3 slits
Ghee -2 tbsp
Salt – to taste,

Method

• In a pan, fry onions till golden brown in 1 teaspoon ghee.

For the rice:

• In a big vessel, add water, spices, salt, ghee, and green chilies.
• After the water boils, add Rice and let it cook till it’s ¾ done.
• Then strain the water and cool it completely. Then strain the water and cool it completely.

Marination for the Chicken:

• Clean & cut chicken into small or medium size pieces.
• Apply lemon juice & Haldi to it and keep it aside.

For the Masala:

• Grind all the masala ingredients into a coarse paste.

Procedure for the Biryani:

• In a deep bottom dekchi, fry 2 thinly sliced onions till light brown.
• Then add the coarsely ground masala and fry till the raw smell goes out.
• Add Tomatoes & Curd fry again.
• Then add the marinated chicken, Coriander, mint, salt, and a little water. Let it cook and then adjust the taste as per your liking.
• Lastly, add Coconut paste and then cook it till it’s done.

Layering Biryani:

• In a heavy bottom vessel covered with Banana leaves, pour ghee and spread it all over the bottom of the vessel.
• Spread all the chicken pieces with the gravy.
• After that add a rice layer, then again spread chicken gravy and the boiled egg layer.
• Let the last layer of rice lightly spread by hand.
• Then put the garnish ingredients, along with rose water.
• Finally, cover it with banana leaves and aluminum foil. Cover it with the lid.

Tip: Take a kadhai and put it on gas. Keep the biryani vessel on top of the kadhai. Then increase the flame for 10mins & then put it on low flame for dum for about 15 mins. Don’t serve it immediately. Wait for 10mins. Serve with salan & Raita.

PS: A special Thank you to Ms.Sarita Bhat for permitting me to share the recipe with all. A bigger thank you to Ms.Sultana, for without you this wouldn’t have been possible.