Biryani in a Mug | Dum Biryani

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BIRYANI IN A MUG

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 60 minutes

Serves: 5

BIRYANI IN A MUG
Ingredients
For the Veggie-Spice
1 cup of mixed vegetables (I have used some shredded carrots, string beans, cauliflower and paneer and
sliced green bell peppers)
1/4 cup sliced onions
1/2 cup yogurt
4 tbsp oil
1 tsp ginger-garlic paste
2 tbsp Biryani masala
1 tbsp red chili powder
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp garam masala
Salt to taste
For Rice
1 cup long grain rice (preferably Basmati)

Water to boil cook rice

1 tsp of oil
1 bay leaf
1 petal of star anise
1 inch of cinnamon
1 tsp cumin seeds (jeera)
Pinch of salt
For Dough
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
Pinch of salt
1/4 tsp baking powder
Pinch of baking soda
1 tbsp warm milk
Water to knead the dough
For optional garnish
Pinch of saffron soaked in 2 tbsp warm milk
Golden fried onions
Chopped mint leaves
Directions
1.Mix all the ingredients for the dough in a bowl, add water in small quantities and knead it into tight
dough.
2.Cover and set aside.
3.Heat 1 tsp oil in a pot. This is to help roast spices a well as to help prevent the rice from sticking to
each other.
4. Add the whole spices (listed under ingredients for rice) and saut for 1/2 a min.
5.Add in the long grain rice; mix the rice well so that all the grains are coated well with oil.
6.Add water (be liberal since we will be straining the rice later); cover and cook.
7.Heat 4 tbsp oil in another pan, add the sliced onions.
8.Saut for a min and then add the cup of mixed vegetables in. Saut for about 3-4 min. We want the
vegetables only half done. Take a bite off one of them; they should be cooked but have a crunch.
9.Add ginger-garlic paste & the powdered spices mentioned in the list for veggie-spice mix and saut
for a min or two.
10.Lower the heat; add the yogurt in and mix well. Cook for another minute or two. We do not want the
spices having a raw smell/taste.
11.While you are cooking the veggie-spice mixture, do keep an eye on the rice that is cooking.
12.When the rice is almost done (check the picture), turn off the heat. Strain the rice and set aside.
13.Fill alternate layers of rice and veggie-spice mixture into the mug. The topmost layer has to be rice.
My coffee mugs accommodated two layers of each (which was just the right size to serve).
14.I was able to fill about 5 mugs with this recipe (may be 5 1/2). Garnish the rice with the saffron milk
and a strand of saffron, fried onions and chopped mint leaves.
15.Divide the dough into small portions, roll them out into rounds.
16.Seal the mugs with the dough. I topped the seals with some minced garlic and cilantro which is
completely optional. I thought they will look fancier and you get a bonus naan once you are done
baking
17. Transfer the mugs into a preheated oven and bake at 350F/180C for about 20-30 min.

18.Serve Hot with a side of Raita (yogurt-vegetable mixture)

My Take:
I rolled out the dough discs for the seal very thin which made the cover quite crisp once the baking was
done. If you like it that way, go ahead. I would have preferred them a little more thinker; closer to a
naan/Indian flat bread texture.
If you do roll out the dough thicker, you might have to bake for a longer time.
If you do not have mint leaves for garnish, you could substitute with basil or cilantro both of which
would taste great.