Introduction:

I love biryani, and one day I thought, why not try it with mushrooms? I had never made Mushroom Biryani before, so I decided to try it in Hyderabadi style. I started by soaking some good old basmati rice. The grains looked yellow and long, which means they were aged and perfect for biryani. I washed the rice three to four times and soaked it for at least one hour. Then I made my own biryani masala by lightly roasting whole spices like bay leaf, star anise, cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, black pepper, coriander seeds, shahi jeera, and stone flower. I made a powder from these spices after cooling them down. As I started cooking, the smell in the kitchen was so nice, I knew this biryani was going to be something really tasty.

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Ingredients of Mushroom Biryani

Portion servings: 5–6 pax
Preparation time: 15 mins
Cooking time: 60 mins

Basmati Rice:

• Basmati rice – 2 cups

For Potli:

• Green cardamom – 5 pcs
• Bayleaf – 3 pcs
• Black cardamom – 4 pcs
• Cloves – 6-7 pcs
• Jeera – ½ tsp
• Water – as needed
• Mint leaves – 8-9 pcs
• Ghee – 1 tbsp
• Salt – 1 tbsp

For Biryani Masala:

• Bayleaf – 2-3 pcs
• Jeera – 1 tbsp
• Coriander seeds – 1 tbsp
• Cloves – 8-9 pcs
• Black pepper – 10-12 pcs
• Nutmeg – ½ pc
• Mace – 1 pc
• Star anise – 1 pc
• Cinnamon – ½ inch
• Stone flower – 1 tbsp
• Black cardamom – 2 pcs
• Green cardamom – 1 pc

For Jhol (Saffron Milk):

• Milk – ½ cup
• Saffron – 18-20 strands

For Mushroom Marination:

• Mushroom – 400 gms
• Salt – ½ tbsp
• Turmeric powder – ½ tsp
• Red chilli powder – ½ tsp
• Biryani masala – ½ tsp + ½ tsp
• Oil – 2 tbsp (from fried onions)
• Curd – 1½ cup
• Ginger julienne – 1 inch
• Mint leaves – 7-8 pcs
• Barista (fried onion) – ¼ cup
• Green chilli slits – 2 pcs

For Topping:

• Ginger julienne – ½ inch
• Mint leaves – 7-8 pcs
• Green chilli slits – 2 pcs
• Biryani masala – ¼ tsp
• Saffron milk (jhol) – 2 tbsp
• Barista – 1 tbsp
• Ghee – 1 tsp
• Fresh cream – 2 tbsp
• Ghee – 2 tsp

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Instructions of Mushroom Biryani

 

Step 1. Make Biryani Masala

Dry roast bayleaf, jeera, coriander seeds, cloves, black pepper, nutmeg, mace, star anise, cinnamon, stone flower, black and green cardamom on low flame until they give a nice smell. Let them cool fully, then grind them into a fine powder. Keep aside.

 

Step 2. Cook Rice with Potli

Wash and soak the basmati rice for 20–30 minutes. In a deep pan, boil water. Add the potli spices – green cardamom, bayleaf, black cardamom, cloves, and jeera – tied in cloth. Add salt, ghee, and mint leaves. Let water boil with all flavors. Then add soaked rice and cook till 70% done. Drain and keep aside. Throw the potli away.

 

Step 3. Make Saffron Milk (Jhol)

Warm ½ cup milk and add saffron strands. Let it soak for 10–15 minutes. This saffron milk will add flavor, color, and smell to the biryani during layering.

 

Step 4. Marinate Mushrooms

In a big bowl, add whole mushrooms. Do not cut them. Add salt, turmeric, red chilli powder, biryani masala, and oil from the fried onions. Then add curd, more biryani masala, ginger julienne, mint, green chilli slits, and barista. Mix all this gently with your hands. Let it sit for some minutes so that mushrooms soak all the taste.

 

Step 5. Set Base in Lagan

Grease a lagan (a heavy-bottomed cooking pot) with ghee. Pour the marinated mushroom mix into it. Spread it evenly. This is the base layer of the biryani.

 

Step 6. Add First Toppings

Sprinkle ginger julienne, mint leaves, green chilli slits, biryani masala, saffron milk, barista, and little ghee and cream on top of the mushroom mix.

 

Step 7. Layer with Rice

Now add half of the par-cooked rice over the mushroom mix. Spread it softly. Repeat the toppings again—ginger, mint, chillies, biryani masala, saffron milk, barista, cream, and ghee.

 

Step 8. Final Layer and Toppings

Add the rest of the rice on top. Again, sprinkle the toppings: saffron milk, barista, ginger, mint, green chilli, biryani masala, cream, and ghee. This helps flavor go in every layer.

 

Step 9. Cook on Dum

Seal the lagan with foil or dough so steam cannot escape. Put it on a tawa on low heat. Cook for 25–30 minutes on dum. The steam will slowly cook the mushrooms and mix all flavors nicely.

 

Step 10. Rest and Serve

After cooking, let the biryani rest for 10 minutes. Open the lid gently. Use a spoon to dig from the sides and bring mushroom and rice up together. Serve hot with raita or salad.

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About the Recipe:

This biryani is made with mushrooms, so it cooks faster than mutton or chicken biryani. Mushrooms only leave some water, and they cook quickly. That’s why we cook the rice about 50 to 60% first, and then finish it with the mushrooms on dum. To get everything ready, I also warmed a little milk and added saffron to it. This gives the biryani a beautiful color and taste. In another pot, I boiled water with whole spices, mint leaves, and ghee. I used this water to cook the rice halfway. While the rice was cooking, I cleaned the mushrooms properly and marinated them with salt, turmeric, red chili powder, some biryani masala, curd, ginger, mint leaves, fried onions (also called barista), and green chilies. I also added some oil that I had saved from frying the onions. That oil has lots of flavor. When the rice was 60% done, I added some ginger juliennes, mint, green chilies, biryani masala, saffron milk, fried onions, and ghee on the marinated mushrooms. Then I carefully added the rice on top. I handled the rice gently because half-cooked rice breaks easily. I repeated the same toppings again—cream, saffron milk, ghee, ginger, green chili, mint, barista, and biryani masala. At the end, I saved some water from the rice and poured a little on top for moisture. Then I sealed the pot with dough and placed it on high heat for 5 minutes with a tawa underneath. After that, I lowered the heat and cooked it for 12 to 13 minutes more. To check if it was done, I touched the lid with the back of my finger. If I couldn’t keep my finger there for more than a second, that meant it was hot enough and the biryani was ready. I also placed a heavy object on the lid so that the steam stays inside. After cooking, I opened the lid and left it for 5 to 7 minutes. Then I dug into the biryani gently from the side, bringing mushrooms and rice together. The rice was long and perfect, and the mushrooms were juicy. When I served it with a little ginger, mint, coriander, chili, and barista on top, it looked and smelled amazing. Trust me, this Mushroom Biryani can beat any other biryani!

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Cooking Tips:

• Use old basmati rice. You can tell it’s old if the grains look a bit yellow.
• Wash the rice 3–4 times and soak it for at least 1 hour.
• Lightly roast the whole spices. Do not over-roast or they will lose their smell.
• Save the oil from frying onions (barista) and use it in the mushroom marinade.
• Cook the rice only 50–60