Kathal Biryani (Jackfruit) – Avadhi Delight

Biryani is a one of the best gift given to India from Mughals. Avadhi cuisines (Uttar Pradesh) are very much influenced by Mughal cuisines. Generally Biryani is associated with some non-veg ingredients like chicken & mutton, but trust me it can be equally delicious if we use veggies. Raw Jackfruit is a very good substitute to chicken/mutton as it is a fibrous and tasty. I have won hearts of my Vegetarian friends by serving this kathal biryani. It doesn’t need much time and effort but tastes heavenly.

Ingredients for kathal biryani:-

• 200 grams Basmati rice, soaked in water for 1 hour
• ½ Kg of raw / unripe jackfruit, peeled properly & cut  into cubes
• 2 onions chopped, 1 teaspoon ginger garlic paste, 1 tomato chopped, green chilies, mint and coriander leave and 2 bay leaves
• ½ teaspoon turmeric powder, 1 teaspoon of cumin and coriander powder each, 1 teaspoon cumin seed, 1 teaspoon red chili powder, ghee and refined oil.
• Roughly grinded -1 black cardamom, 3 green cardamoms, 2 cinnamon sticks, 5 cloves, 5 peppercorn

Preparation for kathal biryani :–

Apply some salt and turmeric to the diced jackfruit and deep fry them in a kadhai until they are golden brown in color.  Drain it with some absorbent paper and keep aside for some time.

Now reduce some oil from this kadhai and add chopped onion to it, once the onion turns pink add ginger garlic paste and tomato to it.  Now put turmeric, cumin & coriander powder to it. Cook it properly for 5 to 8 minutes. Now add red chili powder and salt according to your taste. Now add fried jackfruit to it sauté it for 5 minutes.

Now take a Handi, which is considered best utensil for cooking biryani, heat it up. Put generous amount of ghee in it, at least two teaspoon full. When ghee is hot add cumin seed, bay leave and grounded garam masala to it. Now you can hear the crackling sound of garam masaala and its aroma will your kitchen surroundings.

Now you need to drain basmati rice that you have soaked in water and add it to Handi. Add the kathal to it and stir.  Add some more salt and green chili to add some extra flavor.  Now add water to it. I always prefer to use hot water as it reduces the cooking time, but I leave it to your convenience. One more thing -always avoid stirring rice while making Pulao or Birayani as it breaks the long grain rice. Once the rice starts boiling, cover the handi with lid.

Cook it for 10 minutes on medium heat. Keep checking after every 5 minutes. Once the rice is cooked properly, garnish it with finely chopped coriander and mint leaves.

Chef’s Tip: Best way to enjoy kathal biryani is with Raita and green salad.  If there are some vegetarians in your guest list for dinner then I will surely recommend this dish to you. And my non-vegetarian friends please don’t hesitate to try this dish, I promise you that you won’t be disappointed after tasting it.