My Mutton Dum Biryani Recipe is a biryani recipe that is packed with flavours of the caramelized onions, curd and the spices. In this briyani the mutton is cooked and then layered with half cooked basmati rice, caramelized onions, saffron water, dry fruits, fresh coriander leaves, home made garam masala powder, ghee and fresh mint leaves.

Recipe:

Ingredients:

  • Fresh Goat Mutton (Lamb) – 1 kg.  Cleaned with water and drain all the water.  Keep it aside.
  • Basmati Rice (Long grain) – 3/4th kg.  Rinsed with water twice and soak in fresh water for atleast one hour.
  • Onion – 6 medium sized.  Cut into slices.
  • Tomato – 2 small sized.  Roughly chopped.
  • Curd or Yoghurt – 300 gms.  Whisked nicely.
  • Ginger and Garlic paste – 4 tbs.
  • Lime juice – 4 tbs.
  • Green Chilli – 2 pieces. Slit from middle.
  • Fresh Coriander leaves – Finely chopped – Two cups.
  • Fresh Mint leaves – Finely chopped – Half a cup.
  • Cashew nuts – one small cup.
  • Raisin (Kismis) – one small cup.
  • Kesar (Saffron) – 1 tbs.  Soaked in half a cup of warm water.
  • Fresh Haldi (Turmeric) – 3 inch size, finely chopped.  You can use 1 tbs of Haldi powder also if fresh haldi is not available.
  • Salt to taste.
  • Ghee – 4 tbs.
  • Cooking oil – 4 tbs.
  • Cooking oil (for deep frying Onions) – 6 tbs.  Use this same remaining oil to cook mutton after onions are fried.
  • Shahi Jeera (Carom seeds) – 1 tbs.
  • Jeera (Cummin) seeds – 1 tbs.
  • Tej patta (Bay leaves) – 4 leaves.
  • Chakri phool (Star Anise) -3 pieces.
  • Dal Chinni (Cinnamon stick) – 2 inch.
  • Kali Miri (Black pepper) – 8 to 10 seeds.
  • Dagad Phool (Black stone flower) – 1 inch piece.
  • Javitri (Mace) – 1 piece.
  • Jai Phal (Nutmeg) – Half a inch size.
  • Soaf (Fennil seeds) – 1 tbs.
  • Choti Elaichi (Green Cardamom) – 6 pieces.
  • Badi Elaichi (Black Cardamom) – 2 pieces.
  • Hot Red Chilli  – 4 pieces.
  • Kashmiri Red Chilli – 4 pieces.
  • Aamchur (Dried Raw Mango) – 1 inch piece.  You can use half tsp of dried raw mango powder if pieces are not available.
  • Dhaniya (Coriander) seeds – 2 tbs.
  • Dried Kasuri Methi (Fenugreek) leaves – 1 tbs.
  • Lawang (Cloves) – 6 pieces.
  • Methi dana (Fenugreek seeds) – half a tsp.
  • Garam masala powder – 2 tsp.
  • Milk – Half a cup to keep biryani moist.
  • Kewra water – Half tsp.
  • Rose water – Half tsp.

Method:

  • Take the mutton in a large mixing bowl.  Add 1 tsp of salt, half tsp of haldi powder, 1 tbs of lime juice, 1 tbs of ginger and garlic paste in to the mutton. Mix them well. Allow it to marinate for atleast 1 hour.
  • Take a deep frying kadai or pan.  Add 6 tbs of oil in to the kadai and heat it up.
  • Once the oil is hot, add half of the sliced onions in to the hot oil and deep fry it until it becomes golden brown.  Turn off the heat.  Remove the fried golden brown onions in a plate and keep it aside.
  • Take a large utensil to boil the basmati rice.  Add more than sufficient water to it and boil it.  Add one tej patta, 3 lawangs, 4 to 6 black pepper seeds, one inch of dal chini stick in to the hot water.  Add 1 tbs of cooking oil, 1 tsp of salt, 1 tsp of lime juice into the boiling water.  Add soaked basmati rice in to the hot water and mix it well once.  Allow it to boil and half cook the basmati rice. Once half cooked, drain all the water using a strainer or sieve.  Remove the dry spices added previously from the half boiled rice.  Keep it aside to cool down.
  • Take a large Kadai or Pan.  Add the remaining cooking oil used for fying onions, add 2 tsp of ghee and heat them up.
  • Once the oil/ghee is heated up, add jeera seeds in to the hot oil and allow it to crackle.
  • Add into the hot oil – chopped Fresh Haldi, 1 tsp of Salt, 2 Tej patta, Chakri phool, Dal Chinni, Kali Miri, Dagad Phool, Javitri, Jai Phal, Soaf, Choti Elaichi, Badi Elaichi,  Hot Red Chilli,  Kashmiri Red Chilli,  Aamchur, Dhaniya seeds, Lawang, Methi dana and mix them well with hot oil.  Fry them for a minute or so on medium flame.
  • Add remaining sliced onions in to the kadai with whole spices.  Mix it well. Keep stiring the onions on high flame and cook it until the onions turn golden brown.  
  • Add remaining ginger and garlic paste and mix it well.  Cook the ginger and garlic paste on high flame for 2 to 4 minutes.
  • Add chopped tomatoes.  Mix it well.  Cook the tomatoes on high flame until the pulp seperate from its skin.
  • Turn off the flame.  Remove this spice (masala) mixture in a plate and allow it to cool completely.  Once cooled, transfer this spice mixture in to the mixer grinder and grind them into a fine paste.  Add little water as required to grind them into a fine paste.  Once grinded, place a large sieve or strainer on a bowl and pour this grinded spice paste on the sieve.  Using spoon, strain this grinded spice paste.  Fine paste will be collected in the bowl kept at he bottom of sieve.  Discard the waste collected on the sieve.
  • Add remaining cooking oil in to the same kadai used for frying spices and onions, and heat it up.
  • Add remaining tej patta and shahi jeera to this hot oil.  Allow shahi jeera to crackle. 
  • Add marinated mutton pieces in to this kadai and roast them in hot oil on high flame until it turn golden brown.  Keep stiring the mutton so that the ginger and garlic marination doesn’t burn.
  • Add slit green chilli to the mutton.  Keep stiring the mutton.
  • Once the mutton has roasted well (turned darker in colour), add the fine grinded and strained spice paste in to the mutton.  Mix them well.  Cook the mutton in this spice paste on high flame until the spices releases oil on the surface and becomes dry.
  • Add salt to taste to the mutton and mix it well.
  • Add whisked curd in to the kadai and mix it well with the mutton.  Keep stiring and cooking further on high flame until the curd is dried up and release its oil on surface.
  • Add 2 cups of water in to the kadai and mix it well with mutton.  Reduce the flame to medium or low and cover the kadai with a lid.
  • Allow the mutton to cook completely and become tender.  It may take 15 to 20 minutes.  Turn off the heat.
  • Now is the time to assemble Mutton Dum Biryani.
  • Take a thick bottom large utensil.  Add a layer of basmati rice (half of the rice) at the bottom of this utensil.
  • Add mutton pieces only (not gravy) on top of this rice and spread them evenly on its surface.
  • Add half of the deep fried brown onions, half of the chopped mint leaves, half of the chopped coriander leaves, sprinkle 1 tsp of garam masala powder, half of the cashew nuts, half of the raisins, half of the saffron soaked water, sprinkle half of the lime juice, spread 2 tbs of gravy on top of all these spreads.
  • Add another layer of remaining half cooked basmati rice on top of this gravy.
  • Add on top of this second layered basmati rice – remaining deep fried brown onions, remaining chopped mint leaves, remaining chopped coriander leaves, sprinkle 1 tsp of garam masala powder, remaining cashew nuts, remaining raisins, remaining saffron soaked water, remaining lime juice,  remaining ghee, sprinkle milk, half tsp of Kewra water, half tsp of Rose water, spread 2 tbs of gravy on top of all these spreads.
  • Cover this Mutton Dum Biryani Utensil with tight sealed lid and add a weight on it if required for tight sealing.  Add little water on top of this lid.  This helps condensation of the steam produced inside the utensil and keeps the biryani moist. 
  • Place this utensil on the flame.  Keep the flame on low all the time.
  • Cook the Mutton Dum Biryani for atleast half an hour or 40 minutes on very low flame and lid covered.
  • Turn off the heat after 40 minutes and keep the lid covered for another 10 minutes.
  • Mutton Dum Biryani – Hot and Delicious, spiced, packed with aromatic flavours, is ready.
  • Serve Mutton Dum Biryani along with Raita, lime and sliced onion.
  • Happy Eating.