Hyderabadi Egg Dum Biryani
Hyderabadi egg dum biryani layers boiled eggs under rice and finishes it sealed.
Jump to recipe ↓
1 hr 15 mintotal
1 hr hands-on15 min hands-off
Prep 20 min · Cook 40 min
- Serves
- 2
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Spice
- Spicy
Ingredients
Quantities are for 2 servings.
You'll need: Stovetop.
Includes prep-ahead time.
Method
In a large pot, bring plenty of well-salted water with the whole spices to a rolling boil. Add the soaked basmati and parboil it until it is about 70% done. Drain it immediately to stop the cooking, and set the grains aside.
Heat a thin film of oil in a shallow pan. Add a pinch of turmeric, chilli powder and salt to the hot oil. Add the scored boiled eggs. Fry them quickly over high heat until the outsides are golden and blistered. Lift them out and set aside.
Start the biryani base: in a heavy, deep dum pot, heat the oil and ghee together over high heat. Add the ginger-garlic paste and the slit green chillies, and fry for 60 seconds to cook off the raw bite.
1 min
Add the chopped tomatoes, along with the turmeric, red chilli powder and the biryani masala. Cook it down until the tomatoes break apart completely into a thick paste and the spiced oil separates out.
Turn the heat right down. Fold in the well-whisked curd so it does not split. Add half the crisp fried onions (birista) and half the fresh mint and coriander. Simmer gently for 2 minutes to bring it together into a thick, aromatic gravy.
2 min
Submerge the armored, blister-fried eggs deeply into this intensely flavored magma, rolling them gently to ensure comprehensive lacquering.
Assemble the biryani: spread the 70% parboiled rice in an even layer over the egg masala base.
Scatter the top generously with the remaining crisp birista and fresh green herbs, then pour over the saffron milk and the last of the raw ghee.
Seal the pot tightly with foil or a ring of dough. Cook on dum over the lowest possible heat for 15-20 minutes, so the trapped steam brings the layers together.
15–20 min
Turn off the heat. Let it stand, undisturbed, for 10 minutes. Break the seal, lift the layers together very gently so the grains stay whole, and serve piping hot.
10 min
How to tell it's done
Light, separate grains of rice in several shades, hiding a rich layer of heavily spiced caramelised onion, with the firm, spice-coated bite of the egg running through it.
Nutrition
Per serving, from 2 servings.
567kcal
Where the calories come from
- Protein16.3 g12%
- Carbohydrate69.5 g49%
- Fat24.5 g39%
- Saturated fat
- 9.7 g
- Fibre
- 3.8 g
- Sodium
- 1286 mg
- Calcium
- 147 mg
- Iron
- 3.6 mg
Estimated by calculation from the ingredient list, using USDA FoodData Central. Not a laboratory analysis.
Getting it right
Tip
Do not skip frying the boiled eggs first. The quick fry firms up the outside just enough that the eggs hold their shape through the dum layering and cooking instead of breaking apart.
What to serve it with
A showpiece dish that belongs at the centre of the table. Serve it with a well-spiced mirchi ka salan and a cooling onion raita.
More Indian recipes to cook
South Indian Curd Rice (Thayir Sadam)
Curd rice folds cooked rice into yoghurt and milk, tempered with mustard and curry leaves and eaten cool.
South Indian Kuska Biryani
Kuska is biryani rice cooked without any meat, made in the same pot and the same way.
South Indian Lemon Rice
Lemon rice tosses cooked rice with lemon juice, peanuts and a mustard tempering, eaten warm or packed for later.
South Indian Peanut Rice
Peanut rice coats rice in ground roasted peanuts, a dry South Indian dish that travels well.
Soya Chunks Biryani
Soya chunks biryani layers marinated soy chunks under rice, cooked sealed like any other biryani.
Quick Soya Matar Pulao
Soya matar pulao cooks soy chunks and peas into the rice, quick and filling.