Biryani – My Last Indian Cooking Class
This dish marked the final class of my Indian cooking course at George Brown. It was designed to combine everything we’d learned—Week 1’s lamb curry with Week 6’s biryani process. Of course, I couldn’t find any good lamb, so I used beef instead.
Before this course, my Indian dishes never really worked out. And now I know why: I never learned how to properly layer spices. Indian cooking isn’t just about throwing in a bunch of ingredients—it’s about understanding when and how to add the right spices so that the flavours build over time.
Cooking Process…
I followed the curry base from Week 1: first toasting whole spices in ghee, then cooking down the onions until golden. Normally, you’d add the ginger and garlic paste after the onions—but in this round, I accidentally tossed them in first. Hopefully it didn’t change the flavour profile too much.
Once the spices and tomato cooked down, I added in the beef. It usually takes 1–2 hours to get tender, depending on the cut, but I used a pressure cooker to speed things up—because who has time for slow beef?
While the beef cooked, I parboiled the basmati rice with whole spices until it was about 60–70% done. Traditionally, you’re supposed to layer the meat and rice in an oven-safe dish, but my baking dish was massive, so proper layering was a bit of a challenge. Instead, I spread the curry in the bottom, dumped the rice over it, then topped everything with saffron-infused milk, fried onions, and chopped coriander before baking.
To balance out the richness of the biryani, I also whipped up a quick onion raita— a cool, tangy, and refreshing yogurt dip to cut through the heat and heaviness of the dish perfectly.
Verdict
The result? Rich, fragrant, and full of flavour. The beef was tender thanks to the pressure cooker shortcut, and the spices were well-balanced. It does get incrementally spicier the more you eat—but still very manageable for anyone not used to heat. The raita added just the right contrast—cool and creamy.
BIRYANI
INGREDIENTS
Meat Curry
Biryani
GUIDE / INSTRUCTIONS
- 1Season the diced beef with salt and set aside.
- 2In a large pot or pressure cooker, melt the ghee over medium heat. Add the whole spices (cumin seeds, cinnamon stick, cardamom, cloves) and sauté until fragrant.
- 3Add the chopped onion and cook until golden brown.
- 4Stir in the ginger and garlic paste; cook for 2 minutes on low heat.
- 5Add the chili powder, pepper, turmeric, garam masala, and coriander powder, mixing well.
- 6Add the crushed tomatoes and simmer until slightly thickened and the oil starts to separate.
- 7Add the beef, stir to coat, then cook until tender (1.5–2 hours) or pressure cook for about 30 minutes.
- 8Finish the curry with lemon juice, garam masala, and chopped coriander.
- 9In a separate pot, boil 8 cups of water. Add salt, cardamom, cloves, and cinnamon stick. Add the soaked basmati rice and cook until ¾ done. Strain and set aside.
- 10In a skillet, fry the sliced onions in ghee until golden brown. Drain on paper towels.
- 11Toast the saffron in a dry pan and steep it in warm milk.
- 12In a large, oven-safe baking dish, layer the cooked beef curry on the bottom.
- 13Add the parboiled rice on top—do not mix.
- 14Drizzle with saffron milk, then top with fried onions and chopped coriander.
- 15Cover tightly with foil or a lid.
- 16Bake at 350°F for 45–60 minutes.
