Biryani (pronounced [b?r.ja:ni:]), also known as biriyani, biriani, birani or briyani, is a South Asian mixed rice dish of the Indian subcontinent. It is popular throughout the Indian subcontinent and among the diaspora from the region. It is generally made with spices, rice and meat (chicken, mutton, beef, prawn or fish) or egg.
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Etymology
Biryani is an Urdu word derived from the Persian language, which was used as an official language in different parts of medieval India, by various Islamic dynasties. One theory is that it originates from birinj, the Persian word for rice. Another is that it derives from biryan or beriyan, to fry or roast.
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Origin
The exact origin of the dish is uncertain. In North India, different varieties of biryani developed in the Muslim centers of Delhi (Mughlai cuisine), Lucknow (Awadhi cuisine) and other small principalities like Punjab (Punjabi cuisine) and Sindh. In South India, where rice is more widely used as a staple food, several distinct varieties of biryani emerged from Telangana (specifically Hyderabad), Tamil Nadu, Kerala (Malabar), and Karnataka, where minority Muslim communities were present. Andhra is the only region of South India that does not have many native varieties of biryani. During the Safavid dynasty (1501-1736) in Persia, a dish called Berian Pilao (Nastaliq script: ????? ????) was made with lamb or chicken, marinated overnight - with yogurt, herbs, spices, dried fruits like raisins, prunes or pomegranate seeds - and later cooked in a tannour oven. It was then served with steamed rice.
According to historian Lizzie Collingham, the modern biryani developed in the royal kitchens of the Mughal Empire (1526-1857), as a confluence of the native spicy rice dishes of India and the Persian pilaf. Indian restaurateur Kris Dhillon believes that the dish originated in Persia, and was brought to India by the Mughals. However, another theory claims that the dish was known in India before the first Mughal emperor Babur came to India. The 16th-century Mughal text Ain-i-Akbari makes no distinction between biryanis and pilaf (or pulao): it states that the word "biryani" is of older usage in India. A similar theory, that biryani came to India with Timur's invasion, appears to be incorrect, because there is no record of biryani having existed in his native land during that period.
According to Pratibha Karan, the biryani is of South Indian origin, derived from pilaf varieties brought to the Indian subcontinent by the Arab traders. She speculates that the pulao was an army dish in medieval India. The armies, unable to cook elaborate meals, would prepare a one-pot dish where they cooked rice with whichever meat was available. Over time, the dish became biryani due to different methods of cooking, with the distinction between "pulao" and "biryani" being arbitrary. According to Vishwanath Shenoy, the owner of a biryani restaurant chain in India, one branch of biryani comes from the Mughals, while another was brought by the Arab traders to Malabar in South India.
Difference between biryani and pulao
Pilaf or pulao, as it is known in the Indian subcontinent, is another mixed rice dish popular in South Asian and Middle Eastern cuisine. Opinions differ on the differences between pulao and biryani, and whether there is a difference between the two at all.
According to Delhi-based historian Sohail Nakhvi, pulao tends to be (comparatively) plainer than the biryani and consists of meat (or vegetables) cooked with rice. Biryani on the other hand contains more gravy (due to the use of yakhni in it), is often cooked for longer (hence yielding more tender meat or vegetables) and with additional condiments. Pratibha Karan states that while the terms are often applied arbitrarily, the main distinction is that a biryani comprises two layers of rice with a layer of meat (or vegetables) in the middle; the pulao is not layered.
Colleen Taylor Sen lists the following distinctions between biryani and pulao:
- Biryani is the primary dish in a meal, while the pulao is usually a secondary accompaniment to a larger meal
- In biryani, meat and rice are cooked separately before being layered and cooked together. Pulao is a single-pot dish: meat and rice are simmered in a liquid until the liquid is absorbed. However, some other writers, such as Holly Shaffer (based on her observations in Lucknow), R. K. Saxena and Sangeeta Bhatnagar have reported pulao recipes in which the rice and meat are cooked separately and then mixed before the dum cooking.
- Biryanis have more complex and stronger spices compared to pulao. The British-era author Abdul Halim Sharar mentions this as their primary difference: biryani has a stronger taste of curried rice due to a greater amount of spices.
Ingredients
Ingredients vary according to the type of meat used and the region the biryani is from. Meat (of either chicken, mutton, beef, prawn or fish)) is the prime ingredient with rice. As is common in dishes of the Indian subcontinent, some vegetables are also used when preparing biryani. Corn may be used depending on the season and availability. Navratan biryani tends to use sweeter richer ingredients such as cashew, kismis and fruits such as apples and pineapples.
The spices and condiments used in biryani may include ghee (clarified butter), nutmeg, mace, pepper, cloves, cardamom, cinnamon, bay leaves, coriander, mint leaves, ginger, onions, tomatoes, and garlic. The premium varieties include saffron. In all biryani, the main ingredient that accompanies the spices is the chicken and mutton; special varieties also use beef and seafood. The dish may be served with dahi chutney or raita, korma, curry, a sour dish of aubergine (brinjal), boiled egg (optional), and salad.
Varieties
Kacchi Biryani
Tehari
Beef biryani
List of varieties by region or culture in the Indian subcontinent
Depending on the region and the condiments available and popular in that region, there are different varieties of biryani. The variety often takes the name of the region (for example, Sindhi biryani developed in the Sindh region of what is now Pakistan, Hyderabadi biryani developed in the city of Hyderabad in South India, etc.). Some have taken the name of the shop that sells it (for example: Haji Biriyani, Haji Nanna Biriyani in Old Dhaka, Fakhruddin Biriyani in Dhaka, Students biryani in Karachi, Lucky biryani in Bandra, Mumbai and Baghdadi biryani in Colaba, Mumbai). Biryanis are often specific to the respective Muslim community from where it comes, as it is usually the defining dish of that community. Cosmopolitanism has also created these native versions to suit the tastes of others as well.
Delhi biryani
Sindhi biryani
Hyderabadi biryani
Thalassery biryani
Kolkata biryani
Ambur/Vaniyambadi biryani
Chettinad biryani
Bhatkali/Navayathi biryani
Memoni/Kutchi biryani
Dindigul biryani
Bohri biryani
Kalyani biryani
Afghan biryani
Sri Lankan biryani
Biryani was brought into Sri Lanka by the South Indian Muslims who were trading in the Northern part of Sri Lanka and in Colombo in the early 1900s. In Sri Lanka, it is Buryani, a colloquial word which generated from Buhari Biryani. In many cases, Sri Lankan biryani is much spicier than most Indian varieties. Side dishes may include acchar, Malay pickle, cashew curry and mint sambol.
Rawther biryani
Varieties outside the Indian subcontinent
Burma
In Myanmar (Burma), biryani is known in Burmese as danpauk or danbauk, from Persian dum pukht. Featured ingredients include cashew nuts, yogurt, raisins and peas, chicken, cloves, cinnamon, saffron and bay leaf. In Burmese biryani, the chicken is cooked with the rice. biryani is also eaten with a salad of sliced onions and cucumber.
Iraq and Middle East (Arab nations)
One form of "Arabic" biryani is the Iraqi preparation (??????: "biryani"), where the rice is usually saffron-based with chicken usually being the meat or poultry of choice. Most variations also include vermicelli, fried onions, fried potato cubes, almonds and raisins spread liberally over the rice. Sometimes, a sour/spicy tomato sauce is served on the side (maraq).
Iran
During the Safavid dynasty (1501-1736), a dish called Berian (Nastaliq script: ????? ????) was made with lamb or chicken, marinated overnight - with yogurt, herbs, spices, dried fruits like raisins, prunes or pomegranate seeds - and later cooked in a tannour oven. It was then served with steamed rice.
Indonesia
Nasi kebuli is an Indonesian spicy steamed rice dish cooked in goat broth, milk and ghee. Nasi kebuli is descended from Kabuli Palaw which is an Afghani rice dish, similar to biryani served in the Indian subcontinent.
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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