Prawn Biryani - a seafood take on our favourite rice dish!
eating these with my fingers would be so shiok rn...
if you know me, you’d know how much I love making and eating biryani. the process in itself is a labour of love and it’s something I enjoy making when it comes to preparing food for gatherings with friends and family.
while we at nOm (@nOmies.co) have had our fair share of showcasing several biryani recipes, this Prawn Biryani is a bit different since it steers away from the traditional ‘dum’ method, since the protein component and the rice is both cooked separately, and with good reason - unlike chicken and mutton, prawns & other seafood require a significantly shorter cooking time and cooking them for a second time with the rice using the ‘dum’ preparation would overcook them, turning them rubbery.
for this recipe, I used parboiled basmati rice which guarantees a fluffier texture with the grains staying separated after cooking. however, regular aged basmati rice works just as well.
fresh prawns from the market work best for this - the fresher the better! you can also substitute it with squid!
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Prawn Biryani
(serves 5-6)
restaurant-style plain biryani:
500g parboiled basmati rice, soaked in water for 1 hour
2 tbsp ghee / oil
2 tsp cumin seeds
1 cinnamon stick
5 whole cloves
2 star anise
2 dried bay leaves
3 medium red onion, thinly sliced
25g ginger + 4 cloves garlic, blended to a paste
2 green chillies, sliced
1 tomato, diced
25g biryani masala powder
500 ml of water (or more, if needed)
200ml evaporated milk
salt, to taste
2 sprigs coriander leaves, chopped
1/2 cup cashews, toasted
prawn masala:
18 prawns, shell-on
1/2 cup oil
2 tsp mustard seeds
1 sprig curry leaves
2 dried chillies, split
2 medium red onion, sliced
2 green chillies, sliced
30g ginger + 3 cloves garlic, blended to a paste
1 tomato, diced
1 tbsp fish curry powder
1 tsp turmeric powder
2 tsp chilli powder
1 cup water
salt to taste
2 tsp ground black pepper
1 tbsp cooking caramel / dark soy sauce (optional, for colour)
2 sprigs coriander leaves, chopped
directions
making the biryani rice
in a pot, melt ghee on medium heat. temper the cumin, cinnamon, cloves, star anise and bay leaves for 1 minute. add in the onions and sauté until golden brown and crisp.
spoon in the ginger-garlic paste and chillies and fry for 2 minutes. then add in tomatoes and biryani masala. stir through and cook the spices for another 2 minutes.
pour in water and evaporated milk and bring to a boil. add in the strained rice and season with salt. bring the liquid back to a boil and transfer to a rice cooker and cook until done.
fold in the chopped coriander. serve on a plate with a garnishing of toasted cashews.
prawn masala
heat oil in a pan/wok. temper the mustard seeds, curry leaves and dried chillies. once they start to splutter, combine the onions and saute until golden.
spoon in the ginger-garlic paste and green chilli and fry for 2 minutes. then add in tomatoes and stir well.
in a separate bowl, mix fish curry powder, chilli powder and turmeric with 1/2 cup water into a paste. add into the pot and and mix well. add water and salt, cover and simmer for 6-8 minutes, stirring from time to time to prevent burning.
add in the black pepper and cooking caramel. and mix well. adjust seasoning to taste.
last stir in the prawns. cover the pan and let the prawns fully cook until pink, flipping them halfway through.
serve prawns on top of the biryani and sprinkle with chopped coriander.
check out these other BIRYANI recipes we’ve done!:
Dum Chicken Biryani
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