New to Hyderabad? Looking for some authentic Hyderabadi Biryani, but confused? Don't worry, we are here to help you out. Many restaurants both in and outside Hyderabad (within India and abroad) claim to serve authentic Hyderabadi Biryani. However, just naming the dish or claiming it to be the original recipe does not make it authentic.
2. New to Hyderabad? Looking for some authentic Hyderabadi
Biryani, but confused? Don't worry, we are here to help you
out. Many restaurants both in and outside Hyderabad (within
India and abroad) claim to serve authentic Hyderabadi
Biryani. However, just naming the dish or claiming it to be the
original recipe does not make it authentic.
You can determine if a restaurant is serving authentic dish by
checking how it is served, finding how it is cooked and by the
characteristics of the restaurant. Here are few tips that could
help you find out the authentic one.
3. Rice variety:
An authentic Biryani is made only from Basmati rice, a long
and slender rice variety popular in South Asia. The rice has a
typical flavour which is caused by the aroma compound 2-
acetyl-1-pyrroline. These characteristics make Basmati rice a
preferred variety to make the dish.
Cooking style:
Secondly, the only authentic Biryani is the Dum ka Biryani. It
means the rice and the meat together, along with spices are
steam cooked in a large conical vessel called deksha. The lid is
sealed with dough to prevent the steam from going out and
the food is slowly cooked, typically on charcoal. This cooking
method is what gives the dish, the distinct flavour and taste.
4. This way of low heat cooking is difficult. A chef cannot really
examine the dish while it is cooking. Once it is removed from
the flame, and the meat is overcooked or undercooked - the
chef cannot really make adjustments. Therefore, only expert
chefs can make a perfect dish.
Side accomplishments:
Here is what you should get with an authentic Biryani. It
comes with Mirchi ka Saalan (dish made with big green
chillies), dahi chutney (made with curd and onions) and onion
salad with some lime pieces. If any restaurant does not
provide you all of these at no additional cost - then it's not
serving authentic dish. These are absolutely the basic things
that make the 'Biryani' meal. If anyone item is missing it is like
serving a Pizza without topping.
5. Many restaurants also serve a non-authentic variety called Pakki
Biryani - in which meat and rice are cooked separately. Then, mixed
at the end to make the dish. This is like mixing curry and rice. You
can easily identify this kind of dish by its colour. It completely looks
yellowish or light brown, unlike the authentic one, in which half of
the rice looks white and half looks yellowish or light brown.
Finally, remember that the Biryani was originally created to serve
quick meals to troops during war. So any good restaurant will
typically serve a large number of guests. A good restaurant in
Hyderabad serves tens of thousands of meals a day.
The above should hopefully help you figure out a restaurant serving
Authentic Hyderabadi Biryani!
6. Hyderabad-india-online.com (HIOC) is a website about Hyderabad in
India that publishes updates; information and opinions about
Hyderabad city, and on real estate in Hyderabad; radio stations in
Hyderabad; Hyderabad Biryani; Greater Hyderabad Map, and other
related topics pertaining to Hyderabad.
