26 Interesting Indian Biryani and Pulao Recipes

Indian Biryani Pulao Recipes – 26 varieties to blow your mind

Every year, the months April and September mark Mega Marathon where we, a group of bloggers come together and blog non stop the whole month on a chosen theme. I have done so many ,mega marathons till now. Usually the preparation starts a few months earlier. For the month of April this year, the theme was Biryani, Pulao and Kichdi Festival. I chose to make Indian Biryani Pulao Recipes. Though I don’t eat rice like before, I made some for myself and most of the dishes were made for Sruti. I must say, it was a wonderful experience to both of us. I loved cooking from so many different cuisines and she loved tasting them. We let hubby off the hook as he is totally off rice. I have compiled all the recipes I made last month, so that it will be easier for you to browse through. Check out all the biryani recipes below. Click on the name for the link to the recipe.

Indian biryani pulao recipes

Kaju Pulao from Andhra Pradesh

This is a mildly spiced pulao which is so rich because of  the generous amount of cashew added. These are made for celebrations or very occasionally because it is so rich. Serve it with a spicy side and raitha for an amazing treat.

Kharzi Pulao from Arunachal Pradesh

This rice is supposed to be the cooking way of Monpa tribe in Arunachal Pradesh. They use a local fermented cheese with rice and spring onions. But other than that I couldn’t find a single recipe or fact about the recipe. The rice is cooked separately and the cheese mix is made separately and finally everything is combined together.

Meetha Pulao from Assam

Usually Joha rice is used to make this pulao. I have used Basmati instead. And this pulao is served along with chicken or pork curries. With the addition of nuts and raisins and ghee, this is somewhat rich in taste.

Bihari Veg Boti Biryani

Boti is supposed to be meat and there were chicken boti biryani, muttom boti biryani and malai boti biryani. The meat pieces were marinated in yogurt and used in the biryani. And cream is used along with yogurt in malai boti biryani recipe.

Chole Chawal From Delhi

This is a mixed rice where the rice is cooked separately, the chole is done separately and finally everything is mixed together. The addition of chaat masala and amchur gives its a wonderful unique flavour. And it is mildly spicy

Masala Bhath from Goa

The garnish of kopra and cashews gave the rice a fantastic flavour and crunch to the absolutely spicy and delicious rice.

Khari Bhat from Gujarat

Gujarati Khari Bhat or masala bhat is a spicy colourful pulao which is really simple to make. I found that one recipe mentioned adding curry leaves and peanuts which sounded so good. As for the vegetables, add whichever you prefer. The spice is really simple and adding red chilly powder depends on one’s taste.

Aloo Chutney Pulao from Haryana

Cooked with baby potatoes and green chutney, this is so flavourful and a perfect treat to potato lovers. You can either make the green chutney fresh or use the chutney in fridge.

Meetha Chawal from Himachal Pradesh

Himachalis make dham for festivals and celebrations. As vegetables available are scarce, dham mostly has lentils and milk based products. One among those recipes was this easy to make meetha chawal. The flavourful rice is cooked in milk along with the spices and turmeric, which gives it the golden colour. The chawal is then decorated with roasted nuts and raisins.

Modur Pulao from Jammu and Kashmir

Modur pulao is a sweet pulao from Kashmir. It is loaded with dry fruits and nuts and is cooked in ghee. The pulao is usually paired with spicy curry at the side. The rice used is basmati and it is flavoured with saffron. Cooked either in milk or cream or a combination of milk and cream this rice is so rich and perfect for festivals or parties.

Mangalore Veg Biryani from Karnataka

In this version of biryani, coconut is added in the spice paste itself which gives you a very different flavour. As with every biryani recipe, the list of ingredients is long, but they are just everyday spices available easily in any kitchen.

Thalassery Biryani from Kerala

Thalassery is a town of northern Kerala and its cuisine is really famous. The cuisine is a combination of Arabian, Persian, Indian and European styles of cooking. This biryani is supposed to be influenced b the Mughal cuisine. And for this recipe, jeeragasala/ kaima (also known as jeeragasamba in Tamilnadu) rice is used.

Vatane Bhat From Maharashtra

Vatane bhath or Vatana Bhat is a simple yet delicious one pot meal from Maharashtra. Usually the pulao is made when green peas are in season. But nowadays with the frozen peas available round the year, you can make it any day and any time of the year. The spice paste is a simple green paste which adds a nice flavour and keeps the recipe simple at the same time.

Chak Angouba from Manipur

Chak angouba is Manipuri style fried rice made usually for breakfast or brunch using the left over rice from the previous day.

Jadoh/ Khasi Pulao from Meghalaya

The authentic jadoh uses pork as the main ingredient. Some versions of Jadoh are cooked with blood, but it is kind of extreme and I would never do that. Even the cooking fat is also pork fat and vegetables are used only in salads.

Paneer Sawchiar From Mizoram

Here is my vegetarian adaptaion of the Mizoram sawchiar with paneer and spinach. The only difference is in the looks, while mine is like pulao, the original recipe is like a thick porridge and is one of the famous dishes from the state.

Brinj Rice from Puducherry

Flavourful vegetable pulao from Pondicherry, close to what mom used to make.

Kofta Pulao from Punjab

If you look for kofta pulao recipes, you will come across so many different varieties of koftas made with dal, vegetables, paneer and a lot more. This is made with urad dal and the final pulao is so filling and absolutely delicious.

Chambray from Sikkim

It is a really simple pulao from Sikkim. This is usually served with a flavourful potato dish Til ko aloo.

Kuska From Tamilnadu

Kuska is a famous type of biryani we get here in shops along with a non veg or veg kurma. It is the simplest form of biryani and it is very mild. It doesn’t have any add ons and is plain so that the kurma adds the necessary spice to it.

Bhagara Annam from Telengana

Bhagara annam is a simple yet flavourful pulao from Telengana. This is made plain and served with spicy bagara baingan or bagara mamsam.

Paneer Biryani in Bamboo from Tripura

The speciality is that the biryani is layered inside bamboo,  covered and placed inside fire to cook. I have used paneer instead of chicken and used a bamboo puttu maker to make the biryani.

Aloo Matar ki Tehri from Uttar Pradesh

Also known as tehari, this is a vegetarian pulao which uses potato in it. Also the meat version of this pulao is available in Pakistan and Bangladesh. It is also sold as street food in Kashmir. Tehri is part of Awadhi cuisine. The recipe is so similar to the vegetable pulao we make.

Meetha Bhaat from Uttrakand

This recipe is a traditional one made with a special rice available in the hills. The ingredients list is really simple and the flavour comes from the particular rice used. The rice is broken and has a dusky complexion like the brown rice.

Mishti Pulao from West Bengal

Ghee bhat also known as mishti pulao, is made with either Basmati rice or Gobindobhog rice and is very famous all over West Bengal.

I hope you enjoyed all the recipes I made. Try it at your home and share your feedback. I would be delighted to know.