• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
The Kitchen Docs
  • Home
  • Recipes
  • About
  • Subscribe
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Home
  • Recipes
  • About
  • Subscribe
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • Home
    • Recipes
    • About
    • Subscribe
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
  • ×
    Home » Lunch

    Vegetable Biryani Inspired Pulao

    Published: Jan 6, 2018 · Modified: Aug 8, 2023 by Vaishali · This post may contain affiliate links · Leave a Comment

    India celebrated her 71st Independence day on August 15. Such a young nation, with such beauty and diversity. So many cultures, colors, languages, climates, land-forms, religions, and flavors.  We are beyond blessed to be living a town in the United States where the community is very welcoming and encouraging; and we together celebrate holidays and occasions from around the world and love it!

    The Indian Student Association of our small college town, along with the members of the local community, celebrates Indian Independence day every year in a local park by hoisting both the U.S. and Indian flags and singing both the national anthems followed by lip smacking Indian food lovingly cooked by everyone. This year I signed up for cooking vegetable biryani for the group. Now if you do not know about biryani or have not tried it, my friends, let me introduce to a rice dish so delicious that you can almost say that Biryani represents the acme of Indian cooking. Though this last statement can easily be challenged. But you get the point right?

    Traditionally, biryani is a dish of rice and some sort of meat flavored with aromatic spices, ghee, and “dum” cooked. “Dum” is a method of slow cooking in which a pot is covered with a lid that is sealed with a layer of dough and heated for a long time so that trapped steam inside the pot cooks everything low and slow. Meat and rice are partially cooked, then layered alternatively before “dum” cooking. The result is out of this world. Though biryani is traditionally a meat dish, made with goat, lamb or chicken; the vegetarians have adapted it to their preference. Though I’m saving the recipe for vegetarian biryani for another day, I thought of coming up a rice dish similar to flavor of biryani but cooked like a pulao. Biryani police – please forgive me. I am trying to strike a compromise between time consumption and flavor here. Sorry…:P

    Blank Form (#3)

    Get this recipe in your inbox.
    Share your email and we will send it straight to your inbox. Plus, enjoy regular doses of recipe inspiration as a bonus!

    Ingredients:

    Basmati rice – 1 ½ cup

    Onion – 1 big

    Potato – 1 big

    Carrots – 2

    Cauliflower – florets, 1 cup

    Peas – ½ cup

    Green beans – ¼ cup

    Ginger – 1 tablespoon (about 1 inch piece)

    Garlic – 1 tablespoon (from 3 cloves)

    Cumin seeds – 1 teaspoon

    Cloves – 2

    Green cardamom – 2

    Bay leaves – 2

    Cinnamon – ½ inch piece

    Turmeric – ½ teaspoon

    Red chili powder – ¼ teaspoon

    Coriander powder – 2 tablespoon

    Curd/yoghurt – 4 tablespoon

    Mint leaves – ¼ cup, packed

    Cilantro – ¼ cup, packed

    Water – 3 cups

    Salt – to taste

    Oil – 2 tablespoon

    Ghee – 1 tablespoon (recipe here)

    Method:

    Rinse and soak the rice in water. Cut onions into slices, and chop potatoes, carrots, green beans and cauliflower into ½ inch pieces. Mince ginger and garlic. Finely chop mint and cilantro.

    Set a heavy bottom pan on medium heat and add oil. Once the oil is hot and shimmering, add the cumin seeds and wait for them to crackle. Now add cloves, green cardamoms, cinnamon and bay leaves. Cook for 30 seconds and then add sliced onions. Add ginger and garlic and cook till the raw smell goes away, about a minute. Now add all the vegetables and mix. Cook for 4-5 minutes. Add turmeric, chili and coriander powders and cook for another minute or so before adding yogurt. Add yogurt, mix and let cook for 4-5 minutes. Then add chopped cilantro and mint.

    In a measuring cup, microwave 3 cups of water for 2 minutes. Drain the soaked rice and add to the vegetable mixture. Add the hot water and salt to taste. Give everything a mix and increase the heat to high. Cover the pan and let everything come to a boil. Once boiling, lower the heat to a simmer and cook covered for 20 minutes. After that time, turn the heat off and drizzle the pulao with 1 tablespoon of melted ghee. Leave covered and undisturbed for another 15 minutes, after which fluff the pulao with a fork or back of a spoon and enjoy with yogurt/raita.

    Love – Vaishali.

    More Delicious and Diverse Lunch Recipes

    • A lentil and roasted vegetable salad with spinach and feta cheese served in a white and blue ceramic bowl against a white marbled background.
      Lentil and Roasted Vegetable Salad with Feta and Greek Dressing
    • Cooked rice with cumin seeds and garnished with chopped cilantro in a stainless steel bowl with gold handles on a blue backdrop. A bowl of chickpea curry is in the background.
      Indian Cumin Rice or Jeera Rice Recipe
    • Sweet-Corn-Soup_Chili-Vinegar_FI
      Sweet Corn Soup | Easy, Vegan
    • Baked-Chicken-Parmesan-_FI_plated-with-pasta-and-sides
      Easy Baked Chicken Parmesan Recipe | Healthy, Gluten Free

    Reader Interactions

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    Hey, I'm Vaishali!

    Welcome! I am so excited to cook and talk life with you. Here, you will find my kitchen journal full of mostly healthyish recipes that are family friendly, use seasonal and fresh ingredients, plant forward, packed with healing Indian spices and indulgent desserts.

    More about me

    Spring Recipes

    • Close up of creamy risotto with asparagus and peas in a white ceramic bowl.
      Easy No-stir Spring Risotto with Asparagus and Peas
    • A lentil and roasted vegetable salad with spinach and feta cheese served in a white and blue ceramic bowl against a white marbled background.
      Lentil and Roasted Vegetable Salad with Feta and Greek Dressing
    • Aloo Gajar Mutter – A quick stir-fry of potatoes, carrots and peas with dry Indian spices
    • Slices of Citrus Scented Carrot Cranberry Loaf Cake
      Citrus Scented Carrot Cranberry Loaf Cake
    • Turmeric keto cauliflower rice recipe that comes together in one pot in less than 15 minutes. A great low carb alternatice to rice.
      Turmeric Cauliflower Rice or Gobhi Kutra
    • Vegan Instant Pot Lentil Carrot soup with turmeric
      Instant Pot Carrot and Lentil Soup

    Most Popular Recipes

    • Ravioli in Creamy Garlic and Spinach White Sauce
      Ravioli in Creamy Garlic and Spinach “White” Sauce
    • BestEverCinnamonRolls_FI
      Best Ever Cinnamon Rolls Recipe
    • IcedProteinCoffee
      Easy Iced Protein Coffee | Latte, Vegetarian, Make it Vegan
    • VegetablesinCreamSauce_Tandoori_FI
      Vegetables in Spiced Cream Sauce | Easy, Tandoori
    • Banana pudding with a vanilla wafer on top in a blue and white ceramic plate on a blue background.
      Easy Banana Pudding Recipe (No Bake)
    • Blueberry Cobbler Recipe_Featured Image
      Easy Blueberry Cobbler Recipe

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • Privacy Policy

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates

    Contact

    • Contact

    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © 2025 The Kitchen Docs