Uluva Charu biryani or biryani made cooked with the stock of horse gram rasam was a rare find for me, personally speaking. I was stuck on Urad Dal and didn’t want to make khichdi again this week. Uluva chaaru aka Kollu rasam or horse gram rasam is something I love to sip especially on rainy / winter days when it’s not just soothing but also therapeutic.
I made a batch of kollu rasam on a weekday and then let it sediment for a day in the refrigerator to get maximum extract. While I saw Vidhya’s recipe ( from where I adapted this) with the cooked gram also added on top, I puréed it and added it back to the stock.
And as with most food experiments, I didn’t reveal that it was horsegram. I got mixed reviews for this - surprisingly my elder one liked it (mostly coz of the heat and spice) but the husband gave it a thumbs down (mostly coz of the lack of veggies here - his favourite part of any meal are the veggies). But it’s a good thing that I could cook this (and although the pics could be better), the dim light in the evening dinner time gives me an opportunity to make this again with better set up and pics .
This is not a layered biryani as with most North Indian / Middle Eastern / Persian biryani recipes but the rice is cooked in the broth / stock and so the favours are more pronounced like a South Indian biryani / pulav. I served it with onion - tomato raita.
Let’s get to it.
Uluva chaaru biryani - GF and vegan dish. Andhra special.
Prep time - 15 Mins , cook time - 15 Mins, serves - 3
Ingredients:
Raw basmati rice - 1 cup
Homemade kollu rasam - 2 cups
Salt - to taste
Onions - 1 large
curry leaves - 1 sprig
Whole spices - black cardamom 1, bay leaf 2, elaichi (green cardamom) 2
Whole green chillies - slit lengthwise - 2 nos.
Dry spice powders - coriander powder 2 tsp, chilli powder 1 tsp, jeera 1 tsp, Garam Masala 1 tsp
Oil- 2 tbsp
PIN FOR LATER
Prep work -
Make kollu rasam with the recipe given here. Grind the cooked horsegram along with half of the rasam and mix well. Store overnight in the fridge . Before making the biryani mix well, filter and keep the stock ready. We don’t add any water to be biryani other than this stock so make sure you make this the previous day.
How to:
Wash basmati rice in several changes till the water runs clean. Soak for 20-25 mins.
Meanwhile in a pressure cooker / pressure pan, add 1 tablespoon of oil and sauté half the onions (sliced thin) with a sprinkle of salt till they turn slightly crisp. Keep aside.
In the same pan, add remaining oil and add the whole spices and the remaining onions, curry leaves, slit green chillies. Sauté well. Add the spice powders, salt and the broth. Let it come
To a simmer. Now add soaked and drained rice. Adjust salt and spices and pressure cook for 2 whistles.
Fluff once pressure releases.
Serve with curd / raita + roasted papad
Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#99
Suma Gandlur says
I have put this biryani preparation on the back burner for now. 🙂 I guess it happens in every home that the dish is a hit with some and not with the others. I guess you are going to include some vegetables as well next time to keep the husband happy.
I have seen many online versions where only the horse-gram cooked water is added and I kept wondering why the 'charu' inclusion in the title when it is not being used. Your version seems more flavorful and makes justice to the title.
Gayathri Kumar says
I read about this in Vidyas blog first but never tried it. I like the idea of pureeing the kollu, because it might not go well with everyone. The pulao sounds so delicious.
Sharmila Kingsly says
Your version of using kollu rasam to the biryani sounds really unique..such a flavorful biryani...
vaishali sabnani says
Yes the Biryani is very different . I like the way you have cooked this in broth . I too make this Biryani , again not layered , but almost on a similar pattern .
Good share , will bookmark !
Harini R says
That is a very flavorful version Kalyani. My mil always uses just the stock and not the boiled horse gram as she says it generates too much heat. But I would love to try pureeing the cooked dal and adding it to the stock.
sushma says
Wow Ulavacharu biryani looks too good. I have been wanting to taste this biryani for along time now. Bookmarked.
Srivalli says
We loved this one and it surely turned out so good! I personally liked your pictures.
Srividhya G says
Thanks a lot for the mention Kalyani. I know it is quite hard to satisfy everyone's taste buds. Adding veggies will definitely elevate the flavors and texture.
cookwithrenu says
wonderful pick for the letter U and a complete meal with proteins and carbs loaded.
Swati says
This is new to me, I read another versions of it in this marathon only. recipe sounds os flavourful and it is nutritious too. Very nice share.