Kongunad Vella Mutton Biryani

angannan-mutton-biryani-2-3
angannan-mutton-biryani-1

This recipe for Vella biryani is very famous in and around the Coimbatore region. The one thing that comes to mind when someone says vella biryani (white biryani) is the famous biryani from Angannan biryani kadai. Vella biryani is so traditional and unique to our region. The masala is very lite and the biryani itself is very fragrant. I have been fine tuning this recipe for years. Kalpasi (stone flower) and Maratti moggu (kapok buds) is very important for this biryani. Kal pasi has a very rich earthy aroma to it and is very important for this biryani.
angannan-mutton-biryani-kal-pasi

Another thing about this biryani is the seeraga samba rice. The short aromatic rice reigns supreme in Kongunad and the regular basmati rice is very rarely used for biryani in this region. Soak the rice in water for 30 minutes. Soaking is an important step that makes for fluffy biryani. Do not forget to soak the rice.
Note: If you cannot source seeraga samba rice, basmati rice can be substituted. For basmati rice, the water ratio is 1 rice:1.5 water.
manju-aunties-thenga-paal-saadam-coconut-milk-rice-kuska-recipe-seeraga-samba-tamilnadu |kannammacooks.com #kuska #coconut #milk #gluten #free #vegan #pilaf #seeraga #samba #rice

Here is Vella biryani recipe my style.
The ground masala is what makes for the flavour of the vella biryani.
angannan-mutton-biryani-masala

Grind all the masala ingredients in a mixie with half a cup of water to a smooth paste. Set aside. Add extra chillies if you want a spicy biryani.
angannan-mutton-biryani-paste

Cook the mutton with two cups of water and a teaspoon of salt for 5-6 whistles. I marinated the mutton for 30 minutes with a tablespoon of raw papaya paste to tenderize the meat. This step is optional but yields extremely soft meat. After 5-6 whistles, open the cooker and check for the meat done-ness. If the meat is not tender, cook for 3-4 whistles more. Set aside.

angannan-mutton-biryani-10

Heat ghee and oil in a pan and add in the cinnamon, bay leaf, maratti moggu and kalpasi. Saute for a minute.
angannan-mutton-biryani-9

Add in the sliced onions and the chopped garlic. Lots of chopped garlic is used for this biryani. I have used around 10 cloves of chopped garlic. Saute for 2-3 minutes more till the onions are soft.
angannan-mutton-biryani-onion

Add in the tomatoes and the ground masala paste.
angannan-mutton-biryani-tomatoes

Now, add in whole green chillies. I added about 10 whole green chillies. The flavour of chillies gives a nice dimension to this biryani. Do not slice. Just whole chillies. You do not want it too spicy. Just the essence. If you want a spicy biryani, have 3-4 chillies sliced and have the rest as whole. Add in the chopped mint leaves and coriander leaves. Fry for a couple of minutes.
angannan-mutton-biryani-green-chilli

Add in the rest of the salt and the mutton along with the mutton water (stock) used for cooking. Measure the water while adding.
angannan-mutton-biryani-salt

Add in the required water (1 rice : 1.5 water). We have used two cups of rice. We will need four cups of water. (Have the mutton water included in the measurement and add water accordingly.) Let it all come to a boil. Once boiling, add in the soaked and drained seeraga samba rice to the cooker.

NOTE: If you want a really fluffy biryani, use (1 rice : 1.25 water).
angannan-mutton-biryani-add-rice

Mix well. Cover and cook for exactly two whistles. Switch off the flame and wait for the pressure to release naturally.
angannan-mutton-biryani-cook

Open the cooker and add in a cut banana leaf and cover the cooker and allow it to rest for 10 minutes more. The flavour of banana leaf is unbeatable.
angannan-mutton-biryani-fluff

Serve hot!!!!!!!!!
angannan-mutton-biryani-1-7

Print
clock clock iconcutlery cutlery iconflag flag iconfolder folder iconinstagram instagram iconpinterest pinterest iconfacebook facebook iconprint print iconsquares squares iconheart heart iconheart solid heart solid icon
angannan-mutton-biryani-1-6

Kongunad Vella Mutton Biryani

Recipe for Kongunad Coimbatore style Vella Mutton Biryani. Recipe very similar to Angannan style Vella Mutton biryani. Recipe with step by step pictures. Measurements used: 1 teaspoon 5 ml 1 tablespoon 15 ml 1 cup approx 240 ml

  • Total Time: 1 hour
  • Yield: 4 persons 1x

Ingredients

Scale

Main Ingredients

  • 500 grams mutton with bone
  • 2 cups seeraga samba rice

For the masala paste:

  • 7 Small onions
  • 5 green chillies
  • 5 cloves garlic
  • 1 inch piece ginger
  • 4 cloves
  • 1 inch piece cinnamon
  • 3 cardamom
  • 1 teaspoon fennel seeds

Other ingredients

  • 23 tablespoon ghee
  • 2 tablespoon peanut oil
  • 1 inch piece cinnamon
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 2 maratti moggu (kapok bud)
  • 1 tablespoon kalpasi (56 small strips)
  • 2 onions, sliced
  • 10 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1 tomato, chopped
  • 10 whole green chillies
  • 10 sprigs of mint, leaves alone
  • 5 sprigs of coriander leaves, chopped (stem and all)
  • 2 teaspoon salt
  • banana leaf to cover rice (optional)

Instructions

Prep Work

  1. Cook the mutton with two cups of water and a teaspoon of salt for 5-6 whistles. Set aside
  2. Grind all the masala ingredients in a mixie with half a cup of water to a smooth paste. Set aside.
  3. Soak the seeraga samba rice in water for 30 minutes.

Cooking the biryani

  1. Heat ghee and oil in a pan and add in the cinnamon, bay leaf, maratti moggu and kalpasi. Saute for a minute.
  2. Add in the sliced onions and the chopped garlic. Saute for 2-3 minutes more till the onions are soft.
  3. Add in the tomatoes and the ground masala paste.
  4. Add in the whole green chillies, chopped mint leaves and coriander leaves. Fry for a couple of minutes.
  5. Add in the rest of the salt and the mutton along with the mutton water (stock) used for cooking.
  6. Add in the required water (1 rice : 1.5 water). Take the mutton stock included during measurement of water. Let it all come to a boil. Once boiling, add in the soaked and drained seeraga samba rice to the cooker.
  7. Mix well. Cover and cook for exactly two whistles. Switch off the flame and wait for the pressure to release naturally.
  8. Open the cooker and add in a cut banana leaf and cover the cooker and allow it to rest for 10 minutes more.
  9. Serve hot!
  • Author: Kannamma - Suguna Vinodh
  • Prep Time: 30 mins
  • Cook Time: 30 mins
  • Category: biryani
  • Cuisine: Kongunad

Vella-biryani

45 thoughts on “Kongunad Vella Mutton Biryani”

  1. Hi Suguna,
    Tried your recipe to the tee and it came out so delicious! I cooked Mutton biriyani for the first time and it was cooked perfectly! the spices were very well balanced 🙂 Your Muslim Biriyani and Prawn Biriyani are our go to recipes. Now added this vellai Biriyani too 🙂






  2. Awesome flavour. Aromatic Biryani. Your Thalapakatti biryani and this recipe are fir keeps… forever.. thank you so much






  3. Awesome recipe. For the first time, I got the my briyani right and my whole family love it.

  4. Hi. I’m a huge fan of your recipes! Just downloaded your app – its awesome! I have a hawkins futura – how would I translate whistles into time for that, for this recipe, do you have any suggestions?

  5. A recipe to be treasured, thanks for this recipe. The flavor brings back lots of memories of Angannan kadai. Tried out with chicken, added a little bit of coconut milk and it came out just perfect. Next time will try with mutton and will get hold of a banana leaf 😊






  6. Nalina saravanan

    Great receipe Suguna !! I take a pride in my cooking and is always appreciated by my friends and family for this skill of mine . This receipe has enhanced my biriyani and thank you for sharing this receipe .

  7. Although I visit a couple of food blogs once in a while, I always come to yours for biryani recipes.. I tried this one and it filled the house with a nice fragrance and tasted delicious.. i had also tried thala Ajith style biryani and that was a keeper as well.. !

  8. Thanks a ton for this wonderful recipie. Tried it today for dinner. Is very delicious and light.

  9. Hi. I will definitely try this biriyani coz my husband every time talks about angannan biriyani. But if I am using chicken what changes should I make. Please tell me

  10. I found this recipe super awesome. It is my family’s fav. thanks for sharing. looking forward!

    Nirmala.






  11. Tried this as well as your Thalappakatti Biryani .. both came out super delicious .. I am totally new to cooking Biryanis and had flopped several times , but when I tried these two biryanis following your instructions, it came out so well.. that last 20 minutes tip is so useful to get fluffy Biryani .. your blog is so easy to follow . The small small tips you give are so useful .. thank you 🙂






  12. Krishnamysore

    Nice recipe signs giving a good recipe I tried it yesterday awesome can we use coconut milk






  13. Thank you for this excellent recipe. Reminds us of angannan biriyani and it was perfect!!!

  14. Hi mam
    Tried this recipe and it came out very well.all my family members said it is the best. Tried many of ur recipes and everything came very well..always got appreciation for ur recipes:)






        1. Senthilkumar

          Mam
          I am using induction stove
          Kindly tell me the temperature. Or Watts. Setting to cook biriyani

  15. Akkaa Semma semma ka.. Finally chefs magical hand is shown.. Lots of kisses to your magical hands ka. Akka thanks a lot for taking lots of effort in teaching us the best n yummy recipes ka… Vella biryani is yummy o yummy ka. With lotts of love.

  16. Am following your blog for quite a long time…All your recipes are awesome..loved your thalapakatti biriyani recipe especially,it came so nice when tried…keep rocking as always….all the best

Leave a Reply to Senthilkumar Cancel Reply

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

Recipe rating 5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star


This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Scroll to Top