Rinse ½ kg of basmati rice softly in clean water. Repeat it again to clean fully and then soak it in a bowl with fresh water. Keep it aside.

Take a suitable vessel to cook.

Keep it on the small burner and start the flame. Never use big burner for ½ kg biryani.

(a) Add 200 gm of thinly sliced onions in the vessel and pour 100 ml cooking oil to fry the content.

(prefer rice bran oil, ground nut oil or refined sunflower oil).

(b) Add a pinch of cinnamon, cardamom and cloves to it. (just 2 or 3 pieces each)

Fry the contents in high flame until the colour of onion becomes reddish-brown.

Frying onion to reddish brown will give good flavor and taste to the biryani.

Once the onions turn reddish brown, turn the flame to LOW.

Now add a little of coriander leaves and mint leaves to the pan. Stir for 10 seconds.

The mint and coriander leaves give good aroma to the biryani and will last throughout cooking.

Take 50g of peeled ginger and 25g of garlic, grind them until it becomes paste. Add this ginger-garlic paste and stir it for 10 seconds.

Ginger-garlic paste is one of the main ingredients which gives rich taste and flavor to the biryani.

Add 1 tablespoon of red chili powder and then 2 green chilies and stir well for 10 seconds.

The secret behind adding chili powder is that it will mix well in oil and give good colour to the biryani.

Now, add 100 ml of curd. Stir the contents well for 10 seconds.

Then, add 1 table spoon of iodized salt and stir for another 10 seconds.

Add 200g (3 medium sized tomatoes) of sliced tomatoes. Now keep flame in HIGH.

Stir regularly and sauté it for 2 to 3 minutes in high flame.

Now, reduce the flame to LOW.

It’s time to add ½ kg of mutton to this mixture of masala in vessel now.

If in case you feel the mutton is hard, then please boil the meat in a cooker and then add it to this masala mixture.

After adding meat, pour in exactly 800 ml of water.

Place a lid on the vessel – then keep flame in HIGH for the water to boil.

Once the water boils (2 or 3 minutes), put the flame to LOW and open the lid to stir gently once more, so that all the masala mixes up very well.

In low flame, close the vessel with lid, let the water boil for another 15 to 20 minutes.

Now, remove lid, check if the meat pieces are cooked properly.

We can take just one piece of meat and press it gently – it should break softly.

Once the meats are cooked, we can add ½ kg of basmati rice to the boiling mixture of water, meat and masala then.

Make sure the rice is immersed in the water completely.

Keep the flame in HIGH for 30 seconds – close the lid – this will initiate the boiling of water soon.

Remove the lid from top, stir the contents gently once again.

Its time to check the level of spiciness, saltiness and sourness. Take a little of the masala mixed water to taste and confirm that it tastes good. Or else add a little of salt, spice or sourness as needed.

Then, place lid on the vessel, keep flame in LOW, let it for 10 to 12 minutes for the dum to happen.

Remove the lid and check for any water in the bottom, if water is still present, close the lid and keep it for another 1 or 2 minutes in low flame.

Now the Mutton Dum biryani is cooked well and ready to be served hot. Enjoy!!!