Authentic and flavorful chicken biryani ready to eat in an hour? Yes, it’s absolutely possible with an Instant Pot!
This aromatic and mouthwatering chicken biryani is a family-favorite. In fact, I think I like chicken biryani just as much – possibly more than my butter chicken. That is saying A LOT y’all.
But really, what’s not to love about perfectly seasoned chicken + rice in one pot?
MY LATEST VIDEOSI’m sharing this recipe for the most amazing Instant Pot Chicken Biryani from my cookbook, Indian Food Under Pressure. It’s a recipe that deserves to be on the blog because I believe that everyone should be able to make authentic and delicious chicken biryani in one pot if they want to. Think: tender pieces of chicken and perfectly cooked rice all coated in a perfect blend of spices. SO GOOD.
I LOVE biryani. I’ve been eating biryani all my life and have tried so many different types of biryani. I have already shared a shrimp biryani and a lamb/beef biryani on the blog and am so happy to be adding chicken biryani to the list!
If you are familiar with biryani, then you know it typically takes a very long time to prepare and requires dirtying several dishes. With my recipe + your handy dandy Instant Pot, you can make a one-pot recipe that is just as good as the traditional version and creates less mess! It takes just 10 minutes of prep time and can be ready-to-eat in under an hour.
This dish is easy enough to make on a weeknight and impressive enough to serve to your guests at a dinner party. So invite me over for dinner, won’t you? 😉
Instant Pot Chicken Biryani
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This flavorful chicken biryani is a family-favorite. Biryani, a well- seasoned meat and rice dish, typically takes a long time to prepare and requires dirtying several dishes but this one-pot recipe is just as good as the traditional version and creates less mess! It takes just 10 minutes of prep time and can be ready-to-eat in under an hour. It’s easy enough to make on a weeknight and impressive enough to serve to your guests at a dinner party.
Ingredients
- 1 cup basmati rice, soaked 15-30 minutes
- 3 tablespoons ghee
- ⅓ cup cashews, halved
- 2 tablespoons golden raisins
Whole Spices
- 5 cardamom pods
- 4 whole cloves
- 2 bay leaf
- ½ cinnamon stick
- ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
- ½ teaspoon fennel seeds
- 1 onion, thinly sliced
- 4 teaspoons minced garlic
- 2 teaspoons minced ginger
- 1 ½ pounds skinless and boneless chicken thighs, cut into quarters
Ground Spices
- 2 teaspoons coriander powder
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 2 teaspoons salt, adjust to taste
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne, adjust to taste
- ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric
- 1 cup water
- ½ cup fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
- ½ cup fresh mint leaves, chopped
Instructions
- Soak the basmati rice in cold water for 15-30 minutes. Drain, rinse and set aside.
- Press the sauté button. Add the ghee to the pot. When it melts, add the cashews and raisins. Stir-fry until the cashews begin to turn golden. Remove the cashews and raisins. Set aside.
- Add the whole spices and stir. Once they begin to sizzle add the onions. Stir-fry for 6-7 minutes or until they begin to brown.
- Add the garlic and ginger and stir-fry for 30 seconds.
- Add the chicken and stir-fry 6-7 minutes or until the outside of the chicken is no longer pink.
- Add the ground spices and mix to coat the chicken.
- Dump the rice on top of the chicken (do not mix). Add water.
- Sprinkle half the cilantro and mint on top of the rice.
- Secure the lid, close the pressure valve and cook for 6 minutes at high pressure.
- Naturally release pressure for 10 minutes. Open the valve to release any remaining pressure.
- Discard the whole spices. Sprinkle with remaining cilantro and mint and garnish with the ghee-coated cashews and raisins.
Notes
- I love this brand of basmati rice – the rice grains are always perfectly cooked!
If you love my chicken biryani, then be sure to check out my Instant Pot Cookbook: Indian Food Under Pressure for more tasty Indian recipes!
This looks amazing, will definitely be making it next week! Sorry if this information is somewhere, I couldn’t find it – how many portions does this make?
Thanks
Hi Lizzie! I’d say it serves 4-5 🙂 Let me know what you think of it!
I have made this chicken biryani many times now, and it is SO good. I’ve also made your shrimp biryani and the brown rice and beef biryani, and the chicken is my favorite. Thank you for sharing your awesome recipes! I bought your cookbook, and have made several recipes, all very good. I do have a question for you – I have a slight allergy to onions and garlic and have been reading about asafetida; do you have any recipes using this as a subsitute for alliums? I would love to find a good one!
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Jess, it makes me so happy to hear that you’ve tried all of my biryani recipes (more to come, soon)! Glad you like the chicken biryani so much – thank you for letting me know! To be honest, I haven’t used hing in cooking because it’s very difficult to find a gluten-free asafoetida (although I may be getting my hands on some soon) so I’m not very familiar with it. Are you in my Instant Pot for Indian Food facebook group? Someone in there recently asked about no garlic/onion recipes and it was quite a long discussion – they discussed asafoetida as well. It may be helpful for you!
Thank you for the FB group recommendation. I’ll try it out, and do some experimentation myself!
This recipe is really good 🙂 But what I really came here to say is that I bought some gluten-free asafoetida a while back and I’ve been loving it.
It’s blended with fenugreek, so I think that’s pretty reasonable! I don’t think I can taste the fenugreek.
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That’s great to hear!! Will have to check this out, thank you 🙂
I made this tonight and it was delicious! My 7yo loved it. I couldn’t figure out what made it so spicy since I didn’t use cayenne or chili powder. Not sure if it was the paprika or Garam Masala. It was a bit spicy for my son but the flavor was so good he kept eating it anyway!!
Kristen, I’m so happy to hear that you and your kiddo liked it! As for reducing the heat next time though, try leaving out the black pepper. Garam masala already has black pepper in it so maybe the extra bit made it too spicy for him? Thanks for letting me know how it turned out for you 🙂
I’m so excited to try this recipe! I have ground cloves, but not whole – can i substitute that? Online it’s seems to say one teaspoon of whole cloves is 3/4 teaspoon of ground cloves. Do you think that would work, or would it change the dish too much? I also don’t have the cinnamon stick – would cinnamon powder work?
Hi Ani! I would say to just leave the cloves out — ground cloves are much stronger in my opinion and it’s really easy to overdo it. It’ll still be good even without it! As for the cinnamon, you can just add a pinch of powder. Can’t wait to hear what you think of the dish!
Would you be able to substitute brown rice and change the cook time or would that overcook the chicken?
Jon, if you want to use brown rice with this recipe then I suggest using quick cooking brown basmati rice – it takes the same amount of time as white basmati rice. I think using regular brown basmati rice could result in overcooked chicken but I haven’t tried it so I can’t say for sure. If you try, please let me know!
I don’t eat chicken but made this for my husband and son. Now, thanks to you, our local restaurant will be losing business because they have declared that they will never be ordering from the restaurant again. The fragrance and taste was amazing and the boys said the chicken was fall-off-the-bone tender (we used drumsticks, didn’t have thighs). The only disappointing thing is that I have owned my InstantPot for over two years, and have only just now realized it can do this – all this time I had exclusively been using it only as a pressure cooker 🙁
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Varusha, haha wow!! I’m so happy o hear that they like the biryani so much!! Thank you so much for letting me know how it turned out 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of any other recipes you try with your instant pot!
This was a big hit in our household. Living in Hawaii the humidity got to some of my spices, so I had to leave out the paprika and substitute caraway seeds for the fennel, but the dish was still super delicious. My 10 year old asked for seconds and was happy is finished as her friend was being picked up so she didn’t have to share – that alone speaks volumes. Have definitely made it into our favorites rotation. Thank you!
Julie, I’m so happy to hear that you and especially your 10 year old liked this dish! 🙂 Thanks for letting me know how it turned out for you!
If I want to increase the rice to 2 cups, will I need to increase any of the spices and cooking time? I assume I must increase the water though.
You can double the recipe by doubling all the ingredients – keep the cook time the same though. The pot will take longer to reach pressure due to more contents in the pot – so you can keep the cook time the same.
Can you freeze this?
Hi Anita, yes you can freeze it 🙂 I prefer to eat it within a few days though but freezing works too.
hi. this looks so yummy and I’m going to try it with 2 cups of rice, how long you think it takes to cook?
You can keep the cook time the same 🙂
The unofficial, national dish of Trinidad and Tobago is called Pelau. It’s a one pot rice and chicken (or whatever meat) meal. We take it to the beach for an all day “lime”, or cook it up for whatever occasion when there’s a large group hanging out. This recipe is similar to a pelau, but with deeper flavors. It doesn’t taste quite Indian, it doesn’t taste quite Trini. It hits that sweet spot in between where when I make this for my family, they will say…”I didn’t know you had such a sweet hand!” I’m not known for my cooking skills in the family. 🤣🤣❤
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Glad you liked it! 🙂
Amazing! Thank you so much for the wonderful recipe.
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Briita, I am so happy to hear that! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out for you! 🙂
Thank you for this and all your recipes! It was delicious. My 7 year old gave it an 8/10 (and it’s really spicy). My kids (and I) love Indian food but I was way too intimidated to make it until I came upon your blog. Thank you!
Amy, I’m so happy to hear that you all liked the dish! 🙂 Glad you are making more Indian food!
I loved the recipe! How would you make a vegetarian/tofu biryani? Just substitute the chicken for the tofu?
Payal, I have a veggie biryani coming to the blog soon so stay tuned! I actually also posted an egg biryani recipe today if you eat eggs 🙂
I made it yesterday and it came out really good. Thank you for sharing.
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So happy to hear that, thank you Punum!!
Hey, thanks a lot for the recipe! I made it and now it tasted really good. However, it turned out more like chicken and curry mixed with rice. It wasn’t dry like Biryani is. It was very wet. Wonder what I did wrong!? 😟
Hmm it should be dry – did you add more chicken than the recipe called for by any chance? Chicken releases water as it cooks… that’s my only guess. If you can give me more details I can try to help troubleshoot!
Yes! I think I put little more chicken than you mentioned. Will try again and get back to you! Thanks a lot 🙂
Let me know how it goes! 🙂
i keep forgetting to pull chicken out of the freezer. i’m newer to instant pot. what are you throughts on frozen chicken? some bloggers say its fine to use? thanks!
Hi Ashley this was great. Could you post a chicken biryani recipe for the instant pot that uses a yogurt marinade?ped
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I will add this to my list! 🙂
The last step instructs you to “Discard the whole spices.” But the “Whole Spices” section includes several types of seeds and minced ingredients. How do you discard such things after they’ve been mixed together with everything else?
This looks pretty tasty.
Hi David, you eat the cumin and fennel seeds – I’m referring to the cardamom, cloves, bay leaf and cinnamon stick – sorry for the confusion!`
Hi this is nyla i am new to this community and also to instant pot ans its recipes. I like your biryani recipe. Plz tell ne the ratio of rice n water for intant pot. As when i cook on stove top i add 1 is to 2.for example 1 cup rice 1 and hslf cup water.somy question is what wull be ratio in instant por.
Thanks in advance
Regatds. Nyla
Hi Ashley, I made this last night, and it turned out great!! I love your biryani recipes – I tried this chicken one and the shrimp biryani. The instant pot recipe makes it so easy and efficient to make the biryanis without sacrificing taste!
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Maneesha, that is awesome!! I’m so happy to hear that you made the chicken biryani and the shrimp biryani! 🙂
Is there anyway to make crockpot biryani?
I haven’t tried this in a slow cooker but I’m sure it can be done! I don’t know the times or settings for this though… if you try, please let us know!
Hi Ashley, can the chicken biryani be made with chicken drumsticks instead of boneless chicken? If yes, what would be the cooking time? Thanks, love your recipes ❤️
Hi Swapnil, you can use chicken drumsticks but I’d suggest removing the skin as it’ll get soggy in the IP. It should cook in the same amount of time. Let me know how it goes!
This was delicious! I used brown basmati rice and about 20 minutes was a good cooking time (plus 10 minutes of the natural pressure release). I might double the raisins next time but otherwise, this was a wonderful recipe. We just moved to a rural area and we miss having an Indian restaurant nearby. I’m looking forward to working through more of your recipes as I try to learn more about Indian cooking. Thank you!
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Sarah, that’s great to hear!! Thanks for letting me (and others reading this) know how it turned out with brown basmati rice! Can’t wait to hear what you think of any other recipes you try!
Turned out amazing
So happy to hear that!
So delish!!! Thank you so much for making biryani less intimidating.
Thanks, Tina!! So happy to hear that 🙂
Would this work with boneless/skinless chickenbreast?
what rice do u use..? any particular brand. Also, r u using brown rice in this recipe, y is the color so brown? I never get that color..
I use this brand – highly recommend it! And no, I don’t use brown rice for this recipe – the color comes from the spices 🙂
I received my Instant Pot just a few days ago..after almost memorizing the manual I made this Chicken Byriani recipe as my first meal.
I order this dish every time I go to an Indian restaurant..I was happy to discover the recipe makes it even better than my favorite restaurant does.
Thanks for the recipe and looking forward to making more….I love Indian food.
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Elle, that makes me so happy to hear!! Thanks so much for letting me know how this turned out for you 🙂
This was awesome! Made a double batch with brown rice cooked for 20 minutes and 10 minutes natural pressure release. Thanks for another yummy version of chicken and rice in the instant pot for this busy mama. The 1.5 year old and 4 years old loved it too!
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Elizabeth, I’m so glad you and your kiddos loved it! And good to know that it worked well with brown rice! Thanks so much for letting me know how this turned out for you all 🙂
I received the instant pot yesterday ( I ordered it after seeing all your recipes), I made the chicken biriyani today. It’s delicious and full of flavor, the best biriyani I have made so far. I ordered your cookbook and looking forward to trying more recipes . Thank you.
Tina, that makes me so happy to hear!! Thanks so much for letting me know how the biryani turned out for you 🙂 I hope you love all the recipes you try from my book!
OH MY GOSH THIS WAS SO GOOD!!! I rarely brag about my dinners but I’ve told everyone in the office about this one. I didn’t have the “whole” version of a few spices (cinnamon, cumin, and cardamom) so I used 1/2 to 1 teaspoons of the “ground” version (eyeballed it) – still absolutely amazing recipe!!!
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I’m so happy to hear that!! Thank you for letting me know how much you liked it 🙂 And for telling others in your office too!
This is delicious. My kids gobbled up every last speck!
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Deepa, so happy to hear that your kiddos liked it!! that’s the best compliment 🙂
Love most of your recipes but sadly this is a pulao, not a biryani. I am not sure which “gharana” of biryani has cashews and raisins in it – neither the authentic Awadhi, nor the diluted Lucknow/Calcutta derivative. Also, this recipe will definitely pass as an excellent pulao, but not really biryani.
However, I will give it a go and I am sure I will love it “as a pulao”
let me know what you think after you try it…
We really loved this recipe. We like heat, so added a few sliced serrano chilies and upped the cayenne a bit. It was a perfect consistency. I also added a touch of cayenne and the cinnamon to the nuts and raisins. (Then threw the cinnamon back in per the directions. I will make this recipe again. Thanks.
Oh, and I forgot to mark the stars there. Five star all the way.
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Thank you! 🙂
Lynn, that’s so great to hear 🙂 Thanks for letting me know how it turned out for you!
Just made this and it is fantastic! I reduced the chicken to 1 lb and threw in a cup of frozen peas and two carrots sliced into sticks (I borrowed from your veg biryani recipe!). Also, raisins fried in ghee – YUM.
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Elizabeth, so happy to hear that! glad you liked it! 🙂
Made this for the first time yesterday. Biryani has always seemed like too much work for me but this Instant pot Biryani turned out great and so much less work. Big hit with my family. Thank you
Maya, so happy to hear that you liked the biryani! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out for you and your family! 🙂
Hi! I want to make this with boneless beef stew cubes. Should I pressure for 7 minutes still? Or maybe 10?
What about yogurt? My mom says it’s a mystery to add yogurt to the meat but I didn’t see it in your recipe. How can I incorporate it?
Can’t wait to make this. Do you use green cardamom pods or black?
Hi Brittany! I use green cardamom 🙂 If a recipe calls for black cardamom then I make sure to add the word black in front as it’s not very commonly used
I’m so excited to try this recipe! I don’t have cardamom pods but I have ground cardamom-will it be a problem to substitute in ground cardamom?
Also your butter chicken recipe is my husband and I’s absolute favorite dish ever!!!
Hi Kristin, if you use ground cardamom just use a pinch as it’s more concentrated than the pods. I hope you love this! Let me know what you and your hubby think!
So delicious! I’d never tried this dish before but will certainly be making it again! Husband loved it too and he is so picky I usually don’t share with him, but he was so impressed he took some over to share with neighbors.
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Kristin, I’m so happy to hear that!! Thanks for letting me know how much you guys liked it 🙂 And how nice of you to share with your neighbors – I hope they loved it too!