Biryani - The Mass Hero of Indian Cuisine

In the age where there are reviews for each and every thing available in the face of the planet, I am sitting in my chair and wondering, "Why no one has reviewed the food dishes?". I mean, we see many people reviewing the restaurant's food! But there is no one, who understands the dish and reviews it for the reason, why it is has been popular or why did it come up in the first place and is the dish really worth its hype!? 

These were the thoughts, that made me start this series of articles, which will review the dishes and not the restaurants which serve them. Setting everything aside, just close your eyes and imagine this, the aromatic flavour that comes from the combination of cloves, cardamom and cinnamon when you are crossing the road, along with the 'tak.. tak.. ' sound of the serving spoon hitting the vessel, made by the guy serving the biryani; that is more than enough to pull half of us into the shop and in no time, we will be leaving with a couple of biryani as takeaway. There are even people like me, who travel a long distance to get the taste of a biryani, which will have only one small shop at a corner and would have became famous, just by the word of mouth. There are many successful restaurant business that had sprouted up, which became popular by just serving this one dish. So, Why is this dish so popular? What makes it so tasty? 

Image source: Google

Before making any comments on the dish, lets take a look at the origin of it. Biryani is said to be originated in Persia. It is derived from the Farsi word, 'Birian', which means 'fried before cooking'. In olden days, rice was fried in ghee, which gave it a nutty flavor and also gelatinized the starch layer. The arabian traders made their way to India via Afghanistan, some traders took the sea route and landed at Calicut and various other parts of India; which explains the various different versions of biryani available.

Initially, biryani was prepared only with the lamb leg. But as time passed and different versions of the dish came up and there have been various kinds of biryani ranging from chicken, mutton, fish, beef and also vegetables like potato, carrot, beans, etc., 

Coming to today's scenario, biryani has blended into our lives so well. One or two decades back, only a few people used to have biryani or at least we will have it once a month. Also there we only a handful of restaurants/shops that prepared this dish. But, now we can find a biryani shop at every street and corner. Moreover, the situation has changed so much, that now we have it once, twice or even thrice a week. Why has it become so popular? What made this dish to reach this mass popularity?

If we start analyzing the last question, there are quite a few points that comes up. First of all, biryani is easy to prepare. You do not need more ingredients or man power. Only the method and preparations, that makes the difference between an aromatic and tasty biryani and a mediocre biryani. Secondly, it is cheaper and satisfying; the rates range from around 150rs to 500rs. Thirdly, for the guy selling the biryani, it is very easy, since this dish doesn't need any special side dish, other than an egg, raitha and brinjal curry. Rather than cooking a 'full-meals' with 5 to 7 varieties of dishes, this is much easier and profitable for the vendor.

Image source: Google

When speaking about the biryani shops at the nook and corner of the streets, there may be some people who think of hygiene, decor and other things, but I am not here to comment or judge on that aspect. If this shop evades the hunger of a daily worker by giving him a dish that, WAS equal to what Kings used to have, and he doesn't bother about the other things then it is fine. If you want to have the biryani at a decent place with good service, decor and quality; there are restaurants which serve for those type of people too. Or you can also buy a take-away (parcel) and have it at your own home. 

This is what makes the Biryani, The Mass hero of the Indian cuisine.  It satisfies the taste buds like no other dish, at a nominal price and caters the needs and taste of everyone. It has reached each and everyone, deep into our hearts and tummy, that the mere word 'Biryani' makes some of us drool. The term biryani in itself has the essence, the versatile aroma, taste and looks that can trigger any familiar Indian's taste buds.

Biryani has also made many cities and towns famous, for their delicious and wonderful taste. If we check in Tamilnadu, everyone would have heard about Ambur biryani, Vyasarpadi biryani, Dindugal biryani, etc., Each of them vary in their taste and are delicious in their own way. Though many types of biryani use Basmati rice in their preparations, dindugal has been distinctive for their use of Seeraga samba rice in their biryani, which adds a wonderful new flavour and texture to it. 

Moving on, this would be the first dish that we will try out, when we start to learn cooking. Because, if we can master the art of making biryani at home, there is no other certificate that can match its value. There are thousands of websites and YouTube videos that will give you hundreds of techniques, to prepare the BEST biryani. According to me, all it takes is the patience, methodology and quality of ingredients. 

Finally, I would like to say that, since this dish pleases all the people, irrespective of their status and position. Also, this is one of the dishes that most of the people from other countries like and enjoy. Keeping all these points in mind, it is completely true to call this dish 'The Mass hero of Indian cuisine'

Thanks for reading through the article, if you like it, please do SHARE it and leave in your comments and thoughts in the comments section below. I would be more than happy to hear from you all, which will motivate me in a way.

Check out my previous article, Idli - the Hero of south-indian cuisine.

Have a nice day! 
Cheers!!