Easy Instant Pot Shrimp Biryani With Vegetables – Weeknight Dinner

Instant Pot Shnrimp and Vegetable Biryani is a one pot  meal.  It has  rice ,  shrimp  vegetables  and  spices  for a quick  and  satisfying weeknight  meal or a lazy  weekend  indulgence.  What is  more , it is  gluten free and dairy  free . Serve  with a  side of  few  chips,  pickles or  raita (yogurt).

No, I am not an instant pot  fanatic. But I have been  using  a  pressure cooker  from  the  time I started  cooking. In fact it was  one  of  the  first things  I and  friends  bought   when  we  moved  into our  first apartment.

So I  do use  my  pressure  cooker  often,  a  few  examples  are

• Chole
• Jackfruit Biryani 
• Kalathappam
• One Pot Chicken Stew

Instant  pot is  the  traditional l  pressure  cooker in  steroids ?.   You don’t  have  to manually turn  it  on and  off – set  it  and  you can  walk away , where as  you  may have to set a  timer/reminder   to  come  back and   turn off  your  stove top one.

Having  said  that  these  have  one  distinct  advantage –   they don’t  heat  up  the  kitchen. The  residual  heat  loss  is  very minimal,  which is  good in  summer.   So yes , I have been  using it  often  now.  And  recipes   like  these are  my favorite.   In  about  30 minutes  you have   a  one  pot  meal to serve. Nothing  else  to make ,nothing  else  to  cleanup.

Of late  DH  has  been  pretty  regular  in taking  cake  of  the  dishes , I am  sure  he  appreciates  this as  well ? .

So what  goes  into this  Easy One Pot  Shrimp And Vegetables  Biriyani ?

Basmati Rice  – Look for  long  grain  aged  versions

Shrimp – look for  large / jumbo  varieties

Whole spices ,  Garam Masala & Ginger

Vegetables – Frozen bag of  peas and  carrots , onions

Herbs –  Cilantro /   mint

Cashew nuts  and  raisins (optional)

The  traditional biriyani will  require  the  rice to be  soaked  and  drained.   It is then  parcooked  and layered  with the   meat / vegetables  and  baked.

Here  wash and  soak the  rice  for  a  few  minutes – while you get  the  other  things  ready.  Drain it  when   you turn the  Instant Pot on. A note  of  caution  though  if  you have  to  step  away  and  the  rice  is  soaked  for  30 minutes  or  longer (if  it  looks  a  little  softened or  swollen)  drain it   for  20  to 30 minutes  before  proceeding  or  change  the  ratio of  rice  to  water to 1: 1.

Press the saute button on the Instant Pot. Once it displays hot, add oil to the pot. To the hot oil, add the  whole  dry spices and saute for 30 seconds or until the spices become fragrant.

To this  add the  thinly sliced and cashews. Cook for 3-4 minutes until onion turn light brown.  Add  the  grated  ginger and  garlic and cook for  another minute,  add  garam masala  and  salt and mix .  If  you like  it  spicy , this  is  the  time  to   add  chili powder (cayenne).

Add the drained rice to the pot and gently toss it all together.  Add the shrimp on top and  pour the  water.  Sprinkle  some  chopped  cilantro and  mint.

Close the pot with its lid and then press the manual or pressure cook button. Cook on high pressure for 5 minutes with the pressure valve in the sealing position.

Let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes and then release the remaining pressure manually. Open the pot and fluff the rice with a fork.

Instant Pot Shrimp Biryani

By Syama

This  is  an easy one pot  meal  made in the Instant Pot. Basmati rice is cooked with spices, shrimp and vegetables  in the pressure  cooker (Instant Pot)   to  make  this  one  pot  meal  with  a  good  mix  of carbs, protein and  vitamins.

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Prep Time 10 mins

Cook Time 25 mins

Total Time 35 mins

Course Dinner

Cuisine Indian

Servings 6

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 2 C  Basmati Rice Note 1
• 2.5 C Water
• 3 Tbsp  Oil
• 2 - 3 Bay leaves
• 4 – 6 Green Cardamoms
• 6   Whole Cloves
• 1 Tsp Cumin Seeds
• 1 Tsp Fennel Seeds
• 1 Onion - medium
• 2- 3   Green Chili Optional, To Taste
• 2 - 3 Tbsp Cashew Nuts Raw, Broken
• 2 Tbsp  Raisins
• 3 Cloves Garlic
• 1 Inch Fresh Ginger Root
• 1 Tsp Garam Masala
• 1/2 Tsp  Kashmiri Chili Powder / paprika
• 1 1/2 Tsp Salt or to taste
• 2 lb Shrimp  Peeled and  Deveined
• 2 C Frozen green peas and  carrots   Note 2
• 1/4 C Cilantro Chopped
• ¼ C Mint Chopped

For Easy Cucumber Raita

• 6 – 8 Inch Cucumber
• 2 C Plain yogurt - Whole/ Skim/ Non Dairy
• 1/4 Tsp Roasted Cumin Powder (optional)
• 1/4 Tsp Cayenne Or any Mild Chili powder (Optional)
• Salt To Taste (black salt if available)
• 2- 3 Sprigs Cilantro , Chopped

Instructions

 

• Wash and rinse the basmati rice in water until water turns clear. Soak in plenty of water for a  few  more  minutes.(Note 3).
• Slice  the  onions  thin , use a  microplane  to  grate  the  ginger  and  garlic  fine.  Chop the  cilantro fine. If using  fresh  veggies  chop them into  bite  sized pieces. While the rice is soaking, chop all the veggies.
• Rinse, pat  dry and pick any stray shells  from the  shrimp.
• Press the saute button on the Instant Pot. Once hot, add  the oil to the pot. To the hot oil, add all the  dry whole  spices. Saute for 30 seconds or until the spices are fragrant.
• Add the sliced onions, along with green chili (if using) and cashews. Cook for 3-4 minutes until the onion turns light brown (Note 4). Add   raisins stir for 30 seconds. Add the  grated ginger and  garlic cook for 1 more minute.
• Add  the  powdered  spices (garam masala and  paprika).  Wait  for  30 seconds  for  the  spices  to  release  its  aroma. Add vegetables and  half  the chopped cilantro  and  mint.
• Drain the  rice and  add  the  wet   rice  to the  instant  pot. Use a spatula  to level the  rice.  Layer the   shrimp on top. Pour the water evenly on top.
• Close the pot with its lid and then press the manual or pressure cook button. Cook on high pressure for 5 minutes with the pressure valve in the sealing position.
• Let the pressure release naturally for 5 minutes (Note 5) and then release the remaining pressure manually. Open the pot and fluff the rice with a fork.  Sprinkle  the  remaining  green  herbs  on top. 
• Serve the biryani with a side of raita (recipe below), chips or papad and pickle!

For Cucumber Raita

• If the cucumber is waxed peel it . Cut it lengthwise in half and scoop out the seeds. Coarsely grate the cucumber. Use a kitchen towel to blot the excess juices from the cucumber. Whisk yogurt, and salt together. Add cucumbers and cumin powder. Mix well and adjust salt to taste. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes , up to a day.
• Transfer to a serving bowl, sprinkle the cayenne pepper  and  chopped  cilantro leaves on top and serve.

Notes

1. Use premium quality aged  long   grain basmati    Rinse  well to  get rid  of  any extra  starch.
2. Lima beans ,  French beans   are other  vegetables  to add  to the  biriyani .
3. If soaking  the  rice for  30 minutes or longer  or  if  the  soaked  rice  is looking  swollen , reduce  the  water to 1: 1.
4. If the  onions  are  sliced  thin  they caramelize  faster. Optionally  reserve a  portion of  the  browned  onions   and  cashew nuts to  garnish.
5. You could wait  up to 10   minutes  before  releasing the pressure.
6. For stove top  version use 1.5 C water for  each 1 C  rice .

Important: Values are only estimates. Actuals vary depending on ingredients and serving size.

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