Mumbai: Places around the city to enjoy biryani with a twist

Food Dish Prawn Biryani

East Indian prawn biryani Alefiya Jane, Uttan

Call it a mix of traditions, but an East Indian prawn biryani may be just the culinary cosmopolitanism that this season calls for. With Alefiya Jane, 32, a home chef based out of Uttan, you get to order a prawn biryani that is at least two generations old. It's a recipe that was well-executed by her grandmother and her mother. "I have a diary that has handwritten notes from my Nanna and had grown up savouring her recipes. Being close to the beach, we got to have fresh fish, and also got other farm fresh ingredients. All of these made a difference to the dishes," says Jane, who caters under the label The Bottle Masala.

Alefiya Jane with her Food Dish Prawn Biryani. Pics/Sameer Markande

Among these is the prawn biryani, a specialty that uses coconut milk to tenderise and flavour the meat, rather than curd. Jane uses a green masala, made of pudina, coriander and green chilies primarily for the biryani. "My Nanna's recipe uses tamarind too, which changes the colour of the masala. I substitute it with lemon so that the greenness of the masala is retained," she says.

Because prawns are cooked easily and effortlessly, this biryani, vouches the home chef, is the easiest one to prepare. The coconut milk balances the piquant tones of the gravy, creating an overall khatta-meetha flavour for the biryani. To make sure that the quintessential spirit of a biryani is still there, Jane has her own batch of ground spices that she additionally adds to the dish. What's more, the biryani is cooked on dhum in an earthen pot. It's the goodness of the sea and the earthiness of the coast all rolled in one here.

Cost: Rs 1,200/kg
Order: One day in advance
Call: 9819497112
Caters to: Across Mumbai

Pro tip: As the prawns will cook on dhum later, make sure they are not overdone when frying them initially.

Cocktail biryani Chattriwala caterers, Bandra

Running the show since 1986 after doing a course in Hotel Management and food technology and a short stint in Saudi Arabia, Manaf Chatriwala is the go-to guy in Bandra for biryani and other Mughlai and Bohri delicacies.

Caterers Manaf Chatriwala with Biryani. Pic/Pradeep Dhivar

"The menu has been pretty consistent for years now with many fried and barbeque items as well as the whole cooked bakra on the list. Everyone wants to try the tried-and-tested," says Chattriwala.

Cocktail biryani, an innovation of Manaf from the early 1990s, has mutton, chicken and kebabs in it, hence the name cocktail. "It is not oily or pungent, has very less spices and there is no haldi or red chilli powder used at all. That's why the health-conscious clients often go for this," says Chatriwala.

Cost: Rs 1,400/kg
Order: One day in advance
Call: 9820267345
Caters to: Across Mumbai

Pro tip: "The meat, rice, oil and ghee need to be of superior quality to have a top-class biryani," says Chatriwala.

Lucknowi biryani, Pacha Caterers, Reay Road

At her kitchen in Reay Road, Shahin Pacha personally inspects every order that is cooked. While she entered the business was run by her father-in-law for 25 years only six years ago, she has been passionate about cooking and the business for a long time. "Two years before I officially took over in 2012, I used to go to the kitchen and understand the business, everything from procurement of ingredients and accounting, from my father-in-law," says Pacha.

Shahin Pacha made speciality biryani. Pic/Ashish Raje

The two chefs from Lucknow who have been with the business for 20 years now have contributed immensely in terms of knowledge, training and expertise. Lucknowi biryani is your best buy here. It's is full of flavour despite being made with less oil and spices. "I am making the best use of the years of experience that has been passed down from generations - both from my father-in-law and our chefs. After the meat is cooked in mild spices, it is layered in the vessel with rice over the meat, a tawa is put under the vessel, it is first covered with a newspaper then the lid is placed before it is placed on 'dum' on charcoal embers.

Cost: Rs 900/kg
Order: At least four days in advance
Call: 9892344565
Caters To: Across Mumbai

Pro tip: The more you marinate the meat, the better it cooks and absorbs flavours.

Kabsa biryani Anmol Caterers, Mazgaon

After running a few restaurants in Bandra, Kurla and Andheri areas, Mustafa T Lokhandwala felt an urge to innovate within the food industry. That's why, in 2003, he set up his own wholesale unit, Anmol Caterers at Dockyard Road, Mazgaon. Over the years, they have been associated with delectable biryanis, Bohra thaals and exclusive catering for boat parties.

Mustafa T Lokhandwala,. Pics/Sneha Kharabe

His two chefs Zakir Ali and Kismat Ali hail from a privileged lineage of a chef family in Uttar Pradesh and have been with him from the start. Lokhandwala's willingness to customise biryani according to requirement but not compromise on the quality and taste is what got him ahead of the game. "Not everyone wants the same amount of salt and spice. Also, we use very little oil," says Lokhandwala.

Kabsa Biryani

The specialty here is kabsa, a mixed rice dish from Saudi Arabia which is traditionally made with rice and meat. "We make it with mutton chops, other parts of a goat, chicken seekh, and chicken tikka as well. The base rice has a semi gravy with meat. This isn't a dum biryani and has a combination of all kinds of chicken and mutton pieces which makes it stand apart. We introduced this in our menu because it is a combination of starters and main course and is much loved by our clients," says Lokhandwala.

Cost: Rs 3,000/kg
Order: One day in advance
Call: 23263886
Caters to: Across Mumbai

Pro tip: For best results, cook the biryani on heated charcoal.

Catch up on all the latest Mumbai news, crime news, current affairs, and also a complete guide on Mumbai from food to things to do and events across the city here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates