Life Hacks

How to cook meat Biryani for Christmas

Cynthia Lodite 13th December, 2025 02:00 PM

This classic dish, made with tender meat, fragrant spices, and perfectly cooked rice, brings warmth and celebration to every bite.

Whether you’re hosting a big family gathering or preparing a special meal at home, here’s how you can make delicious meat biryani that will wow your guests this Christmas.

In a bowl, marinate the beef with Maziwa Mala (which you can also make using milk and white vinegar) and ginger and garlic paste. Grated raw pawpaw (Beef tends to be hard, so to make it softer/tender, use grated raw pawpaw).
For mutton or chicken, you can opt to use pawpaw, salt, and half a teaspoon of the biryani spice or pilau masala (if you do not have the biryani spice), and mix it well with a spatula or clean hands. Cover and put in the fridge overnight or 2 hrs prior to cooking.
Next, cut your onions into rings, and fry them to golden brown. Please note, do not burn the onions. Set aside on a serviette/paper towel so as to soak up excess oil.
Now, remove the beef and cook on medium heat for about 20 minutes until the meat softens. Add in your tomato paste and stir till the mixture “ROJO” starts changing color, which should be red-orange.
Add in the spices (1 tbsp of Biryani spice or pilau masala, cumin seeds, and black peppercorns) and give it a good stir. Adjust your heat to high and stir for, like, three minutes. You can taste for seasoning.
Add the browned onions to the meat and a bit of the oil that was used to fry the onions and mix it well. Allow to simmer for, like, two minutes, and remove the sauce “ROJO” from the heat.
In another sufuria/pot, add your rice and water (2.5 cups of rice:5 cups of water), leftover oil that was used to fry the onions, 2 cloves, 2 cinnamon sticks, one bay leaf, 2 cardamom pods, and salt, and bring to a boil on high heat.
When it boils, keep adjusting your heat so that it cooks evenly. In a cup, put 1/2 tsp of yellow food color or food color of your choice and a bit of water and stir.
When water dries up in the rice, make holes in your rice and sparingly pour the food color mixture. Cover rice with foil or a tight lid for 15 minutes on low heat.
Uncover and fluff the rice. Remove the bay leaf, turn off the heat, and serve your biryani.
You can serve it with Kachumbari like I did. ENJOY!!