Fried Onions (Birista)
Biryani without crisp fried onions is incomplete and it sure lacks the flavor. You may have noticed that a lot of time goes into making fried onions every time you make a biryani or korma. Making these ahead is a one-time task but they will last very long in your freezer without getting rancid or the flavors being diminished. Having a pack of these birista ready in your freezer makes you want to make biryani and kormas more often. I know you may think of using the store bought crispy onions. But most of the times they smell rancid or if they don’t they are fried in vegetable fat like Vanaspati or even other kinds of fat which are not healthy. A lot of times I start my biryani from scratch and that includes frying the onions as well. I love to use ghee if I am making a small batch of biryani just enough for the day. Other times I prefer to use oil. Fried onions can be made with just 2 ingredients – onions and oil. But I prefer to use the third ingredient corn starch which gives them an amazing extra crisp texture without altering their flavor. I learnt this trick many many years ago from the popular Hyderabadi Chef Sanjay Thumma. A little sprinkle of corn starch gives great results. However if you want to avoid it, you may leave out. They will still turn out good. You can use beresta to makeVeg biryaniChicken biryaniMutton biryaniPaneer biryani
How to Make Crispy Fried Onions (Stepwise Photos)
- Wash, peel and slice 1 large onion to thin slices.
- Sprinkle corn flour. Toss them.
- Fry in hot oil until golden.
- Drain on a kitchen tissue. Cool crispy onions and store in a air tight freezer safe container or zip lock bag. Related Recipes
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