Name: Wadi Ki Biryani | Instant Pot Punjabi Wadi Biryani
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 2 tbsp oil; 1 tsp cumin seeds; 2 cloves; 2 cardamom; 1 bay leaf; 1 -inch cinnamon; 1/2 cup wadi (crushed); 1 onion (roughly chopped); 1 tsp ginger-garlic paste; 2 tomatoes (roughly chopped); 1/2 tsp red chili powder; 1 tsp garam masala; 1/2 tsp amchur powder; 1 tsp salt; 1/4 tsp turmeric powder; 1/2 cup peas; 1/2 cup potato cubes; 1/4 cup cilantro; 1 cup basmati rice (washed and soaked for 20 minutes and drained); 1 1/3 cup water

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A spicy and a tangy biryani made with the potatoes and Punjabi special wadi or the spicy sun-dried lentil nuggets or fryums is what I am going to share today. Check out how I made this Waki ki biryani recipe in Instant Pot with step-wise pictures.

Punjabi Wadi:

We are in the last stretch of the Biryani-Pulao and Kichadi marathon. I am going share Wadi ki Biryani for the alphabet “W.” Before getting into the recipe, let me share about Wadi. Wadi is nothing but sun-dried lentil fryums/nuggets or dumplings. I know, it is referred by a lot of names. I got confused with the spelling as well – I read vadiyan and warrian as well. But the usage of wadi prevalently so went with that.Wadis are more like Tamil Nadu Karuvadagam. Karuvadagam is also sun-dried fryums, and we prepare it with black-eyed peas and urad dal along with white pumpkin. You can use fried karuvadagams as rice accompaniments, and also we add them vathal kuzhambu. Wadis are spicy sun-dried fryums made with different lentils. It’s a bit spicier than karuvadagam. But I can’t wait to try it in vathal kuzhambu and mor kuzhambu. :-)

Wadi ki Biryani:

I know, instead of biryani, I am talking about the kuzhambu/tamarind based stews. Ok, let me get back to the biryani now. I came across a lot of aloo/potato and wadi curries, so I decided to include potatoes and peas along with the wadi in this biryani. I did not include any other vegetables, and also I used basic whole spices and garam masala to spice it up further. The amchur powder adds that tangy kick. You can include lemon juice instead, but I prefer amchur powder especially in this biryani.

I am using the word “spicy” a lot, but believe me, folks; this biryani is not spicy at all. To my surprise, kiddo loved this biryani a lot. And I packed this for his lunch too. You can serve this with plain yogurt, and you don’t need raitas or curries.

I used store-bought wadis and please don’t think if you should buy wadis just for this recipe. I have quite a few South Indian and North Indian curry recipes coming up. So go on and purchase those wadis. :-)

Ok, now let me share how I made this super simple wadi ki biryani in Instant Pot.

Ingredients:

2 tbsp oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
Two cloves
Two cardamom
One bay leaf
1-inch cinnamon
1/2 cup wadi, crushed
One onion, roughly chopped
1 tsp ginger-garlic paste
Two tomatoes, roughly chopped
1/2 tsp red chili powder
1 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp amchur powder
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 cup peas
1/2 cup potato cubes
1/4 cup cilantro
1 cup basmati rice, washed and soaked for 20 minutes and drained
1 1/3 cup water

Prep-Work:

Wash and soak the basmati rice for 20 minutes and drain the water.
Crush the wadis into small bite-sized pieces.
Chop the required amount of potato cubes. I used two small potatoes.
Cut the onion and tomato.

Steps:

Set the Instant Pot in saute mode and when the display shows “HOT” add the oil.
After 30 seconds, add the cumin seeds, cloves, cardamom, bay leaf, cinnamon, and the wadi.

Fry for a minute.

Then add the onion and ginger-garlic paste and cook for two minutes.

Next, add the tomatoes, red chili powder, salt, turmeric powder, garam masala, and amchur powder.

Mix well and cook until the tomatoes are soft or for about 3 minutes.
Now add the potato cubes, peas, and cilantro. Gently mix.

Add rice and water and gently mix.

Make sure to scrape the bottom of the Instant Pot.

Close the Instant Pot lid and make sure the vent is in the sealing position. Now pressure cook for 5 minutes in high pressure and release the pressure quickly after 3 minutes. (IP Formula – 5 mts manual at high pressure and QPR after 3 minutes)

Carefully open the lid after releasing the pressure and allow the biryani to cool for 10 minutes. Then fluff it with a fork, or you can flip the rice on to a plate and let it cool and fluff too.
Enjoy the wadi ki biryani with yogurt.

Recipe Notes:

Make sure you cut the potatoes into big chunks. Instead of potatoes, you can use cauliflower as well.
Adjust the salt and spices according to your preference. Check if the wadi has salt in it already if so adjust accordingly.