Keema Biryani in a Pressure Cooker: 30 Minutes, Start to Finish

Fadwa walks through a complete keema biryani recipe using a pressure cooker. The whole thing takes about 30 minutes and works even with frozen ground beef, making it a strong option for a weeknight dinner when you have not planned ahead.

Sauteing the Base

Set the pressure cooker to high saute mode and heat oil. Add one chopped onion and stir periodically while prepping the rest of the ingredients: chop a tomato and cilantro, and wash the rice thoroughly.

The onions take about 10 minutes to reach a golden brown color. Then add garlic paste and ginger paste, followed by two chopped tomatoes. Let the tomatoes soften for 2-3 minutes.

Cooking the Keema

Add the ground beef (lean). One of the big advantages of this recipe is that you can use frozen meat. Throw it in frozen, let it simmer longer, and break it up with a spoon as it defrosts.

Let the meat sit undisturbed for about 5 minutes at a time to get a good sear on one side before breaking it up further.

Add 4 tablespoons of store-bought biryani masala. This is more than the usual amount. With keema, the ground meat absorbs all the spices, so if you only use half a packet (like you would with chicken or beef chunks), there will not be enough flavor left for the rice. Use the full packet. Add salt to taste, starting with half a teaspoon since the masala already contains some.

Cook until no pink remains. Add half a cup of plain yogurt (whisked or brought to room temperature first to prevent curdling) and two whole green chilies.

Layering the Rice

Add the washed and drained rice on top of the keema without mixing. This creates a layered effect similar to stovetop biryani. When it is done, you scoop from the bottom to mix keema with rice in whatever ratio you want.

A note on rice prep: Fadwa does not soak her rice. She rinses it 5-10 times until the water runs completely clear. Soaking can lead to mushy rice in a pressure cooker, but if you know your rice brand and prefer soaking, adjust accordingly.

If you want spicier rice throughout, mix the keema and rice together before adding water. If you want the layered effect, leave them separate.

Pressure Cooking

Pressure cook on the rice setting (low pressure) for 12 minutes. After it finishes, do not release the steam. Let it rest for 10-15 minutes. This extra time lets the rice absorb the remaining steam and finish cooking to the right texture.

For softer rice, use 15 minutes instead of 12. The 12-minute setting produces separated, distinct grains.

Release the remaining pressure, add chopped cilantro, and serve by scraping up from the bottom to get both layers.

Key Takeaways

• Use the full packet of biryani masala for keema, not half. Ground meat absorbs more spice than chunks.
• Frozen ground beef works. It just needs more simmering time to defrost and brown.
• 12 minutes low pressure plus 10 minutes of resting time produces perfectly separated rice.
• Wash rice thoroughly (5-10 rinses) instead of soaking to avoid mushiness in the pressure cooker.