Instant Pot Chicken Biryani is one of my favorite dishes and one of the most requested meals at my house. This one-pot meal is made of fragrant basmati rice, tender spiced chicken, and caramelized onions, and it can be cooked in less than an hour while maintaining the same authentic flavor and texture of traditional biryani.
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Family Treasured Recipe
Biryani is one of India's most beloved dishes; rich in flavor and tradition, but often time-consuming to make. Growing up, my mom's Stovetop Chicken Biryani was a special treat, and I knew I had to find a way to bring that same magic to busy weeknights.
After a few trials, I cracked the Instant Pot version that is quick, easy, and full of authentic flavor.
Since then, I've had so much fun creating more one-pot biryanis you'll love: From fragrant Vegetable Biryani, Shrimp Biryani to hearty Chickpea Biryani (with vegan options!), Brown Rice Biryani, Fish Biryani, and Egg Biryani there's something for everyone, and all made effortlessly in the Instant Pot!
The Famous Instant Pot Chicken Biryani
Thank you to all who have tried this recipe. It has become so popular that when I published The Essential Indian Instant Pot Cookbook, I was requested that I also include this recipe in the cookbook. I hope you will enjoy 75+ modern recipes with authentic Indian flavors in my best-selling book.
How To Cook Different Chicken Cuts
I love biryani with chicken cooked tender and moist, while the rice is fluffy with each grain separated. There are 2 ways to cook biryani, depending on your chicken cut.
- Using bone-in, skinless chicken legs, I first partially cook the chicken by pressure cooking it for 4 minutes. Then layer over soaked and drained rice and pressure cook both chicken and rice for 6 minutes.
- Using small bone-in chicken pieces or boneless thighs - Skip the initial 4 minutes of pressure cooking and saute the marinated chicken for 2 to 3 minutes. Then layer the soaked and drained rice and pressure cook for 6 minutes.
How to Make Instant Pot Chicken Biryani
Here are step-by-step instructions with photos. Please check the printable recipe card at the end of this post for the ingredient quantities and detailed instructions.
1: Marinate the Chicken - Coat the chicken with ground spices, mint, cilantro, lemon juice, yogurt, and salt. For extra flavor and easy meal prep, you can marinate it ahead of time and refrigerate for up to 12 hours (photos 1-4).
2: Soak the Rice - Soak the rice for 20 minutes to ensure it cooks up light, fluffy, and with long, separate grains. I recommend using extra-long grain basmati rice for the best results-Kohinoor and Royal are two of my go-to brands, easily found at most Indian grocery stores (photos 5-6).
3: Caramelize the onions and deglaze - As the rice soaks, start to caramelize the onions. Caramelizing in the Instant Pot may cause the bottom of the pot to get scorched. Remember to deglaze the pot well with the liquids from the marinated chicken. Pressing cancel during deglazing also prevents further overheating (photos 7 - 10).
4: Partially Cook the Chicken - Bone-in chicken legs or drumsticks need a longer time to pressure cook than basmati rice. To achieve this, we first pressure-cook the chicken for 4 minutes. For boneless thighs, just sautéing for 2 to 3 minutes cooks the chicken partially, and then they can further cook along with the layered rice (photos 11 - 12).
5: Layer over Rice and Pressure Cook- Drain the rice and layer it over the partially cooked chicken. Add water and make sure all the rice is under the liquids (photos 13 - 14).
Once the Instant Pot has finished, open the lid and garnish the biryani with caramelized onions, saffron milk, fresh cilantro, and mint. Add the hard-boiled eggs on top (see photos 15-16). Let the rice cool slightly, then gently fluff it with a fork or silicone spatula. Serve with a side of raita and a squeeze of fresh lime!
Tips for making Biryani in the Instant Pot
- Marinate the Chicken Well: Pat dry the chicken to avoid excess moisture, then marinate for at least 20 minutes using plain full-fat yogurt. Use fresh garam masala for the best flavor-homemade is ideal.
- Caramelize and Deglaze Properly: If you're sautéing onions in the Instant Pot, be sure to deglaze the pot thoroughly after caramelizing. Turn off the pot and add 1 to 2 tablespoons of water to loosen any browned bits-there should be no residue left at the bottom. This prevents the dreaded "BURN" message and helps the pot come to pressure. Also, make sure the sealing ring is secured properly before pressure cooking. To avoid issues altogether, you can caramelize the onions on the stovetop in a non-stick pan. It's faster and helps keep the Instant Pot insert clean and scorch-free.
- Layer and Cook Thoughtfully: Make sure all of the rice is fully submerged in liquid before closing the Instant Pot. After cooking, the top layer of rice may appear slightly undercooked; fluff it gently and mix using a silicone spatula.
- Scaling the Recipe - You can safely halve the recipe without changing the pressure cook time. To double it, use an 8-QT Instant Pot-doubling in a 6-QT is not recommended. Cooking time stays the same either way.
★ Tried this recipe? I'd love to hear how it turned out! Leave a comment and let me know, or snap a quick pic and upload it-I love seeing your creations. If you're on Instagram, tag @ministry_of_curry so I can check it out. Your feedback means so much to me and makes all the time I spend perfecting each recipe totally worth it. Thank you!
Recipe
Instant Pot Chicken Biryani (Better Than Restaurant!)
Equipment
Recipe Video
Ingredients
Marinade
- 2 teaspoons garam masala Add 3 teaspoon for spicier Biryani
- 1 tablespoon ginger paste
- 1 tablespoon garlic paste
- 1 tablespoon kashmiri red chili powder
- ½ teaspoon ground turmeric
- ¼ cup mint leaves
- ¼ cup cilantro chopped
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- ¾ cup plain yogurt
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 2 pounds whole bone in chicken skinless cut into 12 pieces (If using chicken thighs cut into 2 inch pieces)
Other Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons ghee divided
- 2 large yellow onions thinly sliced
- 2 bay leaves
- 3 cups extra long grain Basmati rice
- 2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 3 cups water
- 1 teaspoon saffron mixed in 1 tablespoon warm milk
- 6 eggs hard boiled and shelled, optional
- 1 jalapeno sliced into 8 wedges optional for extra spicy **
Raita
- 2 cups plain yogurt
- 1 medium yellow onion finely diced
- 2 tomatoes diced
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon cilantro chopped
Instructions
- Make the marinade by mixing garam masala, ginger, garlic, red chili powder, turmeric, mint leaves, half of the chopped cilantro, lemon juice, yogurt, and salt. Add chicken and coat evenly with the marinade. Keep in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
- While the chicken is marinating, wash and soak the basmati rice in water. Keep aside for 20 minutes.
- Turn the Instant Pot to Saute(Hi). After the 'hot' sign displays, add half of the ghee and add thinly sliced onions. Cook stirring frequently for 10 minutes or until the onions are golden brown and caramelized. Take out half of the onion and keep aside for garnishing the biryani. Note: You can also air fry the onions
- Add the remaining ghee to the Instant Pot with half of the caramelized onions already in the pot. For extra spicy Biryani add sliced jalapeno. Add bay leaves and half of the marinated chicken and the liquid from the marinade. Press Cancel. Mix well, deglazing the pot with a spatula to take out all the browning of the pot from sautéing the onions. This is an important step that will prevent the possible "BURN" signal during pressure cooking. Once all the browning on the pot is completely removed, stir in the remaining chicken.
- a) For Chicken on bone - Close the Instant Pot and turn the pressure valve to sealing. Select Manual/Pressure Cook(Hi) and adjust the time to 4 minutes. Follow with Quick release. Mix the chicken well, once again scraping the bottom of the pot removing any food stuck to the bottom.
- or
- b) For boneless Chicken thighs - Cook on Saute mode for 2 to 3 minutes. Scrape the bottom of the pot to make sure there is no food sticking to the bottom.
- Drain the rice and gently pour it over the chicken. Add salt from the other ingredients list. Add water and gently push all the rice under the liquids. Do not stir. Close the Instant Pot and turn the pressure valve to sealing. Select Manual/Pressure Cook(Hi) mode and adjust the time to 6 minutes. Follow with Quick release.
- Open the Instant Pot. If the top layer of the rice looks uncooked, simply fluff the top layer of the rice. Then mix the rice with the chicken on the bottom of the pan. Using a silicone spatula to gently mix will also prevent the rice grains from breaking.
- Garnish with the remaining caramelized onions, saffron mixed with milk and cilantro. Serve with Raita, hard-boiled egg, and lemon wedges.
Raita
- To make the raita, whisk the yogurt in a medium bowl. Add onions, tomatoes, salt, and mix well. Garnish with cilantro.
Notes
- Deglaze the pot using some of the marinated chicken to remove any browned bits from the sautéing of the onions. This will help the Instant Pot come to pressure and also prevent the "BURN" signal.
- Deglaze the pot, once again just before adding the rice.
- Make sure all of the rice is under the liquids before closing the Instant Pot.
- It is normal for the top layer of the rice to look a bit undercooked. Simply fluff the top layer and then gently mix the biryani with a silicone spatula.
- ** This recipe makes medium spicy Biryani. For extra spicy add jalapeno. OR add another teaspoon of garam masala to the chicken.
- Tip - Although Sauté (more) function on the Instant Pot works great for true one-pot cooking, you can also caramelize the onions, stovetop in a non-stick pan. This will speed up the process and also will prevent the stainless steel insert from getting scorched which may lead to a "BURN" notice on the newer Instant Pots.
- Using small bone-in chicken pieces or boneless thighs - Skip the initial 4 minutes of pressure cooking and instead saute the marinated chicken for 2 to 3 minutes. Then layer the soaked and drained rice and pressure cook for 6 minutes
Nutrition
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Maitreyee says
Hi Archana,
I recently came across your page while looking for an easy biryani recipe. I precisely followed your recipe except for using coriander leaves, I used coriander chutney as I ran out of the leaves. The color of my biryani was green, maybe because of the chutney, but the biryani tasted amazing. This was by far the most easy and most delicious Biryani I ever made. Thank you! I am going to try all your recipes ... one at a time! 🙂
Archana says
Thank you Maitreyee!! You made my day with your lovely comments. I am glad you enjoyed the Biryani and I can’t wait to hear how you like the other recipes
Vivek says
I tried this Biryani yesterday and happy to say it turned out really awesome. Thanks for precise and clear instructions.
Only change I made was 4 cup water for 4 cups of rice and instead of qr after rice I waited for 2 minutes.
Thanks again.
Archana says
Thank you for letting me know! So glad you enjoyed this Biryani
Nikesh Bhagat says
Thank you Archana!
Prepared this Biryani this evening. My whole family loved it! It was my first attempt at cooking biryani that i have been longing for for years. This recipe hit the spot bang on! What deep intense flavours and the good quality saffron added the final touch..delicious.
Will be trying your other IP recipes in the near future.
Thank you!
Nikesh
Archana says
Hi Nikesh! Thank you for you kind words. I am so happy you enjoyed the flavors. Can't wait to hear what you think of my other recipes. Happy cooking 🙂
Nikesh Bhagat says
Loved it
Archana says
Thank you!
Niki Lamproplos says
If i reduce the recipe by half, would the timing change?
Archana says
Only the sauté time for onions will be less. Same pressure cooking time
Julia says
How would you make this recipe if you didn't have an instant-pot? I'm not sure if I will get one, as my kitchen is already littered with appliances that I seldom use and I'm not sure if I want to add to the crowd.
Archana says
Hi Julia, I will post the non instant pot recipe soon. It is uses different techniques.
Nilanjana says
Looks great Archana. Can I try this with Shan Biryani Masala instead? If so what proportion can I use? I have a lot of Biryani Masala at home but did not want the Biryani to be too spicy
Archana says
You can def use Shaan masala instead of all the spices in my recipe marination section. Refer to the masala box for how much to use.
Nilanjana says
Thank you!
Archana says
You are welcome! Let me know how it comes out.
Manju says
I need to replace yogurt in this recipe, what should I do? My son is dairy free.
Archana says
You can use dairy free yogurt or make it without yogurt. There is already lemon in the marinade. You may want to add 1/4 cup of water when cooking the chicken.
Jasmeen Kaur says
3 cup basmati racie means 250 ml cup or the cup that comes with IP?
Archana says
I use regular cup. The key here is to use the same cup measure for rice and water.
Andi says
Tried this today. Biryani turned out awesome! Thank you!
Archana says
Thank you!
S says
Awesome fool proof recipe! Thank you so much for this!! Was worried about it being watery per a few other reviews, but the rice came out perfectly. Made it with boneless chicken thighs and added shah Jeera along with bay leaves since my Garam Masala does not have it.
If you are reading reviews to decide, definitely give it a try. I have made dum Biryani before and this tastes almost the same, with less cooking time and easier process.
Archana says
Thank you!!
Grace says
Hi Archana, Sorry if i'm being a total noob asking this. But what do i do with that milk that the saffron warmed in? Hoping to try it tonight so hope someone could give me some guidance!
Grace says
Sorry! I just watched your video and figured it out! THanks.. looking forward to making this!!
Archana says
Hi Grace! Sorry just seeing this now. Hope you enjoyed the Biryani?
Lisa says
How do I change this if I’m using a slow cooker instead?
Archana says
Hi Lisa! I am so sorry. I have not tried this recipe in slow cooker to give you the exact timings and water ratio.
Kerry says
Hi! I made this for the first time today and it's delicious! From the comments and your replies I learned to watch the amount of liquid in the pot after cooking the chicken and reduced the water for the rice. Sorry if you had already explained this but why do you cook this in 2 stages? Can the rice and chicken be cooked at the same time? Thanks!
Archana says
In my original recipe I used bigger pieces of bone in chicken which needs extra cooking time. So I cooked it in 2 stages. Also if you pat dry your chicken with paper towel before marinating in regular yogurt, chicken chicken does not release as much water. I am so happy you enjoyed the flavors!
Sabina says
Hi Archana, Let me start by saying that I absolutely love your recipe of chicken biryani. I inaugurated my IP with this recipe and it came out great. The next time I became more adventurous and ended up with a few challenges. I doubled the chicken but kept the rice as three cups with three cups of water. The IP did not build full steam and in fact showed the "burn" notice on the front. What should I have done differently to avoid the burn notice? Thanks in advance.
Archana says
Hi Sabina! I bet the pot was scorched too much with sauteeing of the onions. You have to remove all the browning by deglazing the pot using the liquids from the marinade. Hope this helps. Check out the video for my brown rice Biryani to see the deglazing process
prad says
Hi Archana,
I am new to instant pot and I recently bought Ultra 60 10 in 1 IP. The first recipe I tried is your chicken biryani. after the Rice was put on manual Hi for 6 mins and after the QR, I noticed the Rice was not fully cooked. So put in little water may be 1/2 cup and put it manual Hi for 4 min but then after 2 mins I got the signal "Burnt" So I just cancelled the whole thing and switched it off. When I opened it the rice was done but lt was very very slightly burnt. The Biryani taste was awesome!! But still I wanted to know if the setting needs to be changed for my Model?
thanks
Prad
Archana says
If the rice looks little uncooked, simple fluff the top with a fork and close the Instant Pot. It usually cooks with the heat inside the Instant Pot. If not just sprinkle water on top and keep Instant Pot closed. Turning the Instant Pot on after all the liquids are absorbed usually will cause burn.
Rashi says
I have never made Chicken biryani ever and of course 1st time in instant pot. It came out delicious. I needed small portion so used 1.5 cups rice. For that 6 mins were long as had a bit of a burnt layer on rice at the bottom. Next time will put for 4 mins. Otherwise came out very well. Thanks for putting this recipe up.
Archana says
Awesome for a first timer!! Deglaze the pot well after adding water, this will prevent the burn.
rose says
Hi! Instant pot beginner over here! Thanks so much for this recipe! So like a few commenters above, my rice came out mushy from too much water. I think my chicken was wet when I was marinating it. Anyway, is there any way to fix this? I tried pressure cooking it again with QR for another 15 minutes but its still really wet and mushy. Any suggestions?
Archana says
I would just put it out in a platter and reheat in the oven. Cooking it longer will only make it more mushy. Hope this helps.
rose says
thanks I'll try that. What heat setting should I use to try this method?
Archana says
Rose, allow the biryani to cool down first, that itself will take a lot of moisture away. Then you can heat uncovered at 400 degrees.
Swati says
Amazing Biryani recipe Archana! Thank you so much for posting it. I have prepared this couple of times and my family loves it.
Have a quick question - I use mix of bonless chicken breast/thigh pieces and chicken drumsticks. Because of chicken on bone, used 4 mins QPR option. Drumsticks turn out nice and soft but the bonelss pieces become quite dry. Should I reduce the timing? Can you please suggest what I can do differently?
Archana says
Hi Swati, Thank you for your feedback. So happy that you are enjoying this recipe. For boneless pieces the instructions call for just sauteeing. Depending on the size of the chicken pieces, I would just saute for a few minutes. You do not have to pressure cook them.
Swati says
Great, I will try just sauteeing. Thanks for the quick response Archana!
Archana says
You are welcome! Let me know how it comes out.
Shruti Ranade says
Hi,
I have boneless skinless chicken thighs..how much time I
Should sauté them..Thank u so much for sharing your recipes
Archana says
Hi Shruti, just sauté it for 2-3 mins then add rice and pressure cook