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    Home » Instant Pot Recipes

    Instant Pot Chickpea Biryani (Chana Biryani)

    Published: Mar 23, 2023 by Archana · This post may contain affiliate links · As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases · 102 Comments

    4079 shares
    Jump to Recipe

    Chickpea Biryani is a wholesome one-pot vegetarian dish with protein-rich chickpeas cooked in caramelized onions and spices over fragrant basmati rice. Paired with cooling cucumber raita and a squeeze of fresh lime, this biryani makes a hearty gluten-free meal.

    chickpea biryani served with cucumber raita
    Jump to:
    • Inspiration
    • Ingredients
    • How to Make Chickpea(Chana) Biryani
    • Serving
    • Storing
    • Variations
    • More Biryani Recipes
    • Recipe

    Inspiration

    This chickpea biryani recipe is inspired by one of my favorite bloggers, Annika. I love that she uses very few spices that are easy to find: fresh ginger and garlic, turmeric, Kashmiri red chili powder, and garam masala.

    I am excited to share my version of the Chickpea Biryani using the Instant Pot pressure cooker and a few of my favorite whole spices. This versatile recipe can be easily modified to use the ingredients you have on hand and to your taste preference.

    two bowls of chickpea biryani and raita on the side

    Ingredients

    • Chickpeas - Dry chickpeas (also known as garbanzo beans or "Kabuli Chana / Chole") are a pantry staple and a good source of plant-based protein. Soak them in warm water overnight and then pressure cook them in the Instant Pot. You can also use canned chickpeas if you are short on time. I have included the reduced pressure cook time and water ratio in the notes section of the recipe card.
    • Basmati Rice - white basmati rice has a beautiful aroma and a short cooking time; the grains get long and fluffy when soaked in water before cooking. I have also included how to make chickpea biryani using brown rice in the recipe card notes.
    • Spices - This recipe uses basic Indian spices - bay leaves, cumin seeds, whole black peppercorns, turmeric, red chili powder, and garam masala. You can always more spices such as whole cloves, star anise, and cardamom if you like.

    How to Make Chickpea(Chana) Biryani

    • Turn the Instant Pot to Saute (more) mode and heat 2 tablespoons of ghee. Add onions and saute for 10 mins, frequently stirring until the onions are caramelized. Take out half of the onion and reserve for garnishing the biryani (photos 1 - 2).
    caramalizing onions
    • Wash and soak the rice for 20 minutes. Drain after 20 mins and keep aside (photos 3 - 4).
    steps showing how to soak and drain rice
    • Add the remaining ghee to the Instant Pot with half of the caramelized onions already in the pot. Add bay leaves, cumin, and black pepper, and saute for 30 seconds. Add drained chickpeas, ginger, garlic, chilies, turmeric, red chili powder, garam masala, salt, and water. Mix well (photos 5 - 6).
    steps showing chickpeas and spices added Instant Pot
    • Pressure Cook for 20 minutes followed by quick release. Stir the chickpeas well. Spread the chopped mint and cilantro evenly over the chickpeas. Add drained rice, remaining salt, and water. Ensure all the rice is under the water (photos 7 - 10).
    photos seven through ten showing how to make biryani in the Instant Pot
    • Close the Instant Pot lid with the pressure valve to sealing. Pressure Cook for 6 mins. Allow 5 mins natural pressure release. Open the Instant Pot and garnish with the reserved caramelized onions and cilantro. Gently fluff the rice. 
    chickpea biryani garnished with caramelized onions

    Serving

    Serve with cucumber raita or beetroot raita and a lime wedge. Drizzle over a spoonful of ghee if you like!

    Storing

    Leftover biryani can be refrigerated for 3 to 4 days. As with many Indian foods, the flavors will continue to develop overnight making it a great make-ahead dish. You can also freeze chickpea biryani for up to 2 months.

    Variations

    • Add 1 to 2 diced tomatoes with the chickpeas for a tangy flavor.
    • Substitute ghee with oil for a Vegan Chickpea Biryani.
    • If using canned chickpeas, rinse and drain the chickpeas and skip the initial pressure cooking step. Add only half a cup of water along with the chickpeas. Layer over soaked white rice and pressure cook for 6 minutes.
    • To make chickpea biryani with brown rice, layer rinsed brown rice over the soaked and uncooked chickpeas. Increase the pressure cook time to 25 minutes. The same water proportions will work. Also, no need to soak the brown rice since 25 minutes is a good time for brown rice to cook.
    • Instead of caramelizing the onions in the Instant Pot, use the air fryer to make golden-fried onions.

    More Biryani Recipes

    • Chicken Biryani
    • Vegetable and Paneer Biryani
    • Shrimp Biryani
    • Brown Rice Chicken Biryani
    • Low Carb Chicken Biryani
    • Fish Biryani

    Recipe

    Tried this recipe? We love your feedback.Please click on the stars in the recipe card below
    two bowls of chickpea biryani and raita on the side
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    4.78 from 62 votes

    Instant Pot Chickpea Biryani

    An easy and wholesome vegetarian Biryani with plump chickpeas cooked in caramelized onions and spices over fragrant basmati rice
    Prep Time10 minutes mins
    Cook Time40 minutes mins
    Total Time50 minutes mins
    Course: Main Course
    Cuisine: Indian
    Servings: 5
    Calories: 522kcal
    Author: Archana Mundhe

    Ingredients

    • 1 cup dry chickpeas soaked overnight in warm water and drained (will be 2 cups soaked)
    • 3 tablespoons ghee divided
    • 1 large yellow onion thinly sliced
    • 2 bay leaves
    • 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
    • ½ teaspoon black peppercorns
    • 1 teaspoon ginger grated
    • 1 teaspoon garlic grated
    • 2 green chillies slit into half (optional)
    • ¼ teaspoon ground turmeric
    • 1 teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder or any mild red chili powder
    • 1½ cups water to pressure cook chickpeas
    • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
    • 1 teaspoon garam masala

    Rice

    • 2 cups long grain basmati rice
    • 2 teaspoons kosher salt
    • 2 cups water
    • ½ cup mint leaves chopped
    • ½ cup cilantro chopped + ¼ cup for garnish

    Instructions

    • Turn the Instant Pot to Saute mode and heat half of the ghee.
    • Add onions and saute for 10 minutes, stirring frequently until the onions are caramelized. Take out half of the onion and reserve for garnishing the biryani. Note: You can also use the air fryer for this step to make golden fried onions.
    • Add the remaining ghee to the Instant Pot with half of the caramelized onions already in the pot. Add bay leaves, cumin seeds, and black pepper, and saute for 30 seconds.
    • Add drained chickpeas, ginger, garlic, chilies, turmeric, red chili powder, garam masala, salt, and water. Mix well.
    • Close the Instant pot and turn the pressure valve to sealing. Pressure Cook for 20 minutes.
    • Wash and soak the rice for 20 minutes. Drain after 20 minutes and keep aside.
    • Quick release the pressure after the pressure cooking cycle completes.
    • Open the Instant Pot and stir the chickpeas well. Spread the chopped mint and cilantro evenly over the chickpeas.
    • Add drained rice, salt, and water. Gently push all the rice under the water. Close the Instant Pot lid with the pressure valve to sealing. Pressure Cook for 6 minutes. Allow 5 minutes of natural pressure release.
    • Open the Instant Pot and garnish with the reserved caramelized onions and cilantro. Gently fluff the rice. 
    • Serve with cucumber raita and lime wedges.

    Video

    Notes

    If the top layer of rice looks a bit undercooked, simply fluff the top layer of the rice with a fork and keep the Instant Pot for 5 more minutes. 
    Variations:
    1. Add 1 to 2 diced tomatoes along with the chickpeas for a tangy flavor.
    2. Substitute ghee with oil for a Vegan Chickpea Biryani.
    3. If using canned chickpeas, rinse and drain the chickpeas and skip the initial pressure cooking step. Add only ½ cup of water along with the chickpeas. Layer over soaked white rice and pressure cook for 6 minutes.
    4. To make chickpea biryani with brown rice, simply layer rinsed brown rice over the soaked and uncooked chickpeas. Increase the pressure cook time to 25 minutes. The same water proportions will work. Also, no need to soak the brown rice since 25 minutes is a good time for brown rice to cook.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 522kcal | Carbohydrates: 89g | Protein: 14g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 23mg | Sodium: 1488mg | Potassium: 541mg | Fiber: 10g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 455IU | Vitamin C: 8mg | Calcium: 96mg | Iron: 4mg
    Tried this recipe?Share your photo and tag @ministry_of_curry or tag #ministryofcurry

    ♥ We LOVE to hear from you! Did you try this recipe? Please share your food photo with hashtag #ministryofcurry on Facebook or Instagram, so we can see it and our followers can enjoy it too! Thank you and Happy Cooking ♥ Subscribe to our Youtube Channel for tasty and easy video recipes. Looking for more Instant Pot recipes? Check out our delicious Instant Pot Recipe board on Pinterest.

    Update Notes: This recipe was originally posted in March 2018, and was updated in March 2023 with a new video and variations.

    Author: Archana

    Hey there! I am a techie turned recipe developer, cooking instructor, and food blogger. I love food and enjoy developing easy and healthy recipes for busy lifestyles. I live in New Jersey with my husband and two sons.
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    1. Caitlin says

      January 24, 2021 at 10:49 am

      This recipe looks delicious, and I plan to include it in my arsenal of meatless dishes! However, I'd like to add cauliflower to it. Where would I add that in- just before the rice?

      Thanks!!

      Reply
      • Archana says

        January 27, 2021 at 10:50 am

        Yes! Add cauliflower just before rice.

        Reply
    2. Amy says

      January 27, 2021 at 1:33 pm

      Hello Archana,
      How do you think this recipe would do if it were doubled or tripled? I'd love to make this for my daugher's class for hot lunch. I have an 8 qt IP so space-wise it would be fine. Thank you!

      Reply
      • Archana says

        January 29, 2021 at 11:30 am

        Hi Amy, I would double in an 8 QT but not triple. The bottom layer of the rice gets mushy as the Instant Pto takes longer to come to pressure with that much quantity.

        Reply
    3. Devy says

      February 11, 2021 at 1:37 am

      Looking forward to trying this recipe. If I substitute with canned chickpeas, what quantity should I use for this recipe? Thanks!

      Reply
    4. Cindy Leigh Johnston says

      May 20, 2021 at 12:55 am

      I tried this recipe with a friend over zoom during a social distancing dinner party. Since then, I've come back to this recipe several times (most recently as a show of support for my coworkers who were breaking Ramadan fast) and it never disappoints... plus you can make any variation you want 🙂

      Making dinner for my neighbors tomorrow. one is vegetarian and the other is gluten free. Perfect neutral dish to support all sorts of dietary needs.5 stars

      Reply
    5. Cindy says

      January 23, 2022 at 7:36 pm

      yummy. this has become a favorite in my house 🙂5 stars

      Reply
    6. Lydia says

      February 03, 2022 at 7:46 am

      The flavor of this dish was amazing, and the rice turned out perfectly cooked. I added 2 cups diced potatoes just because, and it worked out just fine. My entire family enjoyed this, and I have added this to my rotation of easy, delicious, vegetarian dinner recipes. Thank you!5 stars

      Reply
      • Archana says

        February 03, 2022 at 12:10 pm

        Thank you! Potatoes in Biryani taste amazing.

        Reply
    7. lisa says

      February 18, 2023 at 8:36 pm

      Just made it, used canned chickpeas (last minute). I added 1 cup of water, because 1/2 cup didn't seem to be ebough water for rice. Used extra long basmati. Worked perfectly. Threw some sev and minced red onion, and a bit more fried onion on yop. perfection! I might want to raise the spice level next time, but that's a personal thing.

      Reply
      • Archana says

        February 19, 2023 at 5:09 am

        Thank you for the feedback!

        Reply
    8. Madhuri Murthy says

      March 26, 2023 at 6:12 am

      One of the best recipes I’ve tried. So effortless and delicious. Liked your step by step instructions and I’ m just getting used to the instant pot.

      Ministry of curry is my go to for any of the one pot dishes. 5 stars

      Reply
      • Archana says

        March 26, 2023 at 1:06 pm

        Thank you SO much! I hope you try more of my Instant Pot recipes and please feel free to reach out of you have any questions along the way.

        Reply
    9. MaryKate says

      May 16, 2023 at 2:42 pm

      This is my second of your biryani recipes to try, and definitely my favorite. It's so good! I do a lower FODMAPs diet, so I've used garlic oil and leeks + scalions in place of the fresh garlic and onion, and I definitely miss the solidly caramelized onion, but it was still so so tasty. I did use the tomato, and I used fresh turmeric because I have it on hand. This will be in solid rotation this summer, for sure, with whatever produce we have on hand.5 stars

      Reply
      • Archana says

        May 16, 2023 at 3:26 pm

        Love all your substitutions. I am so glad you have this on rotation!

        Reply
    10. Dan Ciriani says

      May 28, 2023 at 10:30 am

      I tried this recipe and it turned out fantastic! I could not believe how easy and delicious it was. I froze some of the leftovers and even out of the freezer it was delicious. This is definitely a keeper of a recipe!5 stars

      Reply
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    Hi, I'm Archana: a former software engineer, now a full-time blogger. I am a mother of two boys who share my love for food and cooking. Words I love to hear are, “Mom, what’s for dinner?” The same words I say to my mom every time we speak. I live in the greater New York City Area with my husband and sons.

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