Chicken Pulao is a popular and flavorful, easy one-pot rice dish prepared using chicken, rice, and a blend of aromatic spices.
This pilau is one of the best recipes for your weeknight dinner. It is also popularly served during family dinners and special occasions such as weddings and festivities like Eid, Iftar during Ramadan, and Christmas. It is simple and easy to make and can be cooked in large batches to feed the crowd.
Why you'll love this recipe?
- Flavorful and Comfort food: Chicken pulao bursts with flavors from the combination of tender chicken and aromatic spices. The best hearty, filling, satisfying, and healthy gluten-free meal ever.
- Easy to make: From the ingredients list, it may seem like a complex dish, but palav is super easy to make. You can prepare it in one pot (i.e., pan on the stovetop, pressure cooker, or instant pot), making it perfect for a busy weeknight when you want to avoid cleaning up many dishes.
- Versatile: Adjust the spices to your preference. Add mutton or lamb or beef instead of chicken, and if you are looking for vegetarian pulao, simply combine vegetables like potato and peas.
- Leftovers are great: This is one of the tastiest rice recipes; thus, you will often hardly have any leftovers. But if there are any leftovers, you can refrigerate them, and they can be reheated and enjoyed the next day for lunch, lunchbox, or dinner. I find that leftover pilaf is more flavorful than freshly prepared one - but that is my personal opinion.
Don't forget to check out our popular and simple chicken biryani, chicken tikka masala, country-style chicken curry, special eid recipes, or simple cilantro rice.
Ingredients
Chicken: Bone-in chicken, such as leg and thigh pieces, tastes the best when making pulao. You can use boneless chicken pieces or even combine the two.
For the marination: In a blender or mortar and pestle, grind/crush fresh ginger, green chilies, and garlic to a coarse paste and use this for chicken marination along with yogurt and chopped cilantro/coriander leaves. Marination helps to tenderize your meat.
Aromatic spices: Whole spices enhance the taste of your pulao, but make sure you add only a little, as it will give a strong flavor which we do not want in our pulao. I have combined whole peppercorns, star anise, bay leaf, cumin seeds, cardamom, and cinnamon.
Oil: I use coconut oil while making any Indian dishes. You can use any neutral-flavored oil or vegetable oil. If you want a rich taste in your pulao, you can even add ghee or butter.
Spice powders: I have used coriander powder (dhania) and tandoori masala powder. You can skip coriander powder if you do not have it. Or use garam masala powder instead of tandoori masala powder.
Rice: Long-grain basmati rice is best for making rice dishes like pulao, biryani, etc. But if it is unavailable, use any other rice you choose. Make sure you soak the rice for 30 minutes. Also, the amount of water you need may vary depending on the variety and quality of the rice.
Other ingredients: Onion, tomato, salt, coriander leaves, mint leaves, and green chilies are the other important ingredients for making chicken pulav, and they add a lot of flavor to your dish. Do not miss any of these.
See the recipe card below for a complete list of ingredients and measurements.
Variations
Pulao, also known as pilau, pilaf, and palav, is a rice dish made using a blend of aromatic spices, long-grain rice, and meat or vegetables. In this section, I share some popular variations of the traditional pulao recipe.
Kashmiri chicken pulao: Along with the ingredients listed above, a lot of dry fruits and nuts, saffron, and fresh fruits like pomegranate are used to make this pilau.
Hyderabadi chicken tehari: Add more spices for a strong flavor to make tehri/tahri. You can add mutton, beef, or lamb instead of chicken.
Yakhni chicken pulao: This is Pakistani chicken pulao, where the broth is first made by cooking meat and spices together, and the rice is then cooked in this broth.
White chicken pulao: To make white pulav, you add the whole aromatic spices and only the ingredients mentioned in the marination. No spice powders are used. Also, milk or coconut milk can be used while cooking the rice to make the pulao rich and flavorful.
Bengali chicken pilau: To make this murgh pulao, short grain rice called gobindobhog and turmeric (or haldi) is used to make it yellow in color.
Substitutions
- Chicken (murgh) can be substituted with any meat (beef, lamb, mutton, etc.) or even with a combination of vegetables like peas, paneer, mushroom, baby corn, carrots, beans, and more. You can also use chickpeas or chana to make this chole pulao or chana pulao.
- Basmati rice is recommended for its look and flavor. But you can use any long-grain rice of your choice or even jeera rice or jasmine rice. To make a healthier chicken pulav, you can use brown rice.
Step-by-step instructions
Chicken Marination
Step 1: In a mixie jar (blender) or mortar and pestle, add ginger, green chilies, and garlic and make a coarse paste.
Step 2: In a bowl, add chicken, yogurt, salt, crushed paste from Step 1, and coriander leaves and mix. Let the chicken marinate in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
Making of pulao
Step 3: In a pan (or kadai or pot) on medium flame, add oil. Once the oil is hot, add peppercorns, cinnamon, star anise, cardamom, cumin seeds, bay leaves, and slit green chilies, and saute for a minute until aromatic.
Step 4: Add onions and saute for 6 to 8 minutes until the onion becomes translucent.
Step 5: Add tomatoes and continue to saute on a medium flame for 5 minutes.
Step 6: Add marinated chicken. Mix well and cook it for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, stir it again, cover and cook for another 5 minutes.
Step 7: Add coriander powder and tandoori masala powder. Mix well. Cover and continue to cook for another 5 minutes.
Step 8: Add mint leaves and cilantro and mix well.
Step 9: Add basmati rice. Make sure you soak the rice for at least 15 minutes and then drain well before adding it to the pan. This will make your rice fluffier and cooks faster.
Step 10: Add 3 cups of water. If using any other rice variety, the amount of water may vary slightly.
Step 11: Add salt to taste and mix well. Be careful while adding the salt, as we have added salt while marinating the chicken. Bring it to a boil.
Step 12: Cover and cook until the water is fully absorbed and the rice is cooked. It will take between 12 to 15 minutes on medium to medium-low flame. Switch off the flame, and let it rest for 10 minutes. Gently fluff the rice using a spatula. Serve hot and enjoy.
Tips
- The amount of water required may vary depending on the brand and type of rice used. Use good quality rice.
- Wash the rice nicely, and then soak it for 15 to 30 minutes, and drain. This step will remove excess starch and prevents your rice from turning sticky or mushy.
- Adjust the spices and spice powders to your taste.
- You can use garam masala or curry powder instead of tandoori masala powder.
- Marinate the chicken for at least 30 minutes. It will make it more tender and flavorful.
- Once you add rice and water, cook on medium-low to medium flame to avoid it from sticking at the bottom.
- If you like the crunch in your pulao, garnish it with fried onions, roasted almonds, and cashews.
- To make it more flavorful and take it to the next level, you can use homemade broth instead of water for cooking pulao.
- We can't resist the smell and love to eat it hot. If you want fluffier rice, then once the pulao is done, let it sit in the pan covered for another 10 minutes before giving the rice a gentle toss.
- Do not skip mint and coriander leaves while making pulao.
Chicken Pulao in Pressure Cooker
While cooking chicken pulao in a pressure cooker, all the steps remain the same. Instead of covering the pan, cover the pressure cooker with a lid, cook for one whistle on medium flame, and switch off the flame.
Let this sit for 5 to 10 minutes. Let the pressure release naturally. Remove the whistle and lid, and fluff the rice.
Instant Pot Chicken Pilaf
To make instant pot chicken rice pulao:
- Press the SAUTE button on your IP.
- Add oil to the inner pot.
- Add peppercorns, cinnamon, star anise, cardamom, cumin seeds, bay leaves, and green chilies, and saute for 30 seconds or until aromatic.
- To this, add onion and saute until translucent, about 6 minutes. Add the tomatoes and continue to cook for another 2 to 3 minutes.
- Next, add the marinated chicken and cook until the chicken becomes pale (for 6 to 8 minutes or 80 % cooked). Add coriander powder, tandoori masala, mint leaves, and coriander leaves (cilantro) and mix well.
- Add the soaked and drained rice, 1.75 cups to 2 cups of water, and salt and mix everything well. Scrape off the bottom. Press the CANCEL button.
- Secure the lid of your instant pot and see that the pressure valve is in the sealing position. PRESSURE COOK on high for 5 minutes. When the IP beeps, Let the pressure release naturally for 5 to 8 minutes. Release any remaining pressure manually, open the lid, and fluff the rice. You can use a silicon spatula to prevent the cooked rice from breaking.
Recipe FAQs
Chicken pilaf (pilau) tastes excellent on its own as a complete meal. But you can serve it with a side of yogurt salad (or raita - i.e., yogurt with finely chopped onions, coriander leaves, green chilies, and salt) or any gravy (or curry/salan) of your choice. Some other interesting sides for chicken pulav are jamun raita, dahi aloo, dahi bhindi, etc.
Pulao or pilaf is a one-pot rice dish. Yakhni refers to broth or stock. The broth is made by cooking the meat with aromatic spices. Rice is then cooked in this broth (yakhni or stock).
The main difference is in the cooking method. While making biryani, a draining method is used. Rice is first parboiled and drained, then layered with cooked meat and spices, and cooked further on low flame. While making pulao, rice and meat (or vegetables) is cooked in one pot together until all the water used during the cooking is absorbed.
I highly recommend basmati rice while making pulao or biryani or any Indian rice dishes. Basmati is aromatic, less starchy, and makes your rice fluffy. But feel free to use any other long-grain rice, brown rice, jasmine rice, jeera rice, or short-grain rice like seeraga samba, gobindobhog, sona masuri, or ambe mohar. The amount of water you add may vary for each type of rice.
Any leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight conatiner for 2 to 3 days. You can reheat in the microwave or in a pan covered with a lid on medium flame until heated.
More Rice Recipes to try
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Recipe card
Easy Chicken Pulao | One Pot Spicy Chicken Pilaf
Equipment
- Pan or Pot or Pressure cooker
Ingredients
For the chicken marination
- 700 grams Chicken
- 1 ½ teaspoon Salt
- 2 tablespoon Yogurt or Dahi
- 1 inch Ginger
- 8 Garlic cloves
- 4 Green chilies
- ¼ cup Cilantro or Coriander leaves, finely chopped
For the pulao or pilaf
- 3 tablespoon Oil
- 1 teaspoon Whole peppercorns
- 1 inch Cinnamon stick
- 1 Star anise
- 3 Cardamom pods
- 1 teaspoon Cumin seeds
- 3 Bay leaves
- 4 Green chilies, slit
- 3 Onion, medium sized, sliced
- 2 Tomatoes, sliced
- 2 tablespoon Coriander powder
- ½ tablespoon Tandoori masala powder
- 2 tablespoon Cilantro or coriander leaves, chopped
- 2 tablespoon Mint leaves, chopped
- 1 ½ cups Rice (Basmati or any rice of your choice)
- 3 cups Water
- 1 teaspoon Salt
Instructions
Chicken Marination
- In a mixie jar (blender) or mortar and pestle, add ginger, green chilies, and garlic and make a coarse paste.1 inch Ginger, 8 Garlic cloves, 4 Green chilies
- In a bowl, add chicken, yogurt, salt, crushed paste from Step 1, and coriander leaves and mix. Let the chicken marinate in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.700 grams Chicken, 1 ½ teaspoon Salt, 2 tablespoon Yogurt or Dahi, ¼ cup Cilantro or Coriander leaves, finely chopped
Making of pulao
- In a pan (or kadai or pot) on medium flame, add oil. Once the oil is hot, add peppercorns, cinnamon, star anise, cardamom, cumin seeds, bay leaves, and slit green chilies, and saute for a minute until aromatic.3 tablespoon Oil, 1 teaspoon Whole peppercorns, 1 inch Cinnamon stick, 1 Star anise, 3 Cardamom pods, 1 teaspoon Cumin seeds, 3 Bay leaves, 4 Green chilies, slit
- Add onions and saute for 6 to 8 minutes until the onion becomes translucent.3 Onion, medium sized, sliced
- Add tomatoes and continue to saute on a medium flame for 5 minutes.2 Tomatoes, sliced
- Add marinated chicken. Mix well and cook it for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, stir it again, cover and cook for another 5 minutes.
- Add coriander powder and tandoori masala powder. Mix well. Cover and continue to cook for another 5 minutes.2 tablespoon Coriander powder, ½ tablespoon Tandoori masala powder
- Add mint leaves and cilantro and mix well.2 tablespoon Cilantro or coriander leaves, chopped, 2 tablespoon Mint leaves, chopped
- Add basmati rice. Make sure you soak the rice for at least 15 minutes and then drain well before adding it to the pan. This will make your rice fluffier and cooks faster.1 ½ cups Rice
- Add 3 cups of water. If using any other rice variety, the amount of water may vary slightly.3 cups Water
- Add salt to taste and mix well. Be careful while adding the salt, as we have added salt while marinating the chicken. Bring it to a boil.
- Cover and cook until the water is fully absorbed and the rice is cooked. It will take between 12 to 15 minutes on medium to medium-low flame. Switch off the flame, and let it rest for 10 minutes. Gently fluff the rice using a spatula. Serve hot and enjoy.1 teaspoon Salt
Video
Notes
- The amount of water required may vary depending on the brand and type of rice used. Use good quality rice.
- Wash the rice nicely, and then soak it for 15 to 30 minutes, and drain. This step will remove excess starch and prevents your rice from turning sticky or mushy.
- Adjust the spices and spice powders to your taste.
- You can use garam masala or curry powder instead of tandoori masala powder.
- Marinate the chicken for at least 30 minutes. It will make it more tender and flavorful.
- Once you add rice and water, cook on medium-low to medium flame to avoid it from sticking at the bottom.
- If you like the crunch in your pulao, garnish it with fried onions, roasted almonds, and cashews.
- To make it more flavorful and take it to the next level, you can use homemade broth instead of water for cooking pulao.
- We can't resist the smell and love to eat it hot. If you want fluffier rice, then once the pulao is done, let it sit in the pan covered for another 10 minutes before giving the rice a gentle toss.
- Do not skip mint and coriander leaves while making pulao.
Sangeetha S
It sounds like this recipe is a versatile and delicious dish that can be enjoyed on a variety of occasions. I appreciate how it can be easily prepared for a quick weeknight dinner, but also serves as a great option for special occasions and celebrations. Plus, the idea of a one-pot meal is always appealing to me. I can't wait to give this recipe a try and see how it turns out!
Jess
Such a great option for a weeknight meal!
Nathan
I adore the flavors in this chicken dish! I left out the cilantro and it was still absolutely delicious, and so easy to make in just one pot. Definitely one I'll make again!