Hotel Kuska Biryani (Kushka Rice / Plain Biryani) is an aromatic, flavorful South Indian rice dish cooked with fragrant spices, mint, coriander, and milk or coconut milk without adding vegetables or meat. Ready in 25 minutes using a pressure cooker, it is a popular Tamil Nadu mess and Muslim wedding style recipe that pairs heavenly with spicy salna and onion raita!
I am a big fan of Tamilnadu hotel style kuska biryani. Before marriage we used to have this rice from a nearby restaurant at least twice in a month during weekends. My appa calls this as ”pattai sadam”. Madurai is popular for Kuska rice. In hotels, they usually serve kuska with onion raita and salna or ennai kathirikai. I love that combo.
Kuska, this term might be new to some of you. I will tell you what it is. Kuska is nothing but plain rice cooked and flavoured with masalas without adding vegetables or meat. You can call it plain vegetarian biryani. Usually Muslim people make this for their marriages and festivals. In Urdu, ”Khushk” means plain or dry. It is very famous in Hyderabad and Tamil Nadu. In Tamil Nadu, you get kuska mostly in small hotels or mess. In some big hotels, they serve chicken or mutton biryani as kuska just by removing the pieces. So my dad always buys it from vegetarian hotels. It’s my long time dream to recreate kuska at home.
I have tried several recipes but they were not satisfactory. Recently I was chatting with my reader Kirthiga devi on Facebook. More than a reader, I should say she is like my sister. She calls me fondly as akka. When we were talking, I just asked her about kuska biryani and she immediately shared her recipe with detailed steps. She suggested pressure cooker as well as Dum method. I chose the pressure cooker method as I felt it easy. She also said that this is the recipe of Muslim style kuska. Then, what else do I need to try this? I tried it for my lunch today. It was awesome. I got the same taste as I expected. Thank you so much Kirthiga! Many people use coconut milk for kuska, but I used milk.
Friends, whenever you are short of vegetables, do try this kuska rice. Bachelors & working women can make this easy rice for their lunch box during busy mornings. It’s a no grinding & less chopping rice variety. Just one onion, half a tomato & biryani spices are enough to prepare this delectable dish for two people. You can use either jeera rice (seeraga samba) or basmati rice as per your liking. Let’s see how to make Tamil Nadu style kuska biryani / plain biryani with step by step pictures.
Quick Notes for US & Abroad Kitchens
- Rice Selection: Traditional Tamil Nadu mess style kuska is prepared with Seeraga Samba (Jeera Samba) rice, which has a distinct tiny grain and captivating fragrance. If Seeraga Samba is unavailable in your local Indian grocery store, high quality aged Basmati rice (such as Royal or Daawat) makes an excellent fragrant alternative.
- Liquid Ratio (Milk vs. Coconut Milk): Soaking and cooking the rice in a 1:1 mixture of water and whole milk (or canned light coconut milk) gives the grains a rich, velvety texture without being oily. Strictly maintain a 1:2 ratio of rice to total liquid.
- Kalpasi (Stone Flower) for Hotel Flavor: Kalpasi (Dagad Phool / Black Stone Flower) is the secret spice used in Madurai and Chennai roadside stalls for signature biryani aroma. Look for it in Indian grocers or add 1/4 tsp extra fennel seeds and garam masala if unavailable.
- Fluffing the Rice: Once the pressure cooker releases steam naturally, open the lid immediately and gently fluff the rice with a flat silicone spatula or fork from the edges inwards to keep the long grains intact.
Hotel Kuska Biryani Recipe / Kuska Rice – Plain Biryani Recipe
Ingredients
Main Ingredients
- 1 cup Jeera rice (Seeraga samba) or Basmati rice (approx. 200g / 7 oz)
- 2 cups Water + milk (or Water + coconut milk) (approx. 480 ml / 16 fl oz) (1:1 ratio of water & milk)
To add in the rice (Soaking)
- 1 small piece Cinnamon stick
- 1 pod Cardamom
- 1 no Cloves
- 1 no Bay leaf
- 10 nos Mint leaves
- few drops Ghee
To Sauté
- 2 tbsp Cooking oil (approx. 30 ml / 1 fl oz)
- 1 small piece Cinnamon stick
- 1 no Cloves
- 1 no Bay leaf
- ½ tsp Kalpasi / Black stone flower (optional, gives authentic hotel aroma)
- 1 pod Cardamom
- 1 tsp Ginger-garlic paste
- 1 medium Big onion (approx. 100g / 3.5 oz) sliced finely
- ½ medium Tomato (approx. 40g / 1.4 oz) chopped
- 2 nos Green chillies slit
- ½ to 1 tsp Red chilli powder (adjust to taste)
- ½ tsp Dhania powder (Coriander powder)
- 1 tbsp Curd / Yogurt (approx. 15g / 0.5 oz)
- 15 nos Mint leaves chopped
- 2 stalks Coriander leaves chopped
- Salt as needed
Instructions
- Wash the rice and take it in a bowl. To this rice, add the whole spices (cinnamon piece, cardamom, clove, bay leaf, mint leaves, and a few drops of ghee). Add equal quantity of water and milk (or water and coconut milk) in a 1:2 ratio. Soak the rice for 10-15 minutes.
- In the meantime, finely slice the onion and chop tomatoes, green chillies, mint leaves, and coriander leaves.
- In a pressure cooker base, heat 2 tbsp oil. Add cinnamon stick, cloves, bay leaf, cardamom, and kalpasi (stone flower). Sauté for a few seconds on medium heat until fragrant.
- Add sliced onions and ginger-garlic paste. Sauté until golden brown and the raw aroma leaves. Add chopped tomatoes and green chillies; sauté until mushy. Add red chilli powder and dhania (coriander) powder, sautéing for another minute.
- Add chopped mint leaves and coriander leaves. Mix well. Stir in 1 tbsp curd. Now add the soaked rice along with the soaking liquid and spices.
- Add required salt and check taste. Pressure cook on low-medium flame for 1 whistle (about 10 minutes). Let the pressure release naturally. Open the lid and gently fluff the grains with a fork. Serve hot with onion raita and salna!
Notes
- Rice takes longer time to cook in milk + water combo. So add more water and less milk if you want it to be quickly done.
- You can add 1/4 tsp of fennel seeds while sautéing spices. It’s optional though.
- Kuska I had tasted from hotels looks reddish orange in color. I think they add orange food color. But I used only red chilli powder to bring this color. So add food color if you wish.
- For variations, you can add coconut milk instead of plain milk OR use water alone.
- Remember the ratio of rice and water should be 1:2 even if you soak for 30 minutes.
- If you use jeera rice, soak only for 15 minutes else rice will turn clumsy after cooking. If you soak for more time, add 1.5 cups of water instead of 2 cups.
Sharing is caring
Frequently Asked Questions
Kuska (or Kushka) is a popular South Indian plain biryani made by cooking seasoned rice with whole spices, aromatics, herbs, and milk or coconut milk without adding vegetables or meat. The word comes from Urdu ‘Khushk’, meaning plain or dry.
Seeraga Samba (Jeera Samba) rice is the most authentic choice for Tamil Nadu hotel and Muslim style kuska biryani. However, long-grain aged Basmati rice also works wonderfully and yields fluffy, separated grains.
The ideal ratio is 1 cup of rice to 2 cups of total liquid (a 1:1 combination of water and milk, or water and thin coconut milk). If soaking the rice for longer than 20 minutes, reduce the liquid to 1.75 cups to prevent mushiness.
Kuska biryani is traditionally served with roadside hotel-style vegetable salna (empty salna), ennai kathirikai (spicy brinjal gravy), and chilled sliced onion raita.
Easy and tasty Kuska biryani is ready ! Serve with onion raita and enjoy !
Never heard of this looks interesting.as usual nice presentation
Looks yummy and a pleasing colour too.Thanks for the useful cooking tips. Have bookmarked your recipe and shared in my fb page
Thank u Baskaran sir :)
This is very useful…it looks delicious
Looks Great.. My method is little different.. will try ur method very soon & inform you dear..
Thanks yaar.Sure ,try this version :)
flavourful biryani
Love this plain Biryani…… very well presented!
I can feel the aroma here !
I love this rice.. My mum does this too..
I make something similar to this, but with more tomatoes, would love to try this version..
thats very new to me.. never heard abt them . good insight abt the dish. well made n presented too..
colorful and delicious kuska…
http://kurinjikathambam.blogspot.in/
Though I have heard a lot about kuska I have never tried it..looks delicious
delicious.i thought kuska is a non.veg item .dear would u please post recipe for brinji and kurma.which is famius in chennai small hotels and in weddings.i am a diehard fan of it.thanks in advance
Thanks Harini. Even I wanted to try it :)
Hi chitra tried ur kuska receipe today. Turned out very well, it was little bit spicy for me though.
Thank you
Thank u so much.Please reduce chilli powder next time :)
Also tried ur easy nei appam receipe.it was also turned very well.first time I made a crispy bs soft nei appam.thank you
Thanks a lot for trying and taking time to write here :)
I tried this recipe, it was very delicious , thank you :)
Thank you Rismiya :)
Chitra, I tried this recipe. It taste great.
Chitra, I tried this recipe. It taste great.
Thank you Kavitha :)
I tried this recipe … It tastes delicious … u Chitra 😊
Thank u so much :)
Awesome recipe Chitra- Simple yet so flavorful!
Love this Kuska and also your Veg. Pulao/Biriyani. Both taste delicious and also smell great(during cooking and eating) which is important for biriyani.
Thanks for sharing!! Hoping to try more from your Biriyani collection and I think you should try to publish it.
Thank you so much Anusha :) Do try my other biryani recipes. Hope you will like it.
I have tried other versions of kuska before but after trying your version today I bet it is the best. I paired it with salna (from your space) and had a yummy lunch as traced by my daughter with her finger in her plate after eating .. what more can I say :) .. my hubby too complemented as "idhu dhan real kuska" and thanks to u and kirthiga devi
Thanks a bunch for your great feedback. You made my day :)