A selection of kebabs at Charnock’s. (Below right) Coconut Chingri Biryani. Pictures by Mayukh Sengupta

Did you know the Thais have a biryani, as have the Sri Lankans? That there is a kind of biryani which requires rice to be boiled in kheer?

As many as 24 varieties of biryani will be on offer at a kebab and biryani festival being organised by Charnock’s, the restaurant at Charnock City, from today. The festival is till December 7.

The Thai Biryani (priced Rs 436) uses lemongrass, so be prepared for a zesty lemon flavour and aroma that is typical of many Thai dishes. The Sri Lankan Biryani borrows from south Indian traditions, with a curry leaf flavour and spiced with dry chilli powder.

At the other end of the palette is the afore-mentioned Meva Mawa ki biryani (priced Rs 298), from Shimla. A delight of people with a sweet tooth, it is dry like bhuna khichdi and has dry fruits though it is it is not as sweet as payesh.

But if your taste bud wants to take the traditional route, you will be spoilt more for choice. “There are two basic divisions of biryani preparation. The kachchi gosht variety in which the rice, meat and masala are all cooked together. For pakki gosht biryani, the meat is done separately in a tandoor and then added to the rice. We are offering both here,” said Pinakshi Chakraborty, assistant general manager, KB Sales, which owns Charnock’s.

The Kachchi Gosht Biryani, cooked in the Hyderabadi style, is indeed tasty while being light (priced Rs 447). Then there is the classic Lucknowi Kaliya Biryani (Rs 447), a boneless mutton variety from the Awadhi school, drawing its name from the Kalanamak rice used.

Indeed, certain varieties of rice are typical of some biryanis. “The extra spicy, highly flavoured Iranian Gosht Biryani uses jeerakati rice. It is thin and black-and-brown. In Bangladesh, basmati is a must for any biryani. That’s what we use for our Dhakai Dum Chicken Biryani too,” he says, of the two priced Rs 447 and Rs 436 respectively.

Our local biryani, typified by the presence of potato, is also there. Legend has it that Wajid Ali Shah, the last nawab of Awadh, had brought with him cooks from the royal kitchen when he was exiled to Calcutta in 1856. People here who could not afford meat swapped the gosht in their recipe with potato. But this recipe, titled Murshidabadi Khashi Biryani, is older, from Nawab of Bengal Siraj-ud-daula’s kitchen, insists the hotel!

If one wants to bypass meat, there are variations in lamb and fish too. “Try out our Ilish Dum Biryani with the special pomegranate raita (Rs 776),” says Chakraborty. There is a Coconut Chingri Biryani too, priced Rs 537.

With the kebabs, the lachcha paratha served is prepared on an ulte tawa. “That way the oil drains out quickly yet it is crunchy,” Chakraborty points out. A beer is free with each biryani ordered.