Hajir Biriani

[Nocturnal]

Originally Posted by Nasif
From a reliable source this is all BS! Haji has nothing to do with it. দেশী দুই নাম্বারি

That's what I thought when I first saw the ad in Janakantha few months back. Someone from NY can try it and let us know.

[Kana-Baba]

Originally Posted by Sohel NR
with pleasure. hajir biryani is actually a tehari, not a biriyani as it is not seasoned with saffron, the spice that defines biriyani as biriyani. it is also cooked with beef, not the traditional mutton used for biriyani.

hajir biriyani is a slowly cooked rice and beef dish akin to some of the persian polo dishes and italian risottos. small grain kataribhogh rice, choice cubes of beef shortrib and sirloin are delicately seasoned and cooked together with first pressed mustard oil, and served on dried jackfruit leaves with a side of fresh green chilies - they can serve it on a plate also. the excruciatingly long steaming process under a gamch'ha - a versatile garment made of natural cotton - allows the flavors mingle together until the meat reaches that indescribable, perfect tenderness. it HAS to be eaten steaming hot in the restaurant for the whole experience.

the family that owns the restaurant continues follow the tradition of not cooking more than 2 cauldrons per day, and the food usually runs out in less than 90 minutes early in the morning, and less than 45 minutes early in the evening. in typical dhakaiya fashion with regards to all things sacred, they don't care about the commercial growth of this particular enterprise. the restaurant has no signs or menus, and has never advertised in its 50 plus year old history, ever since the original haji sahib (hence the name) came back from makkah, and served up the first pot after the maghrib prayers. some say that a taste of mansaf, the traditional bedouin fare, influenced his methods somewhat. hajir biriyani costs less than a euro and no one has EVER gotten sick from eating a plate. the subtlties associated with savoring the simplicity of hajir biriyani separate the men from the boys in old dhaka.

classic description, reminds me old days........ Thank you bhaiya

[ammark]

Originally Posted by Kabir
Me and you are the same kind of losers I guess.

Never had the opportunity to try it

Unlike you two, I did have it once when a dulabhai made the effort of going early morning to buy it for us back in class 9. I distinctly remember the pata-wrapped tehari and the shorshar tel.

Now that Sohel Bhai has written about it, and given that I havent eaten all day... I'm SERIOUSLY upset at how much I'm missing out on good ol' deshi food

[P.Warner]

Originally Posted by Ahmed_B
Unfortunately.. after the death of the original Haji, this biriyani has lost a touch. But Mr. P.Warner... tel me first: Have you actually tasted any high quality 'Biriyani' yet?

If you havn't ... please try out. You won't regret!

Regretfully, I am yet to taste high quality biriani in restaurants, although from what I have tasted it makes me feel there is so much more to it. A good friend's wife served a biriayi dish many years ago. She was part Iranian part Indian. Unfortunately, I have never been close to a rice dish that good since then. It appears that I misspelt the original Hajir Biriyani as well!

Thank you for your kind descriptions. Sohel mentioned something called 'Tehari'. Is this related to biriyani?

One last point, the Italian rissotto is slow cooked but nowhere near as the time you seem to be implying for authentic biriyani. A good rissotto would take anything from 25-45 minutes depending on ingidients.

[Electrequiem]

Originally Posted by One World
Congrats SohelNR. That was a lively description. It seemed once that i am reading a cookbook.

Electrequiem, did u miss Mama Halim of Elephant Road?

ehh ... I dont find Mama halim all that special ... or maybe thats because I dont like Halim in general

btw, a little addition to my last post ... I forgot about the Fuchka in Elephant Road and Gausia market

[gatekeeper]

Originally Posted by Zunaid
This deserves its own thread.

During my college (NDC) days, some of us would head up there early in the morning just as it was opening (6 am ish) for breakfast.

If there were not free chairs, you just stood behind an occupied chair (or even put your hands on it) to reserve it for you.

Yes, I remember those days. Tauhid, Badrul, Shimul and Asif-partners in crime. I think those 2 years in NDC will always stay with me. And off course-Hajir Biriyani.

They make a version of it at Sagar Restaurant in New Yotk. Its good but its not the real thing.

[Nafis_BD]

Originally Posted by Kabir
Me and you are the same kind of losers I guess.

Never had the opportunity to try it

I am joining this group although I had Fakhruddin's biriyani and those tehari's from ambala during ramadan so does those count?

[AsifTheManRahman]

Hajir Biriyani is the best biriyani in the world. Fakhruddin "could" come in as a close second, but then again Haji and Fakhruddin produce items that are quite different and not comparable on fixed grounds.

[Sohel]

Originally Posted by P.Warner
... One last point, the Italian rissotto is slow cooked but nowhere near as the time you seem to be implying for authentic biriyani. A good rissotto would take anything from 25-45 minutes depending on ingidients ... [/B]

i was talking about the vaguely al dente texture of the cooked rice, not anything else with the risotto or the polo analogy.

[Sohel]

Originally Posted by Zunaid
Neither kathal nor kola.

It is shal pata. The specialty of this tehari is the mustard oil.


Here's a picture:

i stand corrected.

[Sohel]

Originally Posted by Electrequiem
There are some dishes in Dhaka that one MUST not miss:

1) Haji'r Biryani
2) Mohammadpur-er Morog Mosallam
3) Fakruddin'er Gorur Chap
4) Baily Road-er Fuchka/Pastries
5) Chandu Miyar Pan (I honestly don't know where he has his stall now ... last time my dad saw him he was in Bangla Motor.)

i'd add the following to your list: -

1) chockbajarer bakorkhani, dal puri, moglai parat'ha and iftaar.
2) morog polao at modina biriyani house, ta'ntibajar.
3) geneva camp-er chaap, brain masala, luchi and chicken corn soup.
4) rumali roti and mutton boti at bbq tonight, dhanmodi.
5) breakfast paya and nan, seared hilsha, taki mach'her bhorta, and all the bhunas at dhansiri, gulshan.
7) the "kala" beef bhuna at muslim restaurant, sayedabad bus stand.
8) all the chicken kababs at taj mahal(available between 1 and 6-ish, while supplies last), banani.
bajar.
9) the chanachurwala who works below the UPS office in gulshan-2.
10) the 500 taka pan from pan shupari.

[Nocturnal]

Originally Posted by Sohel NR
i'd add the following to your list: -

1) chockbajarer bakorkhani, dal puri, moglai parat'ha and iftaar.
2) morog polao at modina biriyani house, ta'ntibajar.
3) geneva camp-er chaap, brain masala, luchi and chicken corn soup.
4) rumali roti and mutton boti at bbq tonight, dhanmodi.
5) breakfast paya and nan, seared hilsha, taki mach'her bhorta, and all the bhunas at dhansiri, gulshan.
7) the "kala" beef bhuna at muslim restaurant, sayedabad bus stand.
8) all the chicken kababs at taj mahal(available between 1 and 6-ish, while supplies last), banani.
bajar.
9) the chanachurwala who works below the UPS office in gulshan-2.
10) the 500 taka pan from pan shupari.

terrific. ekoni dhaka jawa lagbe.....

[Sohel]

Originally Posted by Nafis_BD
I am joining this group although I had Fakhruddin's biriyani and those tehari's from ambala during ramadan so does those count?

fakhruddin's a perfect example of what happens to quality and consistency of a sacred thing once you go for the money in bangladesh. to be fair to the late entrepreneur and his sons, the old taste does occasionally resurrect in some of the wedding feasts.

sacred things should stick to their roots in old dhaka, the exquisite bhuna khichur'hi at the highway inn in choddhogram being the sole exception to the rule.

[Tintin]

10) the 500 taka pan from pan shupari.

500 taka for pan !? What is so special about it ?

[Trigger_Tiger]

Okay here is an offer to anyone and everyone whose situation applies to the terms:

Any of you LIVING ABROAD going to Bangladesh in July, contact me in mid-July and I shall treat you to a plate of REAL Hajir Biriyani !!!!!

This applies to NBR's ONLY not BD dwellers (sorry )!!!!!

[Sohel]

Originally Posted by Tintin
500 taka for pan !? What is so special about it ?

it's not just the novelty bro, believe you me. the specially grown and stored leaves themselves, the ghulaab masala made from the natural extract of rare isfahani roses and made into a jelly, are just a couple of the more expensive ingredients that go into it ... and off course, "the paradox of thift" element's there also.

[BanCricFan]

Off topic:

Sohel NR, can I have you as my guide if I ever find myself in Dhaka?

[Hatebreed]

Not sure if I've had Haji biriyani, probably have.

I like Shahi biriyani, but I guess it's not originally Bangladeshi.. There is one called Shahi Kuttchi Biryani but idk if they are the same. Any expert comments?

[Rajowana]

hahaha look at everyone talking bout biryani lol

[Electrequiem]

Originally Posted by Sohel NR
i'd add the following to your list: -

1) chockbajarer bakorkhani, dal puri, moglai parat'ha and iftaar.
2) morog polao at modina biriyani house, ta'ntibajar.
3) geneva camp-er chaap, brain masala, luchi and chicken corn soup.
4) rumali roti and mutton boti at bbq tonight, dhanmodi.
5) breakfast paya and nan, seared hilsha, taki mach'her bhorta, and all the bhunas at dhansiri, gulshan.
7) the "kala" beef bhuna at muslim restaurant, sayedabad bus stand.
8) all the chicken kababs at taj mahal(available between 1 and 6-ish, while supplies last), banani.
bajar.
9) the chanachurwala who works below the UPS office in gulshan-2.
10) the 500 taka pan from pan shupari.

Nice!

...and I just remembered, the various types of bhortas and the fried rupchanda mach from "Kosturi" Polton

[One World]

speaking of biriyani i drove ten miles to downtown to grab some chicken biriyani. Its not bad after the mango lassi in this temperature.

[One World]

Originally Posted by Trigger_Ti
Okay here is an offer to anyone and everyone whose situation applies to the terms:

Any of you LIVING ABROAD going to Bangladesh in July, contact me in mid-July and I shall treat you to a plate of REAL Hajir Biriyani !!!!!

This applies to NBR's ONLY not BD dwellers (sorry )!!!!!

Wish you were here - Roger Waters on Syd Barrets leave

[SideWinder]

Hey, Haji or whatever, nothing I repeat nothing beats a good kachi.

[Arnab]

all overrated.

[Shehwar]

Originally Posted by Arnab
all overrated.

Obviously u have never tasted it !