Name: Eggplant Biryani
Yield: 6–8 servings
Ingredients: ¾ cup plain whole-milk yogurt; 2 tsp. ground turmeric; Freshly ground black pepper; 2 tsp. Diamond Crystal or 1 tsp. Morton kosher salt, divided, plus more; 4 medium Chinese or Japanese eggplants, halved lengthwise, sliced crosswise on a diagonal 2" thick, or 1–2 medium globe eggplants, cut into 1½" pieces (about 2 lb. total); 1½ tsp. coriander seeds; 2 blades of mace or ¼ tsp. ground mace (optional); 2 tsp. cumin seeds, divided; 2 tsp. Kashmiri chile powder; ½ tsp. ground cinnamon; ¼ tsp. freshly ground nutmeg; 1 cup canola or vegetable oil; 3 large white or yellow onions, 2 thinly sliced, 1 finely chopped; ½ tsp. fennel seeds; 1 1" piece ginger, peeled, finely chopped; 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped; 2 Tbsp. double-concentrated tomato paste; 1 14-oz. can crushed tomatoes; 2 cups basmati rice; 4 green cardamom pods, lightly crushed; 6 whole cloves; 2 bay leaves; 2 Tbsp. Diamond Crystal or 1 Tbsp. Morton kosher salt; Large pinch of saffron threads (optional); 1 serrano chile, halved, thinly sliced, divided; ¾ cup chopped cilantro leaves with tender stems, divided, plus more for serving; Plain whole-milk yogurt and lemon wedges (for serving); A spice mill or mortar and pestle

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Photography by Isa Zapata. Food Styling by Cyd McDowell. Prop Styling by Paige Hicks

Biryani is a labor of love. From frying the onions and making the meat or vegetable masala to parboiling the rice and layering all the components, it may seem like a lot of work, but the oohs and aahs when you bring a big, beautiful, steaming pot of biryani to the table are well worth the hours of effort. If you’re preparing this as part of a holiday feast and are looking to break up the work, you can fry the onions and make the eggplant masala the day before and refrigerate them overnight (the onions will end up getting steamed, so retaining their crispiness isn’t important here). On the day of, reheat the eggplant masala, parboil the rice, and layer everything up!

There are many types of biryani across India, each one varying in spices, flavorings, and preparation. This vegetarian version pulls flavors from some of my favorite regional biryani—plenty of rich red chile powder from Hyderabadi biryani, fennel from Lucknowi biryani, and warming spices such as mace and nutmeg from Kolkata biryani. It's assembled using the Pukka method, in which the meat—or, in this case, the eggplant—and rice are cooked separately, then layered and steamed together. Serve with plenty of chopped cilantro, plain yogurt (a must!), and lemon wedges. —Asha Loupy