In the 17th century, Nawab Wajid Ali Shah found himself banished from the glamourous courts of Lucknow. He was packed off to Calcutta where he arrived a pauper. When biryani cravings came calling, the impoverished Nawab started adding an egg and a potato to make up for the meat he couldn’t afford to buy. It is this version that went on to be embraced by the people of Calcutta and, today, the traditional version of the biryani comes with a piece of meat, one aloo, and an egg. In Bangalore, you can order up plates of authentic Calcutta-style biryani at a no-frills joint called, well, Kolkata Biryani.
