Stop guessing. Pick your biryani type, regional style, portion size and whether it's restaurant or home-cooked — and get exact calorie counts with a full macro breakdown. More accurate than any generic table.
A Hyderabadi dum biryani uses sealed slow-cooking with generous ghee and fried onions (birista), adding up to 50–80 extra kcal per plate compared to Lucknowi or homemade versions. The dum process traps fats inside the pot. This calculator accounts for each style's typical ghee, oil and ingredient profile — not just the meat.
Most restaurant biryanis — whether at a dhaba, hotel buffet or delivery platform — use significantly more ghee and refined oil than home cooking, typically 80–160 extra calories per plate. A homemade chicken biryani (300g) averages 480 kcal; a restaurant serving averages 640 kcal. Selecting your cook method gives you a personalised, accurate result.
Most generic calorie databases use US cup measurements that don't reflect Indian serving reality. A "small" Indian plate of biryani at a restaurant is typically 300–350g, not a half-cup. This calculator uses India-specific portion benchmarks — half plate (200g), standard plate (300g), full restaurant plate (400g) and double serving (500g).
Select from chicken, mutton, veg, egg, prawn or fish. This sets the protein and base calorie density — chicken and veg biryani have the lowest calorie counts per 100g, while mutton and beef biryani are the highest. The type choice affects protein, fat and the overall calorie range shown in your result.
💡 Veg biryani is 35–40% fewer calories than chicken biryaniThis is the most overlooked variable in biryani calorie counts. Hyderabadi dum biryani uses more ghee and birista than Lucknowi Awadhi style. Kolkata biryani includes potato and egg which changes the calorie profile. Restaurant and homemade are also separate options because commercial cooking uses significantly more fat than home recipes.
💡 Hyderabadi adds ~15% more calories than Lucknowi for the same portionBe honest about how much you're actually eating. A half plate is around 200g (roughly 1 katori of rice and a small piece of meat). A standard plate is 300g. A full restaurant plate — which is what most delivery platforms send — is 350–400g. Portion size is often the biggest factor in total calorie count, more than the style or type.
💡 Eating a half plate instead of a full one saves ~250–300 kcalRaita, salan (mirchi ka salan), papad and lassi all add significant calories to your biryani meal. Raita adds around 60 kcal (120ml bowl), salan adds 80 kcal and papad with chutney adds around 120 kcal. Toggle the add-ons you're having to get your total meal calorie count, not just the biryani alone.
💡 A full biryani meal with raita + salan averages 680–900 kcal totalAll values are for restaurant-style biryani unless otherwise noted. Home-cooked versions are typically 15–25% lower. A standard plate = 300g; a full restaurant plate = 350–400g.
| Biryani type | kcal/100g | Half plate (200g) | 1 plate (300g) | Full plate (400g) | Style note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 🍗 Chicken biryani | 250 | 500 | 750 | 1000 | Restaurant avg |
| 🍗 Chicken (homemade) | 200 | 400 | 600 | 800 | Lower fat |
| 🍗 Hyderabadi chicken | 265 | 530 | 795 | 1060 | Richest |
| 🥩 Mutton biryani | 280 | 560 | 840 | 1120 | Restaurant avg |
| 🥩 Mutton (homemade) | 230 | 460 | 690 | 920 | Lower fat |
| 🥦 Veg biryani | 165 | 330 | 495 | 660 | Lowest cal |
| 🥦 Veg (restaurant) | 180 | 360 | 540 | 720 | More ghee |
| 🥚 Egg biryani | 200 | 400 | 600 | 800 | Moderate |
| 🦐 Prawn biryani | 210 | 420 | 630 | 840 | Lean protein |
| 🐟 Fish biryani | 205 | 410 | 615 | 820 | Omega-3 |
| 🥔 Kolkata biryani | 240 | 480 | 720 | 960 | Potato adds carbs |
Data sourced from IFCT 2017 (Indian Food Composition Tables), NIN Hyderabad, and verified against multiple dietary analysis studies on Indian restaurant food.