Danbauk

A dish of Burmese biryani (locally known as danpauk), as served at Kyet Shar

Danbauk (Burmese: ဒံပေါက်) is a Burmese rice dish adapted from South Asian biryani. It features spiced chicken cooked with long-grain rice using a sealed, slow-cooking method. The dish was introduced to Myanmar by South Asian Muslim communities and has since become a widespread part of Burmese cuisine. While danbauk restaurants were historically Muslim-owned, Buddhist entrepreneurs have increasingly entered the market in recent decades. Danbauk is a popular dish at weddings, religious donation feasts, and major holidays such as Thingyan (Burmese New Year).

Name

The word danbauk is derived from the Classical Persian term dam-puxt (دم‌پخت), meaning "steam-cooked."

Preparation and Serving

Danbauk is typically made with long-grain rice (e.g. basmati or Taunggyi rice), chicken seasoned with a special danbauk masala spice blend, cloves, cinnamon, saffron, bay leaves, cashew nuts, peas, raisins, and yoghurt. The chicken is layered with partially cooked rice and steamed in a sealed pot.

There are two common preparation methods: one is aset pauk (အစိမ်းဖောက်), where the chicken is cooked raw with the rice; the other is akyet pauk (အကျက်ဖောက်), where pre-cooked chicken curry is layered with rice (the more common method). The dish is often topped with fried onions and splashes of orange or green food colouring.

Danbauk is served with side dishes such as fresh salads (onions, cabbage, cucumber), fermented lime or lemon, fried dried chillies, and light soup. Modern versions include ambrosia danbauk (နတ်သုဓာထမင်း), a sweeter variation with dried fruits and buttered rice.