Nimmy Paul’s Tomato Rice

When Nimmy Paul made this rice biryani (it’s not a layered casserole, but the saucelike tomato curry makes it a biryani), she used an urli, a traditional round-bottomed, heavy pan with a generous lip. I salivated not only at the beautifully colored biryani but also at her antique urli, its patina harboring aromatic spices that had perfumed hundreds of curries over the years. To re-create those earthy tastes, I used my clay urli, which I had brought back from India as ca