CHICKEN BIRYANI FOR THE SOUL...

Who does not like rice cooked in tender spices and layered with creamy chicken? Who does not like the aroma of basmati rice? who does not like to come home to a delicious home cooked aromatic Chicken Biryani? Who Who Who???....

While I was changing the channels on my television on a lazy afternoon, I stopped at a channel called NDTV Good Times.. Why you ask me.. There I saw a chef cooking my favorite food.. Chicken Biryani. I quickly made a note of the ingredients and the method and decided that this recipe will be cooked in my kitchen. This one is not my creation, my post says it all, but I have tried it and this recipe is sure to please your taste buds

So for all you biryani lovers.. Here's presenting the special nawabi treat -

CHICKEN BIRYANI

Courtesy: Aditya Bal, NDTV Good Times

Ingredients:

½ kg basmati rice
1 kg chicken
2 onions - chopped
½ tsp saffron
1 cup milk
juice of 1 lemon
fresh green coriander - chopped
2 green chillies - chopped
1 tbsp refined oil

Ingredients for the marinade:

2 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 ½ cup curd
1 tsp red chilli powder
salt to taste

Spices for chicken:

4 cloves
1” cinnamon
1 bay leaf
2 green cardamoms
1 black cardamom
½ tsp cumin seeds

Whole spices for rice:

2 cloves
½ “cinnamon
2 green cardamoms
salt - to taste

For the Dum:

Dough made of atta and water

METHOD:
Soak the basmati rice in water for 20 minutes to half an hour.

Marinate the chicken with curd, turmeric, salt, chilly powder and ginger-garlic paste.

Grind all the spices for the chicken in a mortar and add to the marinade. Leave the chicken to marinate for an hour minimum or up to four hours.

Heat two tbsp of refined oil in a pan. Sauté the onions, till they turn golden brown. Keep aside.

Put the rice into the cooking vessel and add the requisite amount of water. Add the whole spices and the salt. Cover and let it cook till the water is absorbed.

Put the milk into a saucepan and heat till tepid. Add the saffron and stir till the milk takes on the colour of saffron. Keep aside.

Crumple half the burnt onions and add it to the marinated chicken. Put back in fridge for half an hour.

TO LAYER THE BIRYANI:
In a handi or an appropriate biryani cooking vessel: put 1 tbsp oil and heat. Add the chicken and cook on high heat till chicken takes on a light brown colour and is half cooked.

Lower the flame; flatten the chicken to form a layer. Put chopped coriander, remaining fried onions and green chillies on top.

Put all the rice on top of this layer and smoothen out. Pour in the saffron infused milk over the rice and add the lemon juice.

Cover the vessel and make long snake off the dough by rolling in on the counter and use it to seal the top of the cooking vessel.

Let the biryani cook on a very slow fire till the seal is hard and the rice looks fully cooked.

Serve hot.

NOTE:

If using 1 cup rice, in the same cup measure 2 cups water for cooking the rice.

Remember that you have marinated the chicken. The chicken is already tender so if you cook it more it will burn (you don't want that)

Cook the rice to 80% initially. The rice will cook a 100% when you dum it.

I did not use saffron as I did not have it in my kitchen. If you do not have it you can leave it, but add the milk as it enhances the flavour.

Its ok if you don't have a biryani vessel, I dint have one. Use any vessel you think is appropriate.

Enjoy your meal :)