Chicken Biriyani (Tamilnadu Style)

Monday, January 9, 2012

What a way to start posting for the new year 2012 :-)

Long time I wanted to post the most favorite food of mine. So, here it is.

Ingredients

Basmati Rice - 3.5 cups
Chicken -1/2 kg
Big Onion - 6 (medium sized)
Green chilli - 3 (big ones)
Garlic cloves - 50 grams
Ginger - 50 grams
Tomato - 3
Coriander leaves - 1 hand full
Mint leaves - 1 hand full
Cinnamon - 1 big piece
Curry leaves 2 sprigs
Cloves - 3-4
Cardamon - 2-3
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Ghee or Vanaspati - 4 tsp
Refined oil as required
Salt to taste
Cashew nuts and Raisins - as much as you like

How To Prepare

Step 1: Wash and clean the chicken and cook it in a vessel with turmeric, salt, 1 piece of cinnamon and 1 clove. Half cook the chicken in required water. Seperate the chicken pieces and retain the chicken stock.

Step 2: Grind to fine paste - Ginger, Garlic and Green chillies

Step 3: Finely chop the Onions, Tomatoes, Coriander and Mint leaves

Step 4: Wash the rice and drain the water and keep aside. Boil the water required for the rice separately and keep aside. Its 2 cups of water for 1 cup of rice.

Step 5: Heat oil in a pan along with 2 tsp of ghee. Saute the onions well until it turns golden brown color. Drain it from the pan and keep aside.

Step 6: Fry the cashew nuts and raisins in the same oil. Drain it and keep aside.

Step 7: Take the vessel in which you are planning to make the biriyani and pour the remaining oil from frying onions and dry fruits. Now add 2 tsps of ghee and the required refined oil to it. Now add the cinnamon, cloves and cardamom.

Step 8: Add the curry leaves and the freshly ground Ginger-Garlic-Green chillies paste. Fry till the raw smell fades.

Step 9: Next add the fried onions to this. Then add the tomatoes, coriander and mint leaves and saute until soft.

Step 9: Now measure the chicken stock in the same cup you measured rice and add to this. For the remaining water you require for the rice, add the water you boiled earlier and kept aside.
Note: Pour the exact amount of water you require for the rice otherwise the rice will get over cooked and loose its texture.


Step 10: Add the required salt and let the water boil. Then add the rice and chicken pieces and close the lid. Cook for 5-10 minutes. Make sure it is on medium flame and it does not get caught at the bottom. Once the rice is close to getting done, switch to low flame, close the lid and keep a heavy vessel on top of the lid. Dum cook it for 5 mins. Switch off the stove and allow it to dum cook.

Step 11: Garnish this with the dry fruits.

Serve hot with the regular onion and tomato
raita.


Tangy Stuffed Brinjal Masala Curry

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Ingredients

Small Brinjals – 6 (slit the front four)
Tomato – 4
Tamarind puree – half a lemon size
Coriander Leaves – 1 tbsp (finely chopped)
Curry Leaves - 1 strand
Big Onion – 1 (finely chopped)
Ginger & Garlic Paste – 1 tsp (grind fres
hly)
Coconut – 6 tbsp (grind freshly)
Cinnamon – 1 small piece
Cloves – 2
Whole Black Pepper – 1 tsp
Mustard seeds – 1/2 tsp
Cumin seeds – 1/2 tsp
Coriander powder – 1/2 tsp
Red Chili powder – 1/2 tsp
Pepper powder – 1/2 tsp
Oil – as required
Salt to taste

How To Prepare

Step 1: To Fry and Grind

Take a pan and add a little oil and fry the listed items one after the other: Cinnamon, Cloves, Cumin seeds, Big Onion, Tomato (1 sliced finely), Ginger & Garlic Paste, Coriander powder, Red Chili powder, Pepper powder, Salt. Let it to cool and grind it into paste.

Stuff the brinjals with this paste and keep aside.

Step 2: Grind the grated coconut and keep aside.

Step 3: Grind the remaining tomatoes and keep aside.

Step 4: Heat oil in a pan. Add the listed items one after the other: mustard seeds, curry leaves, whole pepper and the stuffed brinjals. Fry it for 2 mins. Then, add the remaining fried paste to the curry and fry until the brinjal is cooked and oil separates from the curry.

Step 5: Add the tomato paste and cook for 2 min. Then add the listed items - tamarind puree, coriander leaves, salt and chili powder.

Step 6: Boil the curry on medium flame for 5 mins. Then add the coconut paste and open cook till the curry gets thicker.

This curry goes best with steamed rice, chappati, rotis and pooris.

Cabbage Thoran

Sunday, January 9, 2011

This is my first post. I usually enjoy every part of cooking - the preparation, the making and the serving :-)

Lately, I got interested in photography too so, I thought why not mingle both and satisfy my creative and culinary instincts :-)

So, here is my recipe for Cabbage Thoran

Ingredients

Cabbage – Half of one cabbage (Finely sliced)
Shallots – 20 (Finely sliced)
Garlic cloves – 3-4 (Chopped)
Green chili – 2 (Chopped)
Coconut – 2 tbsp (freshly grated)
Curry leaves – 2 sprigs
Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
Urad Dal – 1 tsp
Turmeric powder – 1/2 tsp
Oil – as required
Salt – to taste


How To Prepare

Take a kadai and add oil.

Add the listed items one after the other: Mustard seeds, Urad dal, Curry leaves, Green chili, Garlic, Shallots, Turmeric powder, Salt, Cabbage.

Mix them well and sprinkle water as required. Close and cook until the cabbage is translucent and soft.

Add the grated coconut and mix well.

Cabbage Thoran is READY! to be served :-)


PS: This goes well with steamed rice and any curry of your choice.

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