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.
