Today’s recipe is definitely a special one. It is one of my favourite Indian dishes. Hyderabadi Chicken Biryani, like all the food of the area, is greatly influenced by the Mughals, Arabic, Turkish and Iranian food that use plenty of rice, wheat and spices.
Ingredients
Marinade
400 gms – 0.9 lbs. chicken tenders cut in 3 pieces
½ bunch coriander leaves roughly chopped
½ bunch mint roughly chopped
1 cinnamon stick
2 cloves
2 green cardamoms
1 black cardamom
1 bay leaf
½ tsp cumin powder
½ tsp coriander powder
½ tsp black cumin
1 tbsp ginger paste
1 tbsp garlic paste
1 green chilli you can use more if you like your food more spicy
¼ tsp red chilli powder you can use more if you like your food more spicy
1 tbsp garam masala
1 tbsp javeri mace
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 cup fried onions I bought mine at my local Indian store
1 tbsp vegetable oil
3 pepper corns
¼ tsp turmeric powder
235 gms – 1 cup yoghurt
Salt to taste
Rice
300 gms – 1 ½ cup basmati rice
Salt to taste
1 tbsp vegetable oil
Layers
¾ cup fried onions
½ bunch coriander leaves roughly chopped
½ bunch mint roughly chopped
1 pinch saffron dissolved in 2 tbsp warm water
Instructions
To make the marinade, mix all the ingredients together in a big bowl, add the chicken pieces to it, mix well and marinate in the fridge for at least 2 hours (or overnight).
When you are ready to cook your biryani, prepare the rice. Wash it and soak it in cool water for 30 minutes. Fill a big pot with water, add salt and oil and bring it to a boil. Cook the rice in it for 4 or 5 minutes.
In the meantime, take another big pot, spray it with some oil and add the chicken and its marinade to the bottom. Make sure to spread it all around.
When the rice is ready, drain it and spread it on top of the chicken.
Add the mint and coriander leaves, the fried onions and the saffron water.
Put a tight lid on and put the pot on the fire, on top of a tawa or flat pan (this will help the heat to spread uniformly).
Put the fire on high for the first 5 minutes, then keep cooking the biryani on a medium fire for 15 minutes and on low for the remaining 10 minutes (for a total of 30 minutes).
Serve warm with some raita on the side!