Chicken Biryani
Author: 
Recipe type: Entree
Cuisine: Indian
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 6 servings
 
Biryani is one of the most popular Indian dishes and is the perfect main entree for a dinner party. In India, when biryani is served for a meal, it is often THE meal itself along with a side of raita. Raita is whipped yogurt mixed with any combination of spices, vegetables, fruit or even crispy deep fried gram flour batter (boondi).
Ingredients
  • For the Sauce
  • 2.5 tbsp Ghee or Oil
  • 6-8 Green Cardamoms
  • 4-6 Cloves
  • 2 Bay Leaves
  • 2.5 tbsp Ginger-garlic Paste
  • 1 large Onion, thinly sliced
  • 2.5 pounds Chicken cut up into medium pieces
  • 1 tsp Turmeric
  • ½ tsp Red Chili Powder
  • 1 tsp Garam Masala
  • 1 tsp Coriander Powder
  • 3-4 medium tomatoes (around 1.25 pound), diced or crushed in a chopper.
  • 2-3 Green Chillies, finely chopped
  • 1 tsp Salt (to taste)
  • For Boiling the Rice and Assembling the Biryani
  • 2.5 cups of Basmati Rice
  • ½ tsp Caraway Seeds (optional)
  • 1 small bunch Mint leaves
  • 1 small bunch Cilantro leaves
  • 1″ piece of Ginger julienned
  • Pinch of Saffron strands
  • 1 tsp Ghee or Oil
  • Few drops of Rose water, and Kewra water (optional)
  • 2-3 tsp Salt
Instructions
  1. Heat the Ghee in the pot on medium heat, and add the Green Cardamoms, Cloves, Bay Leaves, Cinnamon Stick and Ginger-garlic paste. Fry for a minute until the Ginger-garlic paste turns light brown.
  2. Add the sliced Onions and continue frying them until they turn light to slightly dark brown; around 12-15 minutes. TIP: Sprinkle a little salt on the Onions, this will speed up the browning.
  3. Add the Chicken pieces, Coriander Powder, Garam Masala, Turmeric Powder, Red Chili Powder, and about 1 tsp Salt. Mix well and cook on medium heat, tossing every few minutes, to lightly brown the chicken pieces; about 10 minutes.
  4. Add the diced tomatoes, green chillies and mix well. Continue cooking while stirring every few minutes.
  5. Cook the tomatoes until all the liquid dries up. The sauce should be thick and the oil will separate out. This can take anywhere from 15-30 minutes. TIP: Fish out the whole spices from the pot, and discard.
  6. Boil 6 cups of water in a pot with about 2 tsp Salt, Caraway Seeds and a Bay Leaf. The water should be salty. When the water comes to a rolling boil, add the drained rice; discard the water in which the rice was soaked. IMPORTANT: You cannot salt it after the rice is cooked. Remember to salt the rice while boiling it.
  7. When the pot comes back to a boil, check a few grains of rice. When pressed between your fingers (careful, they’re going to be hot!), the rice grain should break easily but should not get crushed. TIP: Slightly undercooking the rice is one of the keys to making a great biryani.
  8. At this point, immediately turn off the heat and drain the rice in a colander. Reserve one cup of the boiling water. TIP: If you boil the rice before you are ready to assemble the biryani, then pour cold water over the drained rice to stop it from cooking further. I usually finish cooking the Chicken, then boil the rice and assemble the biryani right away.
  9. t’s time to assemble the biryani in the pot for the final steam cooking. Spread the chicken around the base of the pot. Spread the chopped Mint and Cilantro leaves and Ginger juliennes. You’ll note in the photo that I use a generous quantity of Mint and Cilantro, but adjust to your taste.
  10. Spread the rice on top and cover the chicken completely. To the reserved cup of boiling water from the rice, add a teaspoon of Ghee, a few drops of Rose Water and Kewra water; stir and then pour it evenly over the rice. Spread the Saffron milk on top of the rice.
  11. Sprinkle some more chopped Mint and Cilantro leaves on top of the rice.
  12. Seal the pot with aluminum foil and cover with a lid. Place the pot on top of the skillet. With the heat at medium, cook for 25 minutes and turn off the heat. The key is that you want the steam to form in the pot and start passing through the rice. So at this point, if you were to open the pot, you should see steam blowing out of it.
  13. Let the pot stand for at least another 20 minutes to allow the flavors to develop further and meld into the rice. Open it up and enjoy the aromas wafting out from the pot. Chicken Biryani is ready to serve! TIP: Pass a butter knife vertically through the rice and pull it out. If the liquid in the pot has fully dried up, the knife will be clean. If there is still some liquid, you can reseal the pot and slow cook for another 10-15 minutes.
Notes
Utensils Needed
A thick-bottomed pot with a well-fitting lid in which the biryani will be assembled and finished.
A skillet that is large enough, so that the pot can be placed on top of it. This is needed when finishing the biryani – the pot is placed on a skillet to slow cook so that the contents do not burn at the bottom. Using the skillet makes this a foolproof way to make a biryani, ensuring you slow cook it and don’t burn any of the meat at the bottom.
Recipe by Pure Curry at https://www.purecurry.com/chicken-biryani/