Passport & Plate - Chicken Biryani - The Supreme Mughal Delicacy
India | Thursday, March 13, 2014 | 5 photos
Ingredients
For 8 persons/Plates
MAIN DISH - BIRYANI:
1. Main Ingredients:
800 grams Basmati rice
8 big chunks of skinless chicken breasts
8 peeled medium sized potatoes
5 peeled medium sized onions
2. Spices:
5 tbsp Cumin Seeds
10 Cardamom pods
10 Cloves
2 garlic pods
Ginger (approx 3 cms)
2 peeled medium sized onions
2 cinnamon sticks
2 tbsp cumin powder
3. Other Ingredients:
6 tbsp Ghee (clarified butter or butter)
5 tbsp finely chopped mint leaves
5 tbsp finely chopped coriander leaves
Oil (to fry)
4. For your taste buds:
Salt
Pepper powder
Cloves powder
Cinnamon powder
2 pinch of turmeric powder
2 pinch of Saffron
FOR RAITA:
Peeled Cucumber
2 tsp Aniseed
2 tbsp mint leaves
Pepper
Salt
1 sugar free yoghurt
Half onion
FOR TOMATO SALAD:
2 ripe tomatoes
Half Onion
Chilli
Salt
Pepper
Olive Oil
How to prepare this recipeMain Dish – BIRYANI
I have broken down the preparation of this intricate Indian dish in 8 easy steps:
A. The Rice
B. The Chicken
C. The potatoes
D. The Onions
E. The Spices
F. Let’s Fry
G. Mix Everything
H. Its cooking.
A. The Rice
Wash rice and drain excess water. Fill with water and let soak for 30mins
B. The Chicken
Make slits on the Chicken flesh. Sprinkle 2 tsp of: salt, cloves and cinnamon powder. Grate 2 garlic cloves and a piece of ginger (1cm). Mix and set aside
C. The Potatoes
Make slits on the potatoes and slice in half. Sprinkle 2 pinch of turmeric powder. Add ½ cup of water. Set aside
D. The Onions
Slice 5 onions thinly. Set aside
E. The Spices
In blender, add: 2 chopped onions, 2 peeled garlic pods, Piece of ginger (3 cms), 5 tbsp cumin seeds, 10 Cardamom, 10 Cloves
Blend for 1 min
Add 3 tsp of salt, 2 tbsp cumin powder & Mix. Place 1 cinnamon stick in the paste
F. Let’s Fry
Deep fry onions. Fry until you smell a faint burning smell. Set aside
On low heat:
Fry potatoes – 5 mins on each side.
Fry chicken – 8 mins on each side – the chicken must be tender but not over fried.
G. Mix Everything
In a cooking pot, add:
Spice paste, fried: potatoes, chicken and onions; chopped mint & coriander leaves. Mix.
Drain water from soaked rice and sprinkle the rice on the mixture
Add 3 cups of water, 1 tsp of mint & coriander leaves, 1 stick of cinnamon & 3 cardamoms
H. Its cooking
Cover and cook on medium heat. After 40 minutes, sprinkle 2 pinch of saffron. Cover & cook. After 5 mins, add 5 tbsp of ghee. Cover & cook for 5 more minutes.
RAITA
Cut the cucumber in Julienne style and add:
100 ml of plain yoghurt, ½ Shredded Onion, 2 tsp Aniseed, 4 tsp chopped mint leaves.
Pepper and salt to taste
TOMATOES SALAD
Dice tomatoes; add
½ diced onions, chilli, 1 tbsp Olive oil.
Pepper and salt to taste
For serving: Ensure the one relinquishing the dish has got a piece of potato and chicken together with the rice. Serve Raita and Tomato Salad together
The story behind this recipe“You do not like chicken? Have a prawn or fish Biryani then. You are allergic with seafood? Have a beef biryani then. Oh, you are a vegetarian? Don’t worry, have this vegetarian Biryani.”
If you are a rice aficionado, then you must taste and relish it at least once in your life. You do not have any excuse to miss it. Quick fact, this intricate delicacy originated from Persia and was brought to India by the Mughals in the 16th Century. Biryani was the Emperors favorite meal and was prepared sumptuously when there were feasts in the kingdom. Therefore this regal dish rhymes with happiness and grandiose celebrations. Even in my country, it is usually served as the main course during major occasions such as a splendid wedding or a birthday party. At home, I cook it whenever I want to feel like a majestic Empress– that is very often. Very popular in India and other South East Asian countries, there are various variations to this dish. But the main similarities remain the same: rice that melts in your mouth (due to the ghee/ clarified butter), a scrumptious aroma – that can be smelt from a distance, and this savory flavor that awakens your taste buds due to the presence of various spices. I have a deep emotional sentiment attached to this recipe.
Learning to cook Biryani has been duly bestowed from one generation to the next. My grandma taught my mother how to cook it and my mom showed me how to make it. One day, it will be my turn to share my culinary skills of making a Biryani with my daughter. Moreover, this dish brings back my childhood anecdotes. I still remember old women from my village were always telling us – young girls; that no one will marry us until we learn how to cook a mouthwatering Biryani better than the boys’ mothers. I am proudly African by birth but of Indian ethnicity. Whenever I am preparing or eating Biryani; I feel closer and connected to India – the birthplace of my ancestors. In few words, Biryani is the window to my Indian culture.
