Chettinad chicken biryani

Recipe adapted from here

 

Chicken- 1 kg, without skin, but with bone and cut into medium size pieces

To marinate

Greek yoghurt- 1/2 cup

Ginger garlic paste- 1 heaped tsp

Green chilli- 1, finely chopped

Garam masala- 1 tsp

Salt- to taste

For the rice

Basmati rice- 3 cups, washed till water runs clear (refer notes)

Coconut milk- 2 cups

Water- 3 cups

Lime juice- 1 tbsp

Salt- to taste

For the masala

Ghee- 3 tbsp

Cardamom- 4 pods

Cinnamon- 2 inch stick

Cloves- 4

Bay leaf- 1

Star anise- 1

Onions- 3 medium, finely chopped

Thai green chilly- 2, slit in half (add more if you want it spicy)

Ginger garlic paste- 1 tbsp

Tomato- 2 medium, finely chopped

Chilli powder- 2 tsp

Coriander powder- 2 tsp

Turmeric powder- 1 tsp

Mint leaves- 1/4 cup, roughly chopped

Coriander leaves- 1/2 cup, roughly chopped

Marinate the chicken with all the ingredients in that section for a minimum of at least an hour. I marinated it the previous night.

Mix together the coconut milk and water and soak the washed rice in  it when you begin to start prepping the biryani.

For the gravy, heat a large pot over medium heat and melt the ghee

Into it add the whole spices and when they start smelling great, throw in the onions and green chilly.

Saute and cook till the onions turn a light golden brown at which point you add the ginger garlic paste.

Mix well and cook till the raw smell disappears.

Add the tomatoes, cover with a lid and cook till the oil starts appearing around the edges. 

In goes the chilli, coriander and turmeric powder. Add a dash of water if needed and cook for about 2 minutes.

Mix in the mint and coriander leaves and then tip in the marinated chicken. Mix well.

Cover and cook for about 10 minutes, till water starts coming out. Don't add any water.

Pour in the coconut milk mix from the rice into the pot (without the rice of course), mix well, increase heat to high and bring the mix to a boil.
After boiling for about 5 minutes, add the rice, lime juice and enough salt into the water. The salt should stand out a bit, as only then will your biryani have the right amount of salt once cooked.
Close with a tight lid, reduce heat to low and cook for about 25 minutes.
Make sure no steam escapes. If you don't have a tight lid, wrap the lid with foil so it fits tightly.
Once the time is up, and all the water has been absorbed, do a taste test from the rice right on top. If its cooked then remove from heat, if not, cook for a further 5 minutes.
Drizzle some ghee on top and cover with lid and keep aside for about 10 minutes and then serve hot with a side of raita, pickle and pappadom.

Notes: I use a variety of basmati rice called golden sella which is more resilient to cooking and doesn't break or become mushy as easily as basmati. I always end up with a mushy mess when i use basmati for biryani and so started using sella after i tasted a really good biryani using this rice at the famous Kadiris in London.
If using basmati, follow same method, but you would know the cooking time for your rice and amount of water, so adjust accordingly. I know this is pretty vague info, so ill try it with a normal basmati next time and update.
Use good quality coconut milk, the thick creamy one, as coconut milk powder will not bring out the taste that well.
I need to perfect this recipe a bit more, as the flavour hasn't come out the way i expected. I shall update it as and when i try it again.

Chicken zafrani pulao

 

I am not one to adhere to new year resolutions and so i stopped taking them. But last year i decided I wanted to go organic and am pretty proud of the fact that we did manage to do that with whatever options we had. The grocery bills did go through the roof, and there are still some arguments about the pros and cons of going organic, but i think its been a good decision and we are still sticking to it. This year my decision is to eliminate plastic from my life. Replacing all my storage containers and the like tops the list.

This year also started off with me deciding to get my priorities right. (Ro will roll on the floor laughing if he hears this). First on the list was to take up a new hobby. I am still working on it and I have so much negative energy in me right now, i should channel it all in the right direction. I turn a year older in the next couple of weeks and suddenly out of nowhere I've started to panic. It kind of happens every year but this time my fears are different. I'm getting older (and not in a wise , I'm rocking the 30's sort of way), I'm wondering if I'm taking the right decisions, whether I'd regret those decisions and most of all if Ro would resent me later for those decisions. Anyways, rant over, lets talk about something that cheers everyone up.. Food!

Tilda has been my go to brand for basmati rice. I had some excellent biryani at a restaurant called Kadiri's in North London and we got talking and they gave me a couple of sachets of their excellent biryani rice to sample. And no surprises there, it was of course this special extra long rice called golden Sella from Tilda. I made a batch of biryani with that rice and omg it was the best ever. The rice is so so fragrant, super long, and what we realised is it absorbs the flavour much much more strongly than any other rice we've used. After my sachets were used up i scouted around for that exact variety but couldn't find it anywhere. Tilda does have the Grand Biryani rice in a similar pack but its not the same. 

I was not willing to let go of the rice like that so I sent Tilda a tweet and after a couple of emails they were able to find the rice and they were kind enough to send me a bag to cook with. I have been so stingy with it, and have only managed to make this zafrani pulao and a small batch of plain rice to show you how long they are. I am on a quest to collect recipes and make the best biryani's and blog it and also to find some of the best biryanis in London. This zafrani (saffron) pulao with chicken added to it, is a close substitute for biryani and much easier. A lot of cream and milk is used and like i said, the rice does a great job by absorbing all the fab flavours. Its a very flavourful one pot meal.

Recipe adapted from here (serves 4 generously)

Basmati rice- 2 cups, washed and soaked in water for half an hour

Water- 1 cup (approx.)

Lemon juice- 1 tbsp (optional)

Eggs- 3 to 4, hard boiled and sliced in half (I used 6 quails eggs, cos i had them lying around , yes i know, I have a thing for quails eggs)

To marinate

Chicken- 1kg, with bone and cut into medium size pieces

Yoghurt- 2tbsp

Ginger-garlic paste- 2tbsp

Salt- to taste

Single cream- 1 cup

Milk- 1 cup

Saffron strands- 8 to 9 

Coriander leaves- 1/4 cup, roughly chopped + enough to garnish

Mint leaves- 1/4 cup, roughly chopped

Ghee- 3 tbsp

Cinnamon- 2, 1 inch sticks

Peppercorn- 1 tbsp

Cloves- 5

Bay leaf- 1

Star anise- 1

Cardamom- 5 pods

Mace- 1 blade

Onions- 2 large, finely chopped

Chilli powder

Garam masala- 1 1/2 tsp

Salt- to taste- 2 tsp

Marinate the chicken with all the ingredients mentioned.

Warm the milk in a bowl and soak the saffron strands in it for a while.

Into it add the cream, coriander and mint leaves, give a good mix and keep ready.

Melt the ghee in a big chefs pan  on medium heat, and throw in all the spices.

Once the aroma sets in, throw in the onions and sauté till they turn golden brown.

Add the garam masala and chilli powder and mix it all in.

Pour in the saffron infused mix followed by the marinated chicken and give it a good stir. make sure everything is nicely mixed.

Cook the chicken till about 3/4th done, or if you are doubtful like me, cook it all the way through, stirring in between.

Add the rice, boiling water and lemon juice, and enough salt (if needed). Stir it in well.

Once it boils, reduce heat to the lowest, cover the pan with a tight fitting lid and cook till the rice is done. This would take around 15 to 18 minutes.

Once the rice is cooked, take it off heat and leave aside for another 10 minutes or so, after which you can scoop it on to a serving plate, garnish with coriander leaves and eggs.
Serve with raita.

Notes: Zafrani pulao is traditionally not made with chicken, so omit the meat for a meatless version.

The recipe did not specify what cream was to be used and i ended up using double cream which was a bad idea. So use single cream like I've mentioned in the recipe.
Use 2 cups of milk for a lighter version
The left over pulao freezes really well for a couple of weeks. I thaw it at room temperature and then steam it for best results.

I was not asked by Tilda to do this project, but thanks to Tilda for providing me the rice for this #biryaniquest

Pressure cooker chicken biryani

How was your Easter weekend? How many bunnies did you see and how many eggs did you find?? None is my answer. Easter was more or less celebrated on a low key since nowhere in London did we manage to get appam and stew together, and so we had to make do with Ro's now famous chicken stew and garlic bread. It didn't go down without any drama obviously. I made a big fuss and said I hated this damn place (of course I was kidding) and who wanted to eat garlic bread with stew. I blamed Ro for it (which I then apologised for) and he was kinda lost wondering how he was to be blamed. I don't know what got into me but I was so pissed off that I couldn't get appam and stew on Easter Sunday..my mom calling up and saying they were all getting together at the club for an Easter lunch didn't make matters any better.

So I stormed out of the kitchen (right! yet again) and snuggled under the duvet with a book while Ro was battling out with the stew in the kitchen. He bugged me in between to know where the coconut milk was and I said up my a** to which he replied something nastier and although I'm sure I don't have under age children reading this, I shall refrain from using such language. Yes we will be horrid parents I think :)

So anyhoo, after his stew was all ready he tried to coochie coo and cajole me into eating it but I obviously threw my weight around and acted like a spoilt brat. He said he'd made my fav cocktail and I actually smiled...and I never heard the end of it. Of course he also gloated about his stew..which I must admit was indeed yummy. He claims he didn't even look for a recipe and it was all 'his invention,' but I would like to think he's not that awesome and he did check some recipe somewhere. 

A BBQ, a trek, movies and a picnic kept us busy and exhausted for the remaining 3 days. We have another 4 day weekend coming up and that again is gonna be a super busy one with a bit of travel thrown in.

Sorry to get side tracked, but coming to this biryani...I remember my mom making this so called 5-minute biryani on some Sundays when we were small. It used to taste absolutely yummy and since I was not in the mood for a full fledged biryani on one of the weekends, I decided to give this a go. I must warn you, its not the typical biryani and it DOESN'T get done in five minutes . But what my mom meant is the whole cooking process in the pressure cooker atop a burner is exactly 5 minutes and hence the name. Absolutely deceiving if you ask me. When I complained to my mom later that it couldnt be called a biryani she asked me if I thought I'd get a Hyderabadi biryani with so little effort. I must tell you we are a bunch of sarcastic people:)

The taste was good (not out of this world). It was more of a pulao than a chicken biryani, but I'm amazed at how the rice was perfectly cooked in spite of doing it in a pressure cooker. It is indeed a one pot meal.

Rice- 2 cups

Boiling water- 3 cups

Chicken- 1/2 kg, washed and cleaned (I used thighs and legs)

Turmeric powder- 1/4 tsp

Curd- 1/4 cup

Salt- to taste

Ginger- 1 inch piece, roughly chopped

Garlic- 4 medium size cloves, roughly chopped

Green chillies- 4, roughly chopped

Cinnamon- 1 inch piece

Cloves- 2

Cardamom- 2 pods

Onions- 2 cups, roughly chopped

Tomato- 2 cups, roughly chopped

Ghee- 1 tbsp

Lime juice- 2 tsp

Coriander leaves- a handful (optional)

Marinate the chicken with turmeric powder, curd and salt. Keep aside

Coarsely grind together the ginger, garlic and green chillies using a pestle and mortar or pulse once or twice in a grinder. No need to have a paste-like consistency

Heat ghee in the pressure cooker and throw in the whole spices. Sauté till nice and fragrant.

Add onion and stir till light brown.

Add the ground mix and sauté till the dry smell goes.

Throw in the tomatoes and mix well till they get slightly wilted. No need to wait till the oil separates.

Add the marinated chicken and coriander leaves and cook till about 3/4th done. Stirring to see it doesn't burn the bottom.

Add the rice to the chicken and stir for a couple of minutes. Check salt and add as required at this stage.

Add 3 cups of boiling water, add the lime juice and close the lid.

Keep the heat on high and wait for the steam. Put on the weight and simmer (medium) for exactly five minutes. Whether you hear the whistle or not switch off the burner and remove the cooker from the heat.

Keep it closed for as long as possible. Basically don't open it immediately or until the steam has died.

Once you open the cooker, immediately transfer the contents into a shallow bowl and spread it out as much as possible. This will prevent it from clumping together.

Serve with all the accompaniments or just with pickle.

Notes: The beauty of this recipe is that there is no need for marination or soaking or anything.

If you want you can even omit the marination process and add the turmeric and curd along with the onion-tomato or go a step further and add all the stuff you'd add to a normal biryani like mint and coriander leaves and all that

I kept the cooker closed for close to half an hour and was holding my breath while I opened the lid; hundred percent sure it was gonna be like a sadam. But I was lucky it was perfectly cooked.

Store in an air tight container and you can use it for the next two days, if you have any remaining that is :)

Chicken Biryani...finally!

Did i mention its cold and snowing and unbelievably sluggish weather? Well its been that way for the past one week and boy i must say I'm enjoying it..well if i don't have to go outside that is! I even end up buying grocery online, can you beat that?

Woke up this morning, well noon rather, and was so totally in the mood for a biryani. The fact that i had almost everything for a full fledged chicken biriyani kinda surprised me. Ro wanted to make his usual one, which never never comes out well for some strange reason, and i decided i do not want to try that but something new instead. So he said i could search online for exactly 10 minutes within which time he said he would clean the chicken. Challenge undertaken, but nope not one easy recipe to be found (i wonder what my definition of an easy biryani would be like though, cos they are never easy!). My biryani's never never come out well in spite of trying out so many different types. Ro has the same question each time. 'er is that biryani sadam? No baby its not, its more like a porridge....do you wanna sleep on the couch today?

So yeah, just when i was about to settle for our old boring recipe, i found this dum biryani recipeonline. Altered it a bit here and there to suit my laziness, but i still give full credit to he/she who posted it online. Here is my version.

Chicken- 800 gms (I know!!!! it sounds weird..i kinda only had so much left. 1 kg should be fine)

Onions- 2, thinly sliced

Tomatoes- 2, chopped

Ginger garlic paste- 2 tbsp

Oil- 2 tbs

For marinade:

Yogurt- 3/4 cup

Coriander leaves- a handful, chopped finely

Mint leaves- a handful, chopped finely

Chilli pwd- 2 tbsp (I used Kashmiri chilli pwd since we are not so brave)

Garam masala- 2 tbsp

Turmeric pwd- 1/4 tsp

Lime juice- 4 tbsp

Salt- as required

For the rice:

Rice- 2 cups, wash and soak in water for about 15 minutes

Cardamom- 4 pods

Cinnamon- 1 inch stick

Cloves- 3

Nutmeg- a pinch

Black Peppercorns-4

Cumin seeds- 3/4 tsp

Water- 3 cups

Oil- 1 tbsp

Ghee- 1tbs

While the water is kept to boil, heat the oil and ghee in another bigger container. Splutter the rest of the ingredients (spices) till nice and aromatic. To this add the rice (drained and dry by now) and roast for a few minutes, just enough to infuse the flavours. Pour the boiled water into this and cook the rice on low fire for about 5 mins (closed) or just when its about to boil again. Remove and drain the rice immediately. Keep aside. Make sure you don't over cook it.

Heat oil in a large container and add the onions. Once golden brown add the ginger garlic paste and mix well till the raw smell goes. The tomatoes go in next and needs to be cooked till the oil separates. At this point add the chicken marinade and mix well. Cook covered on medium flame. Open the lid and give it a stir once in a while. After about 3 to 4 mins, open the lid and cook on high flame for a further 4 mins or till some of the water from the chicken evaporates. Layer the rice on top of the chicken curry and cook covered for about 20 mins. When you are ready to serve, mix the chicken at the bottom with the rice gently and serve with raita, pickle and pappad.

Notes: We completely ignored the painstaking parts as we were hungry and somehow wanted it on our table. I'm sure it would have paid off well if we had some more patience. Maybe next time!

It got a wee bit burnt at the bottom, which i think is because our heat was a bit on the higher side. Damn the electric hobs!

I didn't do the 'dum' bit the way its supposed to be, but I'm incredibly impressed with the way it turned out.