I made this chicken biriyani as the main menu item when I called Shoj's office friends for dinner. I made this in a roaster pan, which I got as a gift from another friend...she gave it to me as she knows that I try and experiment with new things like recipes. This is non-stick and though it was big it was very easy to clean. I made many other things apart from biriyani, as I was running out of time...could not take detailed pictures or step by step pics.
They all like this biriyani very much. In the beginning days I always used to make biriyani in rice cooker, beause I always saw my mom cooking like that. But when I came to the US, I felt that the chicken is not as much flavorful as we do in India, so we have to really marinate and make the chicken absorb some of the masala....so I started to make this way I am going to explain. First I used to overcook the rice or make it lot of spicy adding more masala....then I ended up making more gravy. Hmm...so after all my trial and errors...now I have mastered the art of making biriyani. :-) Now all comes perfect with less hassle...I started using this Shan's Biriyani mix and add some of my ingredients too, so Shan's biriyani masala is a great helper in my kitchen.
Now lets go to the recipe......
Ingredients:
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For marinating Chicken:
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2-3 lb Chicken with bones and cut to medium size pieces
3/4 th packet Shan's Biriyani Bombay Mix
1 cup Yogurt
2 tbsp Ginger-Garlic paste
1 bunch fresh Mint Leaves
2-3 Green Chilies slit
1 tsp Lemon juice
1/2 tsp Garam Masala powder
add Salt if required
For the Gravy:
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The Above: Marinated Chicken
1 large Onion sliced
1 tbsp Oil
1 tsp Ghee (Clarified Butter)
Whole Garam Masala (Optional)
For Making Rice:
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2 cups Basmati Rice
3 cups Water
1/4 packet Shan's Bombay Biriyani mix
Salt as needed
1/2 cup Cilantro chopped
Note: To get a natural biriyani color I used homemade dehydrated Beetroot and Carrot (about 2 tbsp), you can use a mixture of warm milk and saffron or any food color or just keep all these optional, if you don't wanna use any color and keep it natural.
Method:
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Making Chicken Gravy:
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1. Clean and wash the chicken and add all the marinate ingredients and mix well and coat all the pieces with the masala yogurt and keep it at least for an hour or overnight.
2. In a deep pan add oil and ghee and when it's hot add the whole garam masala (optional), then add onions and saute it until golden brown.
3. Remove these onions to a plate and in rest of the oil add the chicken pieces alone, cover and cook in high flame for about 5 mins, flip the chicken once and cook the other side also for about 5 mins or until most of the water is absorbed. Off the flame.
4. Now add left over yogurt masala, onions and mix well and set aside.
Making Rice:
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1. Soak the rice after washing without any water for about 20 mins.
2. In a pan dry roast the rice until it is hot when you touch with your finger for about 5 mins on medium flame.
3. In microwave medium heat the water for about 2 mins and add it to the rice.
4. Add salt and rest of the Shan's masala and cook it in a rice cooker until there is still little water in the bottom or for about 10-12 mins. Now off the rice cooker and open the lid.
Now assembling the biriyani to be cooked in oven:
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1. Preheat oven to 375F.
2. Now add a layer of the chicken and gravy, then add a layer of rice and sprinkle the dehydrated veggies or add saffron milk and some cilantro.
3. Repeat the layers equally until the rice and the chicken is evenly spread through. I usually make 2 to 3 layers.
4. Now cover the biriyani with aluminium foil and bake it for about 30-40 mins (make sure you keep the biriyani in the middle rack of the oven), until the rice and chicken is completely cooked. Carefully open the foil and serve this yummy biriyani with egg curry, eggplant curry and raita.
Sending this to Reva of "Kaarasaaram" - Event: "Royal Feast Biriyani"
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