Bohri Biryani

This yummy biryani recipe is borrowed from a Bohri family, hence the name...

Ingredients (for 4 people)

• 1/2 kg mutton
• 1/2 kg rice
• 250 gms onion
• 1/2 cup curd
• 1/2 cup mint leaves, chopped
• 1/2 cup coriander leaves, chopped
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• 2 tomatoes, finely chopped
• garlic ginger paste 1.5 tbsp
• 7-8 cloves
• 5-6 small cardamom
• a small stick of cinnamon
• red chilli powder (as per taste)
• coriander powder 1.5 tbsp
• cumin powder 1.5 tbsp
• 3/4 cup milk
• few strands of kesar
• ghee 2-3 tbsp
• salt to taste
• 4-5 cashew nuts (for garnishing)

Method

• Cut onions in long and thin slices and deep fry it.
• Prepare garam masala powder by grinding cloves, cardamom and cinnamon.
• Marinate all the ingredients together except rice and tomatoes. Add tomatoes after half and hour. Marinate for minimum 3 hours.
• Add kesar to hot milk for about 30 mins.
• Par boil rice in a lot of water and a little bit of salt. Strain and keep aside.
• Put some oil in the bottom of pressure cooker, put a layer of marinated mutton and then add a layer of rice.
• Pour kesar milk on top of the rice; this prevents the rice from becoming too dry. Add ghee on top of rice as well.
• Put the pressure cooker on high flame till you get 2 whistles; then keep on low flame for 7-10 mins and switch off the gas. Let the pressure cooker cool completely.
• Serve hot with onion tomato raita and garnish with golden fried cashew nuts + onions.

Dindigul biryani recipe

Dindigul biryani recipe

Ingredients
Jeera Samba rice: 1 kg (for 10) I Mutton: 1.5 kg
Onion: 400 gm
Tomato: 400 gm
Mint leaves: 1 bunch
Coriander leaves: 1 bunch
Ginger-garlic paste: 6 tsp (approx 30 gm)
Cinnamon: 4
Cloves: 4
Star anise: 4 pieces
Marati moggu (type of caper): 4
Jathipathri: 4
Curd: 250 ml
Oil: 200 ml
Ghee: 50 ml
Chilli powder: 5 tsp
Coriander powder: 7 sp
Pepper powder: 4 tsp

Method
Cut the mutton into small pieces and soak it in curd for 20 minutes. Wash the rice and soak it in water for half an hour. Keep the biryani vessel in the stove and add oil, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, star anise, marati moggu, jathipathri, mint leaves (50%) and coriander leaves (50 %). Then add sliced onions. Saute well until it turns transparent. Add ginger-garlic paste, followed by sliced tomatoes. Mix well until it merges together. Add the mutton pieces along with the curd, coriander powder, chilli powder and then add a glass of water. Add the required amount of salt at this stage and cook the mutton. Once it is cooked, add the pepper powder, soaked jeera rice, the remaining mint and coriander leaves. When it starts bubbling, put the lid on the fire and add the weight (in dum style). Leave it for about 20 mins and then add ghee.Serve it with raita or brinjal curry.

Never fail easy peasy Chettinad Biryani

This saviour of a recipe (given its easy and the husband absolutely LOVES it) comes from my sasural. I usually make a fresh coconut based curry to go with it (will post the recipe for that some other day) and the combination is simply divine. Of course raita goes perfectly well with it too. Enjoy...

Ingredients:

Biryani rice (any fragrant variety would do) - 2 cups

Chicken (preferably with bone) - 1/2 kg

Onion - 2-3 (cut into thin long pieces)

Tomato - 2-3 medium (finely chopped)

Ginger garlic paste - 1 heaped tbsp (I always make this fresh as anything store bought is not half as good)

Green chillies - LOTS (this is the only pungent thing as there is no chilli powder in the recipe. So use many else it will NOT be Chettinad enough!) say 6-8 medium spicy ones. Slit them lengthwise into 2

Mint leaves - 1 big bunch (say 1 big mug full after washing and chopping)

Coriander leaves - 1 bunch (1 cup full after washing and chopping)

Mint & coriander should be finely chopped

Curd - 2 tsp

Oil - little to sauté stuff

Salt to taste

Whole garam masalas

Cinnamon - 1 big stick

Elaichi - 2

Badi Elaichi - 1

Star Anise - 1

Cloves - 4

Bay Leaves - 3

Method:

Wash and marinate the chicken with salt and two tbsp curd for sometime (minimum 1 hour or overnight). 

Wash the rice and drain water.

In a thick bottomed vessel, the pressure cooker itself works well, heat oil and add the whole spices. Once they are aromatic add sliced onions and fry well till light brown. Add ginger garlic paste and sauté till the raw smell goes. Now add tomatoes and salt to taste and sauté till nicely cooked and pulpy. Add the green chillies and sauté for another minute or so. Add the finely chopped mint and coriander and sauté for another 5 minutes. 

By now others at home will know that you are making biryani!!

Now add the chicken and sauté for say 4-5 mins. Add the uncooked rice and sauté for another 2-3 mins. Add water inn the ratio 1:2 (rice:water)and check salt.

At this stage I like to add a little ghee (verrry little :P).

Close the cooker and once the steam starts coming out put the weight on and reduce the flame. Switch off the stove after exactly 10 mins. (this timing works miraculously well!).

Open after a while say 1/2 an hour or even later is ok. Give the biryani a nice mix before serving. 

Your Chettinad style biryani is ready!