Ingredients:
For Marination:
- Chicken pieces - 1 kg
- Ginger-garlic paste - 2 tbsp
- Turmeric powder - 1 tbsp
- Chilli powder - 2 tbsp
- Salt - 1 & 1/2 tbsp
- Pepper powder - 1 tbsp
- Chicken masala powder - 2 tbsp
- Chopped coriander leaves - 1/2 cup
- Chopped mint leaves - 1/2 cup
To cook Rice:
- Basmati Rice - 1 kg
- Water
- Green Cardamom - 8 to 10 nos.
- Cloves - 8 to 10 nos.
- Cinnamon - 2 to 3 sticks
- Black pepper kernels - 10 to 15 nos.
- Bay leaf - 4 to 5 nos.
- Salt - to taste
For Garnish:
- Chopped carrot - 1 no.
- Chopped Tomatoes - 1 no.
- Chopped pineapple - 1/2 cup
- Chopped coriander leaves - 1/2 cup
- Chopped mint leaves - 1/2 cup
- Fried onion - 1/2 cup (slice the onion and fry in oil/ghee until golden brown. Drain onto a tissue to remove excess oil)
- Food colour - orange and yellow (mix them with some water in 2 different bowls)
- Rose water - 2 tbsp
- Pineapple essence - 2 tbsp
- Raisins - 20 to 30 nos. (fried in ghee)
- Cashewnuts - 15 to 20 nos. (fried in ghee)
Preparation:
Chicken Gravy:
- Marinate the chicken using the marination ingredients and refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours.
- Prepare a chicken gravy. (for this refer to the Chicken Curry recipe).
Cooking the Rice:
- Take water in a big vessel, enough to cook the rice. The water should be in excess, so that it can be drained out, once the rice is cooked.
- Add the ingredients mentioned under To cook Rice to the water and bring to boil.
- Add enough salt so that when you taste the water, the salt taste stays on top.
- Add the basmati rice to this (soaked for 15 mins) and cook.
- Once the rice is 70 % done, start draining it out.
- Spread the rice on to a bigger plate so that the fumes escape.
Mixing all of them:
- Take a big vessel, enough to contain the chicken, rice and the remaining ingredients.
- Keep the vessel on the flame and add ghee to this.
- Add the chicken gravy to this and boil it, so that there is very little water.
- Divide the cooked rice into 3 portions.
- Spread the first portion of the rice over the chicken.
- Now spread evenly the following over the rice in small proportion - food colour, pineapple essence, rose water, ghee, chopped coriander leaves, chopped mint leaves, chopped carrot, tomatoes, pineapple, raisins, cashewnuts, fried onion.
- Repeat the same for the remaining 2 portions of the rice.
- When done, cover the vessel with a lid. If required, put the dub (by covering with maida dough) and place some weight on top of the lid.
- Place a tawa underneath the vessel, so that the rice does not get burnt at the bottom.
- Cook under low flame for another 5 to 10 mins.
- The chicken biryani is ready to be served. Serve it along with some raita.