Chicken Briyani

Making briyani for a sunday lunch had been a tradition in our home for quite a long time, so that i could achieve perfection. Here is one simple recipe to make an awesome briyani. There are several methods to make briyani, this method is know as kachi briyani. Its quite simple to make and you cant really go wrong with this recipe.

Ingredients:

Chicken - 1 kg with bone
Basmati rice- 4-5 cups
oil - 6 tbsp
ghee -2 tbsp
spice - bay leaves, star anise, cardamom, cinnamon, other spices. Garam masala powder is optional.
ginger garlic paste - 3 tbsp
curd - 1 cup
coriander leaves- 1 bunch
mint leaves - bunch
Fried onions - 250 g
kala jeera - 1tbsp
black whole pepper - 1tbsp
green chilies - 4 numbers
red chili powder - 2 tbsp (if you like it spicy you could add more)
Coriander powder - 2 tbsp
Turmeric powder-1/2 tsp
Lemon juice - 4-5 tbsp
Salt - as required


Methods:

Marinate cleaned chicken with ginger garlic paste, chopped coriander leaves, chopped mint leaves, black pepper, chopped green chilies, chili powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, curd, oil, ghee, fried onions, salt, whole spices, salt. Mix well and if possible marinate it over night in the refrigerator.

Soak the washed basmati rice for 30 mins. In a large vessel add salt, lemon juice, jeera, oil and enough water to cook the rice. The water should taste salty in order to half enough salt for the rice. Add the rice and cook let it get cooked. Take half of the rice when its 60% done and drain it. The other half of the rice should be drained when it is 75% done.

to cook the basmati rice

In a heavy bottom vessel, i use a pan shaped pressure cooker and it works perfectly well. Grease the pan and add the marinated chicken to the bottom of the vessel. Now make a layer with the 60% cooked rice. Top it with some chopped mint, coriander leaves, fried onions. Now add a layer of 75% done rice and top it with chopped mint, coriander, and fried onions. 

Add set to cook, bottom layer is chicken and topped with two layers of rice.

Cover the cooker but with out the weight valve. Cook in high flame for 10 mins and followed by medium heat for 15 mins. Now your house must be filled with the yummy smell of this awesome briyani.

You need to mix the briyani with the chicken at the bottom layer when you serve.

Beef briyani

Briyani is one of the most famous Indian delicacy. Normally its a long process to cook them. This blog post is talks about one of the many ways of cooking briyani. This recipe is from a friend in Vaniyampadi (in tamil nandu) region. As i dont get good tender lamb I make briyani with beef but you can replace beef with mutton in this recipe.

Ingredients (for 1 kg meat)

Beef - 1 kg tender meat of 1-1.5 inch cubes.
Basmathi rice - 1 kg
onion - 500g sliced
tomato - 400 g chopped
coriander leaves - as required
mint -1bunch
chilli powder - 4 tbsp (can be adjusted to taste)
green chillies - 5
ginger garlic paste - 8 tbsp
lime juice - 1 large lemon
salt
oil - 4-5 tbsp
ghee - 3 tbsp
spicies - 1 bay leaves, 2 1inch long cinnamon, 2-3 cardamom, 2 star anise, 3-4 Cloves - more is optional

1. Add 3-4 tbsp oil to the pressure cooker, add the spices and onions and fry the onions till light brown. 
2. Add green chilies and fry for about 2 mins. Add ginger garlic paste and fry for about 2 mins till the prominent smell fills the room. 
3. Add curd, meat, read chili powder, salt and pressure cook for about 8 whistles. (You can have less number of whistle or more depending on the tenderness of the meat.) 
4. Cooking rice: Soak rice for 30 mins when you start cutting the onions so that the rice can be cooked when the meat is being pressure cooked. Boil water in a large vessel with jeera, 1tsp oil, salt (the water should taste a little more salty than normal) and lemon juice. Add the rice when the water comes to boil.When the rice starts to dance on the top, check the consistency of it. Rice has to be little more than half cooked (when pressed with 2 finger it should get crushed). Now drain the water and keep the DRY rice aside. 
5. Now back to the meat. Open the pressure cooker after it cooks down. You have to see oil separating out and the meat well cooked. Add chopped tomatoes, mint leaves, coriander leaves and cook for about 15 mins till the tomatoes are cooked and mashed.
6. Now mix the gravy with the semi-cooked rice in a large thick bottom vessel. Add ghee and more fresh coriander leaves and mix well. 
7. Now use a wet cloth to over the pot to make it air tight and then add a cover the vessel with a tight lid. Or make a paste out of all purpose flour and put it on the rim of the vessel and seal it with the tight lid. 
8. Cook this on high flame for 5 mins (you will see water drops on the inside of the lid - if u have a transparent lid) and medium flame for about 35 mins. 

Here are the pictures in sequence except cooking of the basmathi rice.

Yummy briyani is ready to be served. Enjoy this with raitha

Tuna fish fry (podimas)

Tuna fish often comes in tin and could be stored for long time. I think its available across Europe in every supermarket. The are meant to be added in salad or as pizza topping. But here is a simple indian recipe using this tuna fish. 

Ingredients: 

Fennel seeds

Garlic - 3 finely chopped

Onion - 3 medium size

green/red chilies - 3-4

Pepper powder - 2 tbsp

Tuna fish - 2 tin (150 g each)

coriander leaves - 1 bunch

curry leaves - 10 no.

Tamarind paste - 1 tsp

oil - 2 tsp

salt as required.

Cooking time: 30 mins

1. Add oil to the pan, add fennel seeds, garlic, chilies, curry leaves, onions and salt. Fry for about 7 mins until the onions turn translucent.
2. Add the fish (drain the water or oil that the fish is preserved in from the tin). Mix well and break the fish chunks to smaller parts. 
3. Fry for about 4 mins on medium high flame. Add pepper powder and continue to fry for another 5 mins
4. Add tamarind paste and coriander leaves. Fry for about 5 more mins and its ready. 

The tuna fish that comes in tin is meant to be added into salad so they are precooked. If you want you can fry it a little longer so that the fish gets a little brownish.

Sardine fish podimas

Here comes the second post for today, I am very motivated from this morning!! Its a very easy, fast recipe and tastes very good with Rasam rice.

I store fish that comes in tin, this comes in handy when there is nothing else to cook and you want something quick and tasty.

 

 

Cooking time: 30 mins

 

Ingredients:

Sardine fish tin - 2 (each had about 5 small fishes)
Onion - 3 medium size
Tomato - 1 medium size
Sombu/fennel seeds  - 1 tbsp.
Green Chilies -  3 (I used red as I didn't have green)
Chili powder - 1tbsp
coriander powder - 2 tbsp.
turmeric powder 1 tsp
Oil - 2 tbsp
salt to taste
Lime juice optional

1. Add oil to the pan and add in sombu. Fry this for a min.
2. Add onion and green (red) chilies. Fry the onion till light brown.
3. Add tomatoes and fry till mushy.
   
4. Tin fish comes in either oil or with water in the tin. Drain out this from the fish and add in the fish to the pan.
5. Now fry it for about 10 -15 mins. Add about 1 tsp of lime juice if you like the tangy taste.

This taste best in combination is Rasam rice.

Chicken gravy

Here is a simple and very tasty chicken gravy recipe. It tastes best with chicken legs or chicken pieces with bones. Its a very versatile recipe and goes very well with chapati, simple pulao or even plain rice. I prepare this often during weekends.

Cooking time about 40 mins

Ingredients: 

Chicken with bone - 700g
Onion - 5 Medium size
Tomato - 3 medium size
Cinnamon stick - 1 inch (more spices optional)
Ginger garlic paste - 2 tbsp
pepper powder - 2 tsp
Chilli powder - 2 tbsp
coriander powder - 4 tbsp
Green chillies 2
turmeric - 1tsp
Coconut milk - 2 tbsp
Coriander leaves - 2 bunch
oil and salt as required

1. Add 2 tbsp oil in pan and add cinnamon stick. Then ginger garlic paste and fry for about a min till the flavor fills the room. 
2. Add onion, green chillies and fry until onions turn translucent. Add tomatoes and fry till the tomatoes turn mushy. 
   
3.  Add all masalas (Chilli powder, turmeric powder, coriander powder). Mix it and fry for a min. 
4. Add the chicken and mix the masalas well. Cover and cook for about 20 min on medium flame. DON'T add water.
   
5. Now if the chicken is cooked then add pepper powder and coconut milk. 
6. Top it with coriander leaves and sever hot. 

Leave you comments and let me know you opinions.

Indian style egg scramble

I know almost every Indian know how to make it but i just wanted to share it for some of my non-Indian friends.

Ingredients:

Eggs 3
onion 2-3 medium size (I like with more onions)
freshly ground pepper powder
salt
oil 2 tsp

Add oil to the pan and fry the finely chopped onions on medium heat until translucent. Add salt and pepper powder and mix them well. Now add the eggs and keep stirring as it gets cooked. Adjust the pepper powder and salt as needed. Can add coriander leaves.

Left: Onion fried with pepper and salt. Middle: Egg just added. Right: Egg scramble is almost ready