Chicken Biryani

Equipment

• 4-QT Casserole
• 3-QT Saucepan

Ingredients

Marinade Ingredients

• 1 pound chicken drumsticks (4) skin removed
• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs cut in half
• 2 teaspoon biryani masala
• 1 tablespoon ginger paste
• 1 tablespoon garlic paste
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon kashmiri red chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves chopped
• 2 tablespoon lemon juice
• 3/4 cup plain yogurt

Crispy Fried Onions

• 4 tablespoons ghee
• 1 large yellow onion thinly sliced

Rice Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons ghee
• 2½ cups Extra long grain Basmati rice
• 1 teaspoon black cumin seeds – shah jeera
• 2 bay leaves – tamal patra
• 1 star anise
• 4 green cardamom pods
• 8 cloves
• 1½ tablespoons kosher salt

Garnish

• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
• 1/2 teaspoon saffron
• 2 tablespoons milk warm

Instructions

Marinate Chicken

1. Make the marinade by mixing yogurt, ginger, garlic, turmeric, red chili powder, garam masala, salt, mint leaves, and lemon juice.
2. Add chicken and coat evenly with the marinade. Keep in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. Note: You can also marinate the chicken overnight in teh refrigerator.
3. Soak saffron in warm milk, reserve.

Rinse & Soak Rice

1. Rinse and drain the basmati rice 2 to 3 times. Add 4 cups of water and let it soak for 20 minutes.

Fry Onions

1. While the rice is soaking, add ghee to a heavy-bottomed pan and add onions. On medium heat, fry the onions stirring frequently until they become light golden brown and start to crisp up – about 15 to 20 minutes.
2. Remove the fried onions from the pan, leaving the excess ghee behind as we will use this pan to cook the chicken. Add one fourth of the fried onions to the marinated chicken and give a quick mix.

Parboil Rice

1. In a medium pot add 8 cups of water. Add cumin seeds, bay leaves, star anise, cardamom, cloves, and salt to the rice and bring it to boil on high heat.
2. Drain the soaked rice and add it to the boiling water. Bring the rice to a full boil on high heat. Lower the heat to medium and cook uncovered for 5 to 6 minutes or until the rice is about 90% cooked. Drain the rice promptly and reserve.

Cook chicken

1. To the pan with the remaining ghee, add the marinated chicken. Cook on medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes, turning halfway through.

Layer and cook Biryani on Dum

1. Carefully layer the partially cooked rice over the chicken. Top with caramelized onions and saffron-infused milk.
2. Cover the pot and seal it with aluminum foil, then place some weight over the lid. Cook on low heat for 20 minutes, this is the steam or “Dum” cooking step. Turn the heat off and wait another 10 minutes before opening the pot.
3. Garnish with cilantro. Before serving allow the biryani to sit uncovered for 5 minutes. Gently fluff the rice using a fork or a silicone spatula. This will help the delicate rice grains to firm up a bit preventing them from breaking. Serve with Raita and lemon wedges.