Biryani

Biryani recipe

This is a good flexitarian recipe as you can easily make this vegetarian by substituting the chicken for vegetables such as mushrooms, cauliflower, peas, aubergine, sweet potato, peppers, green beans, or carrots. You could even add hard boiled eggs in the rice.

Even if you are not vegetarian, you could also add these in with the chicken for a healthier and heartier meal, if you want them to be a bit firmer and still have bite add unmarinated but spiced vegetables, or just the vegetables themselves, later by putting these on top of the rice for the last ten to fifteen minutes of cooking time as they will take less time to cook than the chicken, and check everything is thoroughly cooked through at the end. Or just marinate everything that you want to use together and follow the recipe, making sure the meat is cooked through. Some people like to add raisins and/or nuts on top of the rice. You will need to use full fat yoghurt for the marinade so that this does not burn or separate when cooking. If you don't do lactose and/or wish to make this vegan, skip the marinating step and cook your ingredients in a pan for a few minutes with the spices listed in the marinade and ginger garlic, then add half a cup of vegetable stock, and cook for 5-10 minutes with mostly cooked rice on top.

I often use chicken breast fillets as that is what I prefer and they take less time to cook, though this recipe is traditionally made with chicken on the bone and a mixture of legs, thighs, and breasts. This recipe also works for a lamb biryani, or even beef, venison or goat, just you may need to cook this for a bit longer.

The easiest way to make this is to marinate your ingredients before, then half cook the rice with spices, then layer the rice on top of the meat and/or vegetables in a large casserole dish, roasting tray, baking tray, Dutch oven or similar, as long as you can add a lid or cover with foil, then put everything in the oven. I did simmer my meat on a low heat for a minute before adding the half cooked rice but you can skip this step. You can cook this on the stove, but you will need to add a cup of stock until your ingredients are just covered, then rice, and cook on a medium heat with a lid on tightly until everything is cooked through, the cooking time will be the same. Oven is definitely best if you can.

The thing is, Biryanis are incredibly popular across South Asia, the diaspora, and beyond so there are many, many variations and many, many more strongly held opinions on what constitutes and belongs in a Biryani. The origins of this dish are within the Muslim population of South Asia, and there are many styles within this region and beyond in Western Asia, Afghanistan, Indonesia, Myanmar, the Philippines, South Africa, Thailand, Mauritius, Malaysia, and Singapore, as well as many other countries that the South Asian diaspora have moved to. This dish was initially brought to the South Asian region from Persia through the Mughal empire, and is probably the most well known dish from Mughal cuisine and a classic example of 'dum' cooking, in which ingredients are marinated first and then slow cooked together in a tightly sealed pot for maximum flavour.

Marinade: -Two heaped tablespoons of ginger garlic paste -One tablespoon of garam masala -A heaped teaspoon of salt -A heaped teaspoon of turmeric -A heaped teaspoon of ground cumin -A heaped teaspoon of ground coriander -A heaped teaspoon of chilli powder -A few tablespoons of full fat yoghurt, enough to cover the ingredients but not so that they are swimming in yoghurt

Rice: -Four bay leaves -Six cloves -Six cardamom pods, crushed and shells removed so the seeds only are used -Two sticks of cinnamon -Two teaspoons of cumin seeds -One teaspoon of turmeric -Two tablespoons of salt (less if you are using stock) Other: Three white onions, thinly sliced and fried until crispy Optional: Mint leaves, coriander leaves, saffron water, chopped chillies

METHOD: -Roughly chop your main ingredients for the biryani, whether meat or veg. For this recipe I used four large chicken breasts cut into large chunks, you can also use whole legs or thighs but these will take longer to cook. Add the spices from the marinade, then add yoghurt so there is enough to cover the ingredients but not drown them. Mix thoroughly and marinate for at least twenty minutes to overnight. -Finely slice your onions and fry until brown and crispy. You can do this with a few chillies as well. -Measure out two cups of rice, rinse until the water runs clear then soak for 30 minutes in warm water. Rinse again -Bring water to the boil, add rice and ingredients listed above together and cook until rice is halfway done. Drain and remove whole spices if you wish -Remove the bits of meat and/or vegetables from the marinade and shake off any excess, then add to the bottom of the pot. If using fried onions and chillies, add half of this too. You can simmer this for a minute if you wish -Layer on your half cooked rice then add the rest of the onion, chilli, chopped coriander, and chopped mint if using. If you want you can also add a tablespoon of hot water to some saffron strands and add this for added colour/flavour. Cover with foil or a lid -Put in the oven at 190C/Gas Mark 5 for 30 minutes for vegetables, 45 minutes for chicken breasts, 1 hour for chicken on the bone/lamb -Enjoy!

Chicken Biryani