Are you planning to celebrate any occasion like Eid, Puja or even if you want to surprise your husband on your anniversary with a different sub-continental dish? Then ‘Biriyani’ is what you need to cook. It is a common yet mouth-watering sub-continental dish that is perfect for an occasion. The word ‘biriyani’ is actually derived from the Persian word 'Biriyan'. This delicious layered rice dish is slow cooked with spices, a choice of meats and flavoring agents. Biryani was considered a majestic dish, perfect for kings, and was their favorite as well. And so it went on to occupy pride of place in the kitchens of the ‘Nawabs’ and ‘Nizams’ of Indian sub-continent. One of the most redolent dishes, biryani is sprinkled with aromatic agents like rose water, saffron and kewda etc.
• Biriyani is not polao
Both polao and biriyani are being rice dishes there is a difference between polao and biriyani. In a polao you cook all the ingredients together but in case of a biriyani the rice is boiled separately from the meat masala gravy. The two are then layered, bringing about trenchant flavors.
• Which Biriyani to cook
There are variety in taste and flavor of biryanis that differ by dint of cultures and regional influences. The main styles have mutton (or lamb) and chicken. Lucknow's specialty is the nalli (bone marrow) biryani, Kashmir has a flavorsome chicken biryani, Hyderabadis prepare Kachche Biryani and fish biryanis are cooked in South India.
But perhaps the queen of the Mughlai styles is the Lucknowi 'Dum Biryani' where the vessel is concealed with flower to entrap the steam inside the vessel and allow the meat and rice to cook slowly. It is not cooked in direct fire but over hot coals. At last when the dish is ready you can smell the aura in the air and the meat so lush to get off the bones very easily!
• Recipes to try
Kacche Gosht Ki Biryani
Ingredients: (Serves 4)
Basmati Rice — 750 g
Mutton chopped and tenderized with lemon — 1 kg
Cloves — 10 g
Cardamom — 10 g
Nutmeg — 10 g
Khus root — 10 g
Hung curd — 250 ml
Ginger garlic paste — 50 g
Shahi jeera — 10 g
Red chilli powder — 20 g
Yellow chilli powder — 15 g
Fresh mint — ¼ bunch
Ginger, julienne — 100 g
Oil (refined) — 100 ml
Salt to taste
Saffron — small pinch
Ghee — 150 ml
Rose water — few drops
Onion sliced and fried — 150g
Lemon — 3
Cream — 75 ml
Milk — 50 ml
For the 'purdah' or 'dum' covering:
Refined flour — ½ kg
Javitri elaichi powder — 10 g
Milk — 250ml
Saffron — 1 gm
Ghee — 50 ml
Knead all ingredients into small dough (keep aside)
- Slice the onions put them in oil. Cook it till it gets brown. Drain them and let them cool.
- Mix the mutton with spices and onions, and ginger paste, shahi jeera and salt. Mix some curd with it and allow marinate for 30 minutes.
- Soak the rice. Put some water to boil and add oil, salt and few drops of lemon juice and rose water. Drop a few cloves and cardamom. When water starts boiling put the soaked rice and heat till the rice is cooked well and then drain water.
- Heat a pan and put some ghee in it, add ginger garlic paste and mutton to it. Layer the mutton with rice with green chillies, mint, ginger, saffron, cream and ghee.
- Then another layer of rice again adding the green chilies, mint, ginger, saffron and ghee.
- Then seal the container with 'purdah'. Simmer when you see steam coming out. Put it in the oven for 25-30 mins. Then serve with the taste of your eye.
• Biriyani is not polao
Both polao and biriyani are being rice dishes there is a difference between polao and biriyani. In a polao you cook all the ingredients together but in case of a biriyani the rice is boiled separately from the meat masala gravy. The two are then layered, bringing about trenchant flavors.
• Which Biriyani to cook
There are variety in taste and flavor of biryanis that differ by dint of cultures and regional influences. The main styles have mutton (or lamb) and chicken. Lucknow's specialty is the nalli (bone marrow) biryani, Kashmir has a flavorsome chicken biryani, Hyderabadis prepare Kachche Biryani and fish biryanis are cooked in South India.
But perhaps the queen of the Mughlai styles is the Lucknowi 'Dum Biryani' where the vessel is concealed with flower to entrap the steam inside the vessel and allow the meat and rice to cook slowly. It is not cooked in direct fire but over hot coals. At last when the dish is ready you can smell the aura in the air and the meat so lush to get off the bones very easily!
• Recipes to try
Kacche Gosht Ki Biryani
Ingredients: (Serves 4)
Basmati Rice — 750 g
Mutton chopped and tenderized with lemon — 1 kg
Cloves — 10 g
Cardamom — 10 g
Nutmeg — 10 g
Khus root — 10 g
Hung curd — 250 ml
Ginger garlic paste — 50 g
Shahi jeera — 10 g
Red chilli powder — 20 g
Yellow chilli powder — 15 g
Fresh mint — ¼ bunch
Ginger, julienne — 100 g
Oil (refined) — 100 ml
Salt to taste
Saffron — small pinch
Ghee — 150 ml
Rose water — few drops
Onion sliced and fried — 150g
Lemon — 3
Cream — 75 ml
Milk — 50 ml
For the 'purdah' or 'dum' covering:
Refined flour — ½ kg
Javitri elaichi powder — 10 g
Milk — 250ml
Saffron — 1 gm
Ghee — 50 ml
Knead all ingredients into small dough (keep aside)
Method:
- Put some oil in a pan and heat it.- Slice the onions put them in oil. Cook it till it gets brown. Drain them and let them cool.
- Mix the mutton with spices and onions, and ginger paste, shahi jeera and salt. Mix some curd with it and allow marinate for 30 minutes.
- Soak the rice. Put some water to boil and add oil, salt and few drops of lemon juice and rose water. Drop a few cloves and cardamom. When water starts boiling put the soaked rice and heat till the rice is cooked well and then drain water.
- Heat a pan and put some ghee in it, add ginger garlic paste and mutton to it. Layer the mutton with rice with green chillies, mint, ginger, saffron, cream and ghee.
- Then another layer of rice again adding the green chilies, mint, ginger, saffron and ghee.
- Then seal the container with 'purdah'. Simmer when you see steam coming out. Put it in the oven for 25-30 mins. Then serve with the taste of your eye.
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