Malabar Chicken Biryani

Ingredients

Serves 3

List 1

Chicken - 1 lb

Onion - 1 no

Green chillies - 6 to 7 nos

Ginger Garlic paste - 1 tbs

Tomato - 1 no chopped

Biryani powder - 2 tbs

Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp

Yogurt - 2 tbs

Coconut milk - 1/2 cup

Mint - 1/2 cup minced

Coriander leaves - 1/2 cup minced

Pineapple - 1/4 cup chopped in small cubes

Lime juice - 3 tsp

Yellow food color - 1/4 tsp mixed in 2 tsp of water or a pinch of saffron soaked in 1/4 cup of warm milk

Fried Onion - 1/2 cup

Oil

Ghee - 2 tsp

Salt to taste

List 2

Basumathi rice - 2 cups

Ghee - 1 tsp

Cinnamon - 1" piece

Cloves - 2 nos

Cardamom - 2 nos

Bay leave - 1 no

Salt - 1 tsp

To cook rice

Heat ghee in sauce pot, add all the whole spices given in List 2 and fry for a minute. Then add the rice and fry for another minute and pour 4 cups of boiling water and close the lid, keep it in medium heat. When the rice is half done, turn off the heat and drain the remaining water. Spread the rice on a large plate, let it cool.

For masala

Grind onion and green chillies to a coarse paste. Heat oil in a heavy bottom sauce pot, add the ground paste and the ginger garlic paste with little salt, saute until onion are brown. Then add the cleaned chicken, stir until chicken turns white. Then add the chopped tomato, turmeric powder and biryani powder, stir well for 2 to 3 mins or until tomatoes are soft. Then add the mint and coriander leaves, saute for few minutes. Add the yogurt and mix well, let it cook for 2 minutes. Finally pour in the coconut milk, add salt. Stir occasionally, bring it to a Gravy consistency as shown in the picture below. Turn off the heat.

For layering

Take out half of the chicken gravy from the sauce pot and keep it aside. Then spread the remaining gravy evenly on the bottom of the pot. Then add the rice on top and spread evenly, sprinkle few mint and corinander leaves, Pineapple chucks and half of fried onions. Repeat this layering one more time. On the final layer sprinkle the yellow food color or the saffron milk, lime juice and ghee( can also add fried cashew nuts and raisins). Close the lid. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 40 mins. After that turn off the heat and let it rest for another 10 minutes. Then open the lid and gently mix rice and chicken masala. Serve hot with Raitha.