A hearty meal full of addictive flavors, Biryani is one of the must try dishes in India. It is vibrant in its color and flavor. Even though the Indian subcontinents have a wide varieties of Biryani recipes, every states in India has its own unique way of making this dish. The recipe I am sharing is a basic biryani recipe mostly used in the central part of Kerala.
What to Use:
Rice: Biryani rice has to be long grain, aromatic and flavorful. The most popular biryani rice in Kerala is Kaima or Jeerakasala rice. The grains are shorter when compared with basmati rice but are flavorful and aromatic. You can use any rice of your choice but long grains are always ideal for Biryani. The rice has to be cooked perfectly. Otherwise it will break into small pieces or get mushy once we cook it with the curried protein or veggies.
The rice I used in this recipe is Basmati rice. Wash rice several times until the water runs clear and soak it for 20 minutes. Drain all excess water before cooking the rice. Boil required water before adding the rice. I used 2 cups of water for 1 cup of rice. Some basmati rice requires 1 ½ cups of water for a cup of rice.
To get Perfect Fluffy Rice: Add rice to the boiling water and cook on high heat for 10 minutes, or until the water dips below the rice level. Do not stir the rice while cooking. This will break the rice. Reduce the heat to low and cook for another 10 minutes or till a little water remains in the pan. Close with a lid and turn off the heat, allow it to sit for 10 – 15 minutes. The rice will cook by the heat and moisture in the pan and will get fluffy. Also adding ghee or oil and lemon or lime juice in the boiling water will help the rice from sticking together.
Water: Make sure to use the required amount of water while cooking the rice. Otherwise the rice will get mushy or overcooked. Water quantity requirements varies depends on the rice we are using. The rice to water ratio that I followed is 1:2. Or follow the instructions on the package, if there is any.
Spices: Spices are a must in biryani. It is a blend of flavors and aroma from cinnamon sticks, cloves, nutmeg, star anise, bay leaf and cardamom pods. So you have to fill in your pantry before making any kind of biryanis. Biryani masala mix is also available in Indian or Asian stores. You can use that if you don’t have any spice at hand. I haven’t used any biriyani masala mix in this recipe, instead I used whole spices while making rice and add garam masala powder in chicken curry.
Adding more ginger and garlic to Desi chicken than regular chicken, helps to enhance the taste of the curry.
Country/Desi Chicken: Country or Desi chicken needs more time to cook than the regular store-bought or broiler chicken. Soaking chicken in turmeric-vinegar water helps to get rid of any impurities or smell in the meat. Marinate the chicken pieces for half an hour and shallow fry both sides for 8 to 10 minutes. (5 minutes on each sides for broiler chicken).
Country chicken takes at least an hour to cook on medium heat and the meat is a bit hard compared to broiler chicken. So Pressure cook it for 2 to 3 whistles on medium heat. Or add white vinegar while cooking to get a more tender meat. Raw papayas are also good for tenderizing meat. Cook raw papaya flesh along with chicken. Once the meat is cooked you can discard the papayas or can have it in the curry itself.
Ghee: Ghee or clarified butter gives more flavor and aroma to the dish. Cashews nuts, raisins and onions use to garnish the biryani, can be fried in ghee. Vanaspati ghee (Dalda) can be used as a substitute for ghee. Otherwise, use vegetable oil.
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Chicken Biryani Recipe Using Country Chicken/ നാടൻ കോഴി ബിരിയാണി
Equipment
- 2 Medium Mixing bowl
- 1 Large mixing bowl
- 1 Mixer Grinder
- 2 Heavy Bottom Pan/ Pot
- 1 Chopping Board
Ingredients
To Marinate Chicken:
- ½ Kg Country/Desi Chicken cut into medium pieces
- 1 tsp Salt
- ¼ tsp Turmeric Powder
- 1 tsp Kashmiri Red chili powder
- 1 ½ tsp Coriander powder
- ½ tsp Black pepper powder
- ½ tsp Garam Masala
To Grind:
- ¼ cup Ginger or 1 medium sized
- 10 cloves Garlic
- 2 Green chilies
- 1 handful Cilantro/Coriander leaves
- 1 handful Mint leaves
- 2 tbsp Plain yogurt/ curd
For Chicken Gravy:
- 3 medium Red Onion thinly sliced, (reserve ¼ cup from this to make fry onions)
- 1 large Tomato thinly sliced
- ¼ tsp Turmeric Powder
- 1 tsp Kashmiri Red Chili Powder
- 2 tsp Coriander Powder
- ½ tsp Fennel seeds powder
- Salt to taste
- ½ tsp Garam Masala
- 1 + ¼ cup Water or as required
- ¼ cup Vegetable Oil
For the Rice:
- 3 cups Basmati Rice
- 6 cups Water
- 5 pods Cardamoms
- 1 Cinnamon Stick
- ¼ tsp Black Pepper corns
- 4 Cloves
- 1 pinch Fennel Seeds
- 1 Bay Leaf
- 2 Star Anise
- 1 tsp Ghee/ Clarified Butter
- 1 tbsp Lemon/ lime juice
- 1 tsp Salt to taste
To Garnish:
- ¼ tsp Turmeric Powder
- 1 pinch Saffron Strands
- 2 tbsp Warm milk
- 2 + 2 tsp Ghee/ Clarified Butter
- ¼ cup Cashew nuts and Raisins
- ¼ cup Red Onion thinly sliced (optional)
- Oil to fry Onions (optional)
Instructions
To make Rice:
- Rinse basmati rice until the water runs clear. Soak rice for 20 minutes. Then drain all the excess water and set aside.
- Boil 6 cups of water in a pot along with the spices and ghee. Once the water is boiled add rice, lime juice and salt, and cook for 10 minutes on high heat.
- Reduce the heat to low when the water level reduced to the level of the rice and cook for another 10 minutes or until very little water remains in the pot.
- Turn off the heat and close the pot with a lid. Set it aside for few minutes. The rice will cook again with the heat and moisture inside the pot. Do not over mix or stir the rice while cooking.
To make Chicken Curry:
- Soak the chicken pieces in turmeric water for 15 – 20 minutes. Wash it in clear water for few times. Drain all the excess water from the chicken.
- Marinate the chicken pieces for half an hour in the masala powders mentioned in To Marinate section.
- Grind together ginger, garlic and green chilies in a blender or grinder to a fine paste. In to the same bowl, add Cilantro leaves, mint leaves and curd or yogurt and grind finely.
- In a heavy bottom pan, pour ¼ cup vegetable oil. Once the oil is hot enough, add the marinated chicken pieces and fry both sides for 8 to 10 minutes.
- In the same pan, add thinly sliced onions (Refer Note: 4) and sauté till it turns translucent. Add the ginger-garlic paste and fry until the raw smell goes. Add in the tomatoes and cook until it become soft and mushy.
- Stir in the remaining masala powders except for garam masala and cook for a minute. Then pour the cilantro-mint paste and cook for another minute. Also add ¼ cup water if the masala looks dry.
- Add the fried chicken pieces along with a cup of water and mix everything until well combined. Cover the pan with a lid and cook on medium low heat for 40 – 45 minutes or until the chicken pieces are tender and cooked perfectly. Adjust water accordingly. (Refer Note: 1 & 2) The gravy must be thick with little water.
- Once the chicken is cooked, add garam masala and give it a stir. Turn off the heat and set the curry aside.
Layering Biryani:
- Heat 2 teaspoons of ghee in a pan and roast cashew nuts and raisins. If using fried onions, then reserve ¼ cup onions before adding to the chicken gravy. Heat enough oil to fry in the same pan along with the remaining ghee. Fry the onions on medium heat as small batches. Take the onions out once the color slightly changes to golden brown and lay out in a plate.
- In a small bowl, mix turmeric powder and saffron strands with warm milk. Allow it to sit for few minutes before using.
- In a heavy bottom pan, brush the remaining ghee. Layer with half of the chicken pieces and curry. Then layer the top with half of the cooked rice. Sprinkle 2 teaspoons of turmeric milk, chopped cilantro and mint leaves, and fried onions. Layer again with the remaining chicken and curry and cover the top with rice. Sprinkle the turmeric milk, cilantro – mint leaves and fried onions.
- Cover the pot using a lid. If the lid is not tight or has any holes in it, then cover the lid with a kitchen towel and make a tight knot on top of the lid. This allows the steam to conceal inside the pot.
- Heat a tawa or a griddle on high heat. Then reduce the heat to low and place the biryani pot on top of the tawa and cook the biryani for 20 to 30 minutes.
- Garnish biryani with roasted cashew nuts, raisins and fried onions. Serve with raita, pappad and lemon pickle.
Video
Notes
- If using a pressure cooker to cook the desi chicken, then cook on medium heat for 2 to 3 whistles.
- If using store bought or broiler chicken, add less water while cooking. Also it only takes 15 – 20 minutes to cook.
- Do not stir rice while cooking. This results in getting soggy rice.
- Reserve ¼ cup sliced onions, before using in chicken curry, to make fried onions.
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