mint leaves

CHICKEN BIRIYANI

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Chicken biriyani is a very popular Indian rice variety. Chicken biriyani is made with lots of spices which makes it more flavorful.037This is one of my most favorite dishes from my mom’s kitchen. Interestingly, I was not aware of its hold on me before my marriage. It all started after I moved here to U.S when I realized how much I was missing all those wonderful dishes back home and my mom’s biriyani was the one which I craved more.
042She prepares all the ingredients (from ginger-garlic paste to Biriyani powder) fresh right before making biriyani. Maybe that’s the secret of her recipe 😉 The fresh aroma of samba rice, homemade biriyani powder and ginger-garlic paste spreads through the whole house…ummmm..

  • If you are diet conscious, you can reduce the coconut milk ratio to 1 cup (i.e for 1 cup of rice, add 1 cup each of water and coconut milk) or entirely omit it and replace it with 2 cups of water. But coconut milk makes big difference in preparing this biriyani.
  • If you are using store bought coconut milk add just a couple of spoons. As they are very thick, adding more will overwhelm the taste of dish with coconut taste.
  • Do not add extra water as the chicken itself will release water.

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And before proceeding, I’m warning you this food tempts you to make it again and again. 🙂

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Mom’s Chicken Biriyani
Recipe type: Lunch
Cuisine: Indian
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 2
 
Chicken biriyani is a very popular Indian rice variety. Chicken biriyani is made with lots of spices which makes it more flavorful.
Ingredients
Biriyani powder/masala:
  • Cloves – 10
  • Star anise – 2
  • Black Pepper – 15 nos
  • Green cardamom – 8
  • Cinnamon sticks – 1", 4 nos
  • Javetri – 1 flower
Other ingredients:
  • Ghee – 2 tbs
  • Coconut oil – 1 tsp
  • Biriyani powder – 1 tbs
  • Bay leaf – 1 (big)
  • Big Onion – 1 (cut into slits)
  • Ginger & Garlic paste – 1 tbs
  • Tomatoes – 1 (chopped)
  • Green chilli – 5 (slits)
  • Cilantro – handful (chopped)
  • Mint leaves – handful (chopped)
  • Coriander powder – 1 tbs
  • Red Chilli powder – 1 tsp
  • Garam masala powder – ½ tsp
  • Turmeric powder – 1 tsp
  • Salt – as required
  • Chicken – 1 lb or ½ kg (with bone)
  • Samba or Basmati rice – 1 cup
  • Coconut milk – 2 cups
Instructions
  1. Wash the chicken in running water. Marinate it with a tsp each of salt, turmeric powder and chilli powder and a tbs of ginger-garlic paste for 15 minutes.
  2. Wash the rice and keep it aside (if you are using basmati rice, wash and soak it in water for half an hour).
  3. Blend all the ingredients together given under biriyani masala and make a powder (you can store this biriyani powder in a small air tight container and use it for several days).
  4. Exract the coconut milk (if using homemade) and keep it ready.
  5. Heat the pressure cooker with a tsp of coconut oil and a tbs of ghee. Add in biriyani masala and slit onion. Sauté well.
  6. When onions turn slightly brown, add ginger & garlic paste. Stir fry till the raw aroma of ginger-garlic disappears.
  7. Add chopped tomato and sauté until mushy.
  8. Add all the greens (slit green chillies, chopped mint and cilantro) and sauté it for a minute.
  9. Now in a low flame, add in all the masala powders ( chilli powder, coriander powder and garam masala powder ) along with salt.
  10. Add in the chicken pieces and give it a stir.
  11. Add the coconut milk, mix well and bring it to a boil.
  12. Now check salt and add the washed (soaked) rice. Mix it well (make sure not to break the rice grains). Allow it to boil.
  13. When the water or coconut milk starts to boil, close the lid and cook for 3 whistles.
  14. When done open the lid, add a tbs of ghee and give it a stir (again, be careful not to break the grains while stirring) and close the lid.
  15. After ten minutes, serve hot chicken biriyani with onion raitha and any chicken / mutton gravy of your choice.
Notes
1. If you are diet conscious, you can reduce the coconut milk ratio to 1 cup (i.e for 1 cup of rice, add 1 cup each of water and coconut milk) or entirely omit it and replace it with 2 cups of water. But coconut milk makes big difference in preparing this biriyani.
2. If you are using basmati rice, then the ratio will be different i.e for 1 cup of rice 1 ½ cups of water.
3. If you are using store bought coconut milk add just a couple of spoons. As they are very thick, adding more will overwhelm the taste of dish with coconut taste.
4. Do not add extra water as the chicken itself will release water.

Chicken Biriyani

DINDIGUL THALAPAKATTI MUTTON BIRIYANI|LAMB BIRIYANI

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Thalapakatti mutton biriyani is a delicious and very popular biriyani in dindigul. The speciality of thalapakatti biriyani is to blend all the ingredients.IMG_2821Biriyani is a rice-based dish known for its distinct aroma and flavor. It is made with spices, rice, chicken, mutton or vegetables. There are different varieties of biriyani, in Tamilnadu, mostly differentiated based on geographical location. Spices are the key ingredients in this dish. I am positive that at least one in every 5 people in Tamilnadu would have tried this wonderful dish at least once in their life time (and the population of Tamilnadu is 7.2 million, so figure!)IMG_2811Briyani for me, always reminds my mom and I m a very big fan of her Chicken Biriyani which is very popular among my friends and relatives.  Also biriyani is my HB’s favorite dish. So I started to learn many varieties and Dindigul Thalapakatti Biriyani is one among them.IMG_2812 (1)The recipe for this biriyani is different in the sense that here we blend all the ingredients to a fine paste unlike other varieties. This gives it a unique taste and the reason for its wide popularity.  You could also try this recipe using chicken (But mutton seems more tastier. 😉  )Here are few tips

  • I used store bought coconut milk which is very thick so I just used couple of spoons. If you are using homemade coconut milk, then add 2 cups of coconut milk and 2 cups of water.
  • If you are using chicken, extend the marination time to an hour and simply add the marinated chicken directly to the masalas without      pre cooking it.
  • Avoid adding lots of mint and cilantro to this recipe, as it might make the dish green color. We don’t want our biriyani turn into mint rice. 😉

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DINDIGUL THALAPAKATTI MUTTON BIRIYANI|LAMB BIRIYANI
Recipe type: Lunch
Cuisine: Indian
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 4
 
Thalapakatti mutton biriyani is a delicious and very popular biriyani in dindigul. The speciality of thalapakatti biriyani is to blend all the ingredients.
Ingredients
To marinate
  • Mutton /Lamb – ¾ kg
  • Chilli powder – 1 tsp
  • Ginger garlic paste – 1 tsp
  • Salt – a pinch
For boiling mutton
  • Marinated Mutton - ¾ kg
  • Ginger – an inch (crushed)
  • Water – 4 cups
For the Masala Paste
  • Shallots – 4 (if small use 6 nos)
  • Mint Leaves – handful
  • Cilantro – handful.
  • Green chillies – 3, long
Other ingredients:
  • Cloves – 3 nos
  • Cinnamon - 2"
  • Cardamom – 2 nos
  • Bay Leaf - 1 long
  • Samba Rice – 2 cups
  • Onion – ½ medium
  • Tomato - 1 big
  • Ginger & Garlic paste - 1 tsp
  • Green Chillies - 2
  • Oil – 1 tbs
  • Ghee – 1 tbs
  • Coconut Milk, thick – 2 spoons (I use store bought which is very thick)
  • Salt – as required
  • Lemon Juice - 1 tsp
Instructions
  1. Wash the mutton pieces in running water. Marinate for 10 minutes and pressure cook it with ginger and water for three to four whistles. Once done, allow the pressure to be released. Drain the mutton / lamb pieces and save the stock (later we are going to substitute this stock for water while making biriyani).
  2. Blend cilantro, mint leaves and green chillies together and shallots separately into a fine paste.
  3. In a pressure cooker, heat oil, add all the wholes spices. When the aroma spreads, add in ground shallot and sauté until the raw smell goes. Now add the ginger-garlic paste and do the same.
  4. Then add the onion and green chillies, sauté until onion turns translucent. Add chopped tomatoes and sauté well. Once the tomatoes get soft, add the ground mint masala to it and cook well till the oil comes out.
  5. Now add the drained mutton pieces and sauté well to make sure the pieces are well coated with masala. Add coconut milk, water (mutton stock) and adjust salt.
  6. Add rice, stir well and bring it to boil. Close the lid and pressure cook for three whistles.
  7. Wait for the pressure to be released, add a tbs of ghee, stir the rice carefully without breaking the grains, cover the lid and dum for 15 mins.
  8. Serve hot with Onion raitha and any chicken / mutton gravy of your choice.

 
IMG_2812
Tempting isn’t it?!?! 😉
Hope everyone gets to try this recipe at least once and enjoy the same!!!