Poha (Flattened Rice)

Poha (Flattened Rice) -

This dish is a favorite for breakfast or as a light snack in different parts of India. It is a quick and easy recipe to make and very delicious.

Ingredients:

2 cups “thick” poha (you can find in Indian grocery store)
1 cup frozen green peas
2 tablespoon oil
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
3 cardamom
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
¼ teaspoon red chili powder
1 green chili, finely chopped and adjusted to taste
1 teaspoon ginger, finely chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon lemon juice
¼ teaspoon garam masala
Approximately 2 tablespoon cilantro, finely chopped
Lemon slices to garnish
1/4 cup chopped tomato to garnish

Method:

Gently wash poha in a colander and let it sit/drain for approx. 10 minutes.
Sprinkle turmeric, chili powder and salt and toss with a fork.
Wash and drain green peas and set aside.
Heat oil in a frying pan over medium high heat. When oil is moderately hot add mustard seeds and wait till seeds crack.
Add cardamom, ginger and green chili and stir for a few seconds. Then add green peas and cook until they are tender.
Add poha and stir-fry for 3 to 4 minutes, mixing gently. (If the poha looks too dry, add a few tablespoons of water and continue cooking).
Remove from heat and add lemon juice, sugar and cilantro. Mix and cover for few minutes.
Serve hot with a side of Hari Cilantro Chutney.

Tips:

Poha comes in different thickness sizes, but you must use the “thick” poha for this recipe, or else it will become too mushy.
Varying brands of Poha may absorb water differently. Therefore use your judgment while cooking, to add a few tablespoons of water, if it feels too dry.
I am using frozen baby green peas, but you can use fresh or frozen of any style green peas. Just make sure that they are fully cooked before you add the poha

Achari Paneer Pulao

Achari Paneer Pulao -

Rice and paneer tossed with achaari spices. Truly a lip-smacking combo!

Ingredients:

For The Achari Marinade:
1 1/4 cups paneer (cottagte cheese) cubes
1 tbsp oil
1 tsp mustard seeds ( rai / sarson)
1/2 tsp fenugreek (methi) seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds (jeera)
1 tsp nigella seeds (kalonji)
1 tsp fennel seeds (saunf)
1/4 tsp turmeric powder (haldi)
1 tsp chilli powder
1/2 cup whisked curds (dahi)
1 tbsp readymade green chilli pickle
salt to taste

Other Ingredients:
3 cups cooked rice
1 tbsp oil
1 to 2 cinnamon (dalchini) sticks
2 cloves (laung / lavang)
1/2 tsp caraway seeds (shahjeera)
2 cardamoms
salt to taste

For The Garnish:
1 tbsp finely chopped coriander (dhania)

Method:

For the achari paneer:
Heat the oil in a kadhai, add the mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, cumin seeds, nigella seeds and fennel seeds.
When the seeds crackle, add the turmeric powder, chilli powder and switch off the flame.
Add the curds and mix well.
Add the green chilli pickle and salt and mix well.
Add the paneer cubes, mix gently and keep aside to marinate for 30 minutes.

How to proceed:
Heat the oil in a non-stick pan, add the cinnamon, cloves, caraway seeds and cardamom.
When the caraway seeds crackle, add the rice and salt, mix well and cook on medium flame for 1 minute, while stirring continuously.
Add the marinated paneer, mix well and cook on a medium flame for 1 to 2 minutes, while stirring occasionally.

Serve hot garnished with coriander.

Achari Chana Pulao

Achari Chana Pulao -

Most of us have often eaten achaaris gravy. But here's an interesting dish. Achaaris spices such as saunf, rai, methi, kalongi and elaichi are combined with some fine long grained rice some kabuli chana to form a highly flavourful and fragrant pulao. The Punjabi garam masala forms an important part as it lends great taste to the dish. The mango pickle paste used in the pulao is what the secret ingredient behind the scrumptious preparation. So go ahead serve your family some of this irresistible pulao.

Ingredients:

2 tbsp Aam ka Achaar

1 1/4 cups long grained rice (basmati)

2 tbsp ghee

1 tsp fennel seeds (saunf)

1 tsp mustard seeds ( rai / sarson)

1 tsp fenugreek (methi) seeds

1 tsp nigella seeds (kalonji)

2 black cardamoms (badi elaichi)

1/2 tsp cumin seeds (jeera)

1/2 tsp asafoetida (hing)

1/2 cup sliced onions

1 tsp ginger-garlic (adrak-lehsun) paste

1/2 cup soaked and boiled kabuli chana (white chick peas)

1/2 tsp turmeric powder (haldi)

1/2 tsp chilli powder

1/2 tsp garam masala

salt to taste

Method:

Blend the mango pickle in a mixer to a coarse paste. Keep aside.

Clean, wash and soak the rice for 10 minutes. Drain and keep aside.

Put 2½ cups of water to boil.

Heat the ghee in a pressure cooker, add the fennel seeds, mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, onion seeds, big cardamoms, cumin seeds and asafoetida.

When the seeds crackle, add the onions and sauté till they turn translucent.

Add the ginger-garlic paste, kabuli chana, turmeric powder, chilli powder, Punjabi garam masala, salt and the prepared pickle paste and sauté for 2 minutes.

Add the rice and sauté for 2 more minutes.

Add the hot water and pressure cook for 2 whistles.

Allow the steam to escape before opening the lid.

Separate each grain of rice lightly with a fork.

Serve hot.

Indian khichdi

Indian khichdi -

Khichdi is a very popular and easy dish from the Northern region of India. It is a very simple and hearty dish.

Ingredients:

For the khichdi:
100g red lentils
100g rice
2 teaspoons ground turmeric
salt to taste

For the tadka:
1 tablespoon cooking oil
1 teaspoon whole cumin seed
1 teaspoon crushed chillies
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped coriander

Method:

Wash the lentils and rice in several changes of water. Place the lentils and rice in 500ml water in a large saucepan. Add 2 teaspoons of turmeric and salt to taste. Bring it to a boil and then simmer with a cover for about 30 minutes with occasional stirring. Cook until you see that the lentils and rice are almost coarsely blended together.
Remove the pan from the heat and your khichdi is ready.
Now its time to prepare your tadka. Heat the oil in a small saucepan. Now lower the heat and then add the whole cumin, crushed chillies and chopped garlic until they are brown until cumin starts to splutter. Now add the chopped onions and sauté until golden brown. The tadka is now ready to be mixed to the khichdi.
Just pour all the tadka in the khichdi and mix well. Garnish with fresh chopped coriander when serving.

Tip:
There are a few variations of khichdi. You can cook khichdi with any lentils available in the Indian grocery store i.e., moong daal, masoor daal, or toor daal. You can also add vegetables to your khichdi. The most commonly added vegetables are peas and cauliflower. They are added at the same time as the lentils.
Khichdi is a very healthy and nutritious food. It is also often cooked for someone who is recovering from a mild illness because it is a complete meal with the equal proportions of carbohydrate and protein. It is easy to swallow and it provides energy. You can make it tastier by adding ghee to the tadka. But in my opinion, ghee makes the food fattening. I much prefer cooking in sunflower oil or olive oil.

Other ideas:

The main accompaniments for khichdi are: roasted poppadums, fried potatoes or aubergine puree.

Shahi Biryani

Shahi Biryani -

A traditional dum style biryani with layers of saffron rice and creamy mutton. An absolute pleasurable dish at dinner parties!

Ingredients:

1/2 kg mutton-cut into small pieces
1 cup onions-finely sliced
Ghee for frying the onions
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 bay leaf
1/4 cup clotted cream
2 Tbsp chopped coriander leaves-to garnish

For the marinate:
1 cup onions-grated
1 tsp garlic paste
1 tsp ginger paste
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp black cumin seeds salt to taste
1 cup yoghurt
1 tsp garam masala

For the rice:
2 cups basmati rice-cleaned and soaked in water
2 green cardamoms
2 cloves
1/2 tsp black cumin seeds a piece of cinnamon-broken into smaller pieces
Salt to taste
1/2 tsp saffron-soaked in 1/4 cup of warm milk
2 Tbsp ghee

Method:

Mix together all the spices and marinate the meat in it for 4 hours:
Heat enough ghee in a broad heavy-based pan. Fry the onions till brown and crisp. Strain onions from the ghee and transfer on to an absorbent paper and set aside.
In 1/2 cup of the ghee that is left in the pan, add the cumin seeds and bay leaf, stir a few times till they change color a little and keeping the heat high, add in the meat mixture.
Stir-fry meat over high heat till the pieces look opaque. Lower the heat, partially cover and simmer, stirring a few times till the meat is tender. Saute till the water dries up and fat separates.
Add water and cook further, in case meat has not cooked through.
If meat cooks through before the water dries up, uncover the pan, and let water evaporate over high heat. Remove pan from stove and add the fried onions, cream and coriander leaves and mix well. While the meat is cooking, drain the rice and set aside.
Heat 2 tablespoons of ghee and add the black cumin seeds, cardamom, cloves and cinnamon. Stir a few times and add the rice and the salt. Now add 2 1/2 cups of water, and bring to boil.
Lower heat, cover and let the rice cook for 8 minutes. Shut off heat, leaving pan on stove. The rice should be almost done.
Half an hour before serving, divide the rice and meat into halves each. Take half the meat out of the pan, leaving one layer at the bottom. Spread this layer well in the pan.
Now cover this with a layer of half the rice, sprinkle half the saffron flavored milk over it, and then add the second layer of meat and finally the other half of the rice. Sprinkle the rest of the milk and saffron mixture over rice.
Seal pan with wheat flour and place on a griddle over low flame for half an hour. Alternatively, arrange in an ovenproof dish and place in a pre-heated oven for about half an hour.
Serve in the same dish or mix gently and transfer on to a serving dish.

Malabar Prawn Biryani

Malabar Prawn Biryani -

This is a superb tasty Keralian style Biryani prepared with Prawns.

Ingredients:

For Marinade:
1lb. medium size prawns de-shelled and deveined
1 tsp. turmeric powder
1 tsp. ginger garlic pate
Salt to taste
For Prawn Masala
1 tsp. shah jeera (caraway seeds)
5,6 cloves
1" cinnamon stick
1 tsp. black pepper corn
2,3 green cardamom pods
2 bay leaves
1 medium onion thinly sliced
1 tsp. ginger garlic paste
2 green chilies finely chopped ( you can increase or decrease depending on your heat tollerance level )
2 tbsp. of coconut paste ( I used frozen grated coconut, but fresh is always the best )
2 tbsp of plain yogurt ( curd )
2 tbsp. of biriyani masala of any brand you like (I used Banne Nawab's biriyani masala )
1 tsp. sugar
Salt to taste

For Rice:
2 cups of basmati rice washed and soaked in water for 30 mins.
6 cups of water
1 tsp. salt
For layering
2 tsp. of oil or ghee
1/2 tsp. biryani masala
Handful of chopped fresh cilantro (Coriander leaves )

Procedure:

Wash prawns and marinate for half an hour with all the spices listed under it.
Heat oil in a pan and add pounded whole garam masala and bay leaves to it (item 2.1-2.6). Fry the marinated prawns on medium high heat till the color changes. Remove and reserve it.
Add chopped onions and green chilies to the same oil and fry till it turns light brown. Next to go in is the coconut paste. Fry on low heat. Add rest of the ginger garlic paste and fry. Once the raw smell goes away turn off the heat and add yogurt to it. Mix it well. Turn on the heat and add the fried prawn along with biriyani masala. Give a taste test and adjust the seasoning. Let everything cook together for a while ( 5 mins ).
In a heavy bottom pan take enough water and salt. Bring it to a boil. Now add pre soaked rice. Cook till its just done. Drain the water and spread rice on a flat plate.
Now its time to arrange in layers, the procedure of which differs slightly based on whether you want to use a conventional oven or a microwave.

In Conventional oven:
Take a oven safe bowl and rub it’s inside with oil or ghee. Layer the bottom of the vessel with rice. Now pour prawn masala along with its oil all over it. Add chopped cilantro and sprinkle biriyani masala powder over it. Cover it up with another layer of rice. Wrap it up with aluminium foil and cook in the oven for 30 mins at 375F.

In Microwave:
Take a microwave safe bowl and arrange rice and prawn masala as mentioned above. Cover it with a cling wrap or Microwave safe cover.
Cook it on high power for 5 mins. Allow it to stand for another 15 mins before you serve.

Enjoy with fresh salad or raita (beaten thick yogurt with chopped onions, coriander, salt).

Prawn and spinach biryani

Prawn and spinach biryani -

A fragrantly spiced pilaf-style dish that doesn't take much more effort than ringing for a take-away yet is much healthier as it is low in fat. Serve with a refreshing raita to complete the meal.

Ingredients:

400g can chopped tomatoes
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 large onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 red chilli, deseeded and thinly sliced
15g fresh root ginger, peeled and finely chopped
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground turmeric
½ tsp ground nutmeg
225g basmati rice, rinsed
pinch of sugar
300g baby leaf spinach, washed and roughly torn
225g peeled, raw tiger prawns, thawed if frozen

Method:

Drain the tomatoes in a sieve over a heatproof measuring jug, then set aside. Bring a kettle of water to the boil.
Heat the oil in a large flameproof casserole over a medium heat. Add the onion, chilli and ginger and stir for 3 minutes. Stir in the cumin, coriander, turmeric and nutmeg and continue stirring until the onion is softened.
Add the rice and drained tomatoes to the casserole and stir to mix with the spices. Add enough boiling water to the reserved tomato juice to make up to 450ml. Stir this liquid into the rice with the sugar and add a pinch of salt, then bring to the boil.
Reduce the heat to low, cover tightly and leave the rice to cook without lifting the lid for 10–12 minutes until all the liquid has been absorbed, the rice grains are tender and tiny holes appear on the surface.
Stir in the spinach, as much as you can at a time, adding more as each addition wilts. When all the spinach has been added, lay the prawns on top, re-cover the casserole and turn down the heat to very low. Cook for 2 minutes, then turn off the heat and leave to stand for 1 minute, without lifting the lid, by which time the spinach will have wilted further and the prawns will have cooked through. Gently fork together to combine the rice, spinach and prawns. Serve immediately.

Variations:
Replace some or all of the spinach with thinly sliced mushrooms, adding them to the casserole with the rice. * Sliced red or green peppers would also work well in this dish. Add them with the onions. * Serve any leftovers cold the next day as a rice salad.

Calcutta/Kolkata Chicken Biryani

Calcutta/Kolkata Chicken Biryani -

Check out the recipe of the authentic Kolkata Chicken Biryani.

Ingredients:

1.Fine Basmati Rice - 500 gm
2.Chicken - 1 kg
3.Onion - 200 gm.Made into a fine paste
4.Ginger - One 1 inch stick. Crushed.
5.Garlic - One 1 inch stick. Crushed.
6.Vegetable Oil - 2 tsp.
7.Salt, to taste.
8.Cumin powder
9. Kashmiri Mirch Powder
10.Coriander Powder
11. Turmeric Powder

Spice Ingredients:

1.Biryani Spices:
   Jaiphal-1 pc
   Joitri-1 pc
   Sa jeera-2 pcs
   Sa morich - 4-5
   Kali mirch -8-10
   Chota elaichi - 4 pcs
   Black cardamon - 2-3 pcs
   Cinnamon stick - Two 1 inch sticks
2.Ghee - 3-4 tsps

Procedure:

Prepare the chicken marinade by mixing above ingredients - 2 to 11. Keep aside for 2 hrs.

Cooking the rice:

1.Soak the rice in water for 30-40 mins.
2. In a deep heavy bottomed kadai, pour water to 80% of the level and heat it until it boils.
3. Once boiling - add the biryani spices,salt and ghee. Then add the rice
4. Parboil the rice i.e. to say, 60-70% boiling and drain aside the water.
The parboiled-scented rice is ready. Keep aside.

Cooking the chicken:

Ingredients:

1 medium sized onion
Garam masala powder - 1 tsp
Curd - 100 gms, whisked

Prepare a chicken curry with a thick gravy. The usual chicken curry preparation will be just fine.Separate the chicken from the gravy and keep it aside.

Layering and the "Dum".

Here comes the Biryani.

Ingredients:

1. Kewra Water - 1 drop
2. Rose Water - 1 drop
3. Meetha Itra - 1 drop
4. Ghee - 4 tsp. Melted.
5. Saffron strands soaked in hot milk.
6. Boiled Egg - Depends on the number of pieces.
7. Boiled Large Slice of Potato.
8. Chicken Pieces
9. Chicken Gravy
10.Parboiled Rice.

Method:

Coat a flat bottomed deep pan with some melted ghee.
Put a layer of chicken first
Then put a layer of rice. Add some saffron milk.potato slices and boiled egg.
Repeat the layering until the rice, chicken, eggs and potato is exhausted.
Now, add the ingredients - 1 -4.
Seal the pan with a cover and some atta(flour dough).
Set the oven on Low(SIM) and place a thick plate on the oven. The Biryani pan will be put on top of the plate so that it does not face the direct heat.
Leave it aside for 30 mins for best results.

Serving: Keep the biryani sealed until the plates have been laid out to serve. This ensures that the flavours remain intact.

Note: There are several ways by which you can customize the biryani. Using brown fried onions, dry fruits not only enhance the flavor but give the biryani a rich look. But the philosophy of cooking should remain the same as mentioned above, else it might become a pulao.

Calcutta/Kolkata Mutton Biriyani

Calcutta/Kolkata Mutton Biriyani -

The predominant biryani gharana (style) in India is the fiery South Indian or Andhra style, the Royal Awadhi or Lucknowi style and the North-western (Punjabi) style. Kolkata or Bengali Biryani is a sub-variant of Lucknowi style.

Ingredients:

1 kg (2lb) goat or lamb meat
500 gm. of basmati rice washed and soaked in water for at least 30 minutes
2 tbsp. ginger paste
1 tbsp. garlic paste
4 potatoes cut into halves
1 large onion finely chopped
1 cup plain curd/ yogurt
2 tsp. Kashmiri red chili powder
Rose water few drops
Kewra essence few drop
Few strands of saffron soaked in 2-3 tbsp. of warm milk
Salt
Sugar
Make a powder of the following spices (I’ll refer to this as Biryani Masala in the post)
2" cinnamon stick
6-7 cloves
3-4 green cardamom
1/10th of a whole nutmeg
1/2" mace
1 tsp. saahi jeera (cumin)
1tsp of saahi morich (white peppercorn)

Procedure:

Cook the pre soaked rice in enough water seasoned with salt, green cardamom, cinnamon stick and few cloves. Cook till the rice is almost done. Drain the rice on a colander and spread on a flat plate. Sprinkle very little sugar on it.
Take oil in a heavy bottom pan or in a pressure cooker and heat it. Add chopped onion and fry till they are brown. Add the meat pieces and sear them on high heat. It will help the meat pieces to retain their juices.
Add ginger, garlic paste and fry along with the meat pieces. Once the raw smell goes away add yogurt and Kashmiri chili powder. I love to add the potato halves at this stage followed by salt and sugar and fry them along with the meat and spices. Cook till the potatoes are 90% boiled. Remove the potatoes and keep them aside. Rest 10% cooking will be done in Dum.
Add water required to boil the the meat pieces and either pressure cook it or cook it covered for atleast 40 mins.
Once done remove the meat pieces from the gravy and keep it handy for further use.
Strain the gravy and keep the strained juice. This is called Tar (there’s a picture of it in a glass cup in the ingredients section).
Now comes the assembly part of the biryani. Take a heavy bottom pan which you can heat on your stove top.
Grease the inner walls of the vessel with 1-2 tbsp. of ghee. Now start building up the layers. The thumb rule of layering biryani is the base and top layers should be made by rice.
This is the sequence I usually follow for my biryani. Rice layer followed by a layer of by meat, potato, saffron infused milk, 2-3 tbsp. of Tar. I finish this layer by sprinkling about 1 tsp. of biryani masala and a few drops of rose and kewra water. Use all your meat and rice to complete the layering. There should be 1/3rd space left in the pan once you finished layering. Cover the biryani pot tightly.
Now we are ready to put the biryani for Dum. Dum is basically slow cooking where the vessel doesn't come in direct contact of heat.  I take water in a bigger vessel and place the biryani pot inside that as shown in the photograph on the right. Let the water boil and then lower the heat and allow it to cook for atleast 45 minutes. Turn off the heat. Let it stand for at least an hour before serving.

Kolkata mutton biryani is best enjoyed with chicken chap.

Hyderabadi Kacchi Gosht Biryani

Hyderabadi Kacchi Gosht Biryani -

This recipe comes from the Hyderabad Nizams kitchen. One of my aunty (Bacchu Maashi) used to prepare this Biriyani which she learned while her stay in South-India. It's dedicated to her.

Ingredients:

For Marinating:
1kg mutton cut into medium pieces on bone
2 large onions thinly sliced
1tbsp. salt
1/2tsp. sugar
1tbsp. ginger paste
1tbsp. garlic paste
1tbsp. green chili paste
1tbsp. garam masala ( You can use Biryani masala of your favorite brand)
1tsp. red chili powder
Juice of 1 lime
250gms curd (Yogurt)
1 bunch coriander leaves finely chopped
1 bunch mint leaves finely chopped

For Rice:
500gms. basmati rice
2 – 3tbsp. salt
50gms. ghee (Clarified butter)
1tsp. saffron soaked in quarter cup of warm milk


Required Appliance:
Heavy bottom pan (I use Martha Stewart or Simply Calphalon vessels)
Tawa or skillet

Procedure:

Soak basmati rice for 30 minutes.
Heat oil in a wok and deep fry the onion slices till they are brown. Remove and drain them on a paper towel.
Arrange mutton in layers in a heavy bottom pan. Add Half of the fried onion, ginger-garlic paste, green chili paste, chili powder, garam masala powder, salt, sugar, yoghurt, oil, lemon juice, chopped coriander and mint leaves to it. Mix everything well with mutton  and keep it marinated for 3-4 hours.
By the meantime in a pan take water along with 2- 3  tbsp. salt and bring to a rolling boil. Stir it well and add presoaked basmati rice to it. Once you have added the rice it will stop boiling. Wait till it again starts boiling. This rice is 50% done. Make an layer of rice on top of the marinated mutton. Add about a cup of water ( Preferably the water in which you boiled the rice).
Sprinkle some more fried brown onions on top of it. Drizzle few spoons of saffron soaked milk over it.
Now seal the vessel tightly with aluminum foil.
We will not be cooking this directly on heat because if we do so the meat will char by the time the biriyani is cooked. So take a tawa (skillet) and place the biryani vessel on top of it. Cook it on medium heat for about 45 minutes. By the end of this time you will see the aluminum foil has swollen up. That means it is ready. Remove the foil an serve it with raita.

Hyderabadi Chicken Biryani

Hyderabadi Chicken Biryani -

This Hyderabadi biryani is definitely fit for the royalty.

Ingredients:

Chicken,cut into 1 inch pieces - 1 kilogram
Saffron (kesar) 8-10 strands
Milk - 1/2 cup
Oil 3/4 cup
Onions, sliced - 3 large
Ginger paste - 1 teaspoon
Garlic paste - 1 teaspoon
Red chilli powder - 1 teaspoon
Salt to taste
Fresh mint leaves - 1 cup
coriander leaves, chopped - 1 cup
Lemon juice - 2 tablespoons
Green chillies, finely chopped - 3
Yogurt - 2 cups
Cloves - 7
Bay leaves - 2
Green cardamoms - 5
Cinnamon - 1 stick
Basmati rice - 500 grams
Ghee - 2 tablespoons

Method:

Soak the saffron strands in milk. Set aside. Heat oil in a kadai and deep fry the onions till brown. Drain on an absorbent paper.
Grind coarsely.Add ginger paste, garlic paste, red chilli powder, salt, half of the mint , half of the coriander leaves, lemon juice, green chillies, fried onions, yogurt and the oil in which onions are fried and salt to the chicken. Mix well. Set aside to marinate for two hours. Heat a non stick pan. Add chicken along with marinade and cook on medium heat till chicken is tender.Boil water in a deep pan. Add cloves, bay leaves, cardamoms, cinnamon. Add salt and rice. Cook till rice is one third done. Drain and spread on a plate.
Put ghee at the base of a non stick deep pan. Spread half of the cooked rice. Spread the cooked chicken evenly on the rice layer. Cover the chicken layer with remaining rice.Sprinkle saffron-milk mixture, remaining mint, coriander leaves. Cover with a lid and. Put tawa underneath the pan and simmer for fifteen to twenty minutes.
Serve hot.

Mutton Biryani

Mutton Biryani -

A tedious recipe, but the outcome is so delicious that every minute spent on cooking this is well worth it. A mouth watering and aromatic mutton biryani.

Ingredients:

For the rice:
1 star anise
500 gm basmati rice, washed & drained
2 bay leaves
2 black cardamom
2 tsp black cumin seeds
6 black peppercorn
6 green cardamom
2 cinnamon sticks
6 cloves
1 tsp fennel
1/4th jaiphal
1 javitri
3 tsp salt

For mutton marination:
1 kg mutton, cut in 2 inches pieces, preferably front leg part and avoid shoulder cut
1 Tbsp garam masala
1 Tbsp garlic paste
1 Tbsp ginger paste
3 Tbsp raw papaya paste
4 Tbsp hung curd
Juice of 1 lemon
1 Tbsp red chilli powder
1 tsp salt

Other ingredients:
4 onions, thinly sliced
2 tomatoes, chopped
1/4 th cup milk, warm
Ghee
Saffron strands
Oil
Rose water
Kewra essence
4 green chillies

Method:

Marinating the mutton:
To the mutton add the beaten curd, ginger-garlic paste, raw papaya paste, chilli powder, salt, lemon juice, garam masala.
Allow the mutton to marinate for 3 hours.
Making fried onions or Barista:
Slice 2 onions very thinly. Separate the slices.
In a pan or kadai add oil and fry the onion slices till nicely brown.
Take care not to burn them. Fry in small batches. Do not put all the slices at a time, that will lead to lumpy messy onions.
Make sure all the onion slices frying are dipped in oil, if needed add more oil. Keep stirring continuously but gently for an even brown color.
Take the fried onions out with a slotted spoon or ladle.
Keep them on a paper-towel lined plate. This crispy brown fried onion slices are called Barista.

Cooking the mutton:
Heat ghee in a thick-bottomed pan.
Add remaining sliced onions and green chillies. Cook, stirring continuously, till onions are light golden brown.
Add ginger paste and garlic paste and mix well.
Add marinated mutton and cook on high heat for seven to eight minutes.
Add coriander powder, cumin powder and red chilli powder. Mix thoroughly.
Stir in three cups of water, bring it to a boil, reduce heat and cook covered till mutton is almost cooked.
Add tomatoes, salt, garam masala powder and fresh coriander leaves.
Cook for 15 minutes on medium heat, stirring occasionally. The ghee would be separated from the spices and there should not be any watery gravy to the meat.

Preparing the rice:
Use only good quality long grain Basmati rice. Soak the rice for 20 minutes in water. Wash well till the water runs clear. Drain all the water.
In a small piece of cloth take cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, javitri, jaiphal, black peppercorn, shahi jeera, star anise and tie a knot to make a bag (potli).
Bring 750 ml water to boil, add rice, bay leaf, salt and potli, cover and cook till rice is done 1/3rd.
Drain the water & remove the whole masala potli.

Preparing the saffron-milk:
Take 1/4th cup warm milk in a cup and dissolve saffron strands in the milk.
Cover and wait for 20 minutes. Add rose water and kewra essence in the milk. Mix well and cover. Keep aside.

Layering the biryani:
Take a large heavy bottom pan with tight fitting lid.
Add 2tbsp ghee to the pan. Melt the ghee on low heat. Turn and rotate the pan carefully so the ghee can coat the bottom and sides of the pan. Switch off the heat.
Add a layer of cooked rice, then cooked meat pieces, sprinkle saffron water, add fried onion slices and ghee.
Again add a layer of rice, then meat...go on like this till you are done. Top and bottom layer will be of rice.
Cover with chopped pudina and coriander, fried onion and slit green chillies and juice of half a lemon.
Put the lid on. Seal the pan with flour dough or aluminium foil, then put the lid. Keep the heat to lowest. And cook the Biryani in this 'Dum' process for 40 minutes.
Make sure your pan is heavy-bottomed or the rice will burn. Or you can place a flat tawa then keep the pan on that tawa.
After 40 minutes switch off the heat and let the biryani stand for another 10 minutes. Transfer to a serving bowl.
Serve with raita and salad.

Achari Prawn Pulao

Achari Prawn Pulao -

Achari Prawn Pulao is a spicy pulao whose taste will simply blow away your mind. Try this at your home and enjoy a spicy meal!

Ingredients:

For achari marinade: 
20 medium sized prawns
1 and 1/2 tbsp green chili pickle 
1/2 cup onion , finely chopped
1/2 tsp mustard seeds 
1 tsp fennel seeds 
1/4 tsp fenugreek seeds (methi) 
1 tsp cumin seeds 
1 and 1/2 tsp shaan Tandoori mix ( for color)
3/4 cup curd
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp oil
Salt, to taste

For rice :
1 and 1/2 cup uncooked long grained rice (Basmati)
1, 1 " cinnamon  stick
1/2 tsp caraway seeds (Shahi jeera)
3 cardamom
3 tbsp oil 

Method:

Wash, shell and devein the prawns. Pat dry. Keep aside.
Dry roast the mustard , fennel, cumin and fenugreek seeds separately and blend them together to a fine powder. 
Puree the green chili pickle and mix well with curd . In a bowl, marinade the prawns with this paste and rest of the marinade mix and keep marinated for a minimum of 30 minutes . 
In the mean time, pressure cook the rice , make sure that each grain of rice separates easily. Keep aside and cool.
Heat 2 tbsp oil in a large non stick skillet , add the chopped onions and marinated prawns (keep the gravy aside) and fry them together till you get a golden brown color. 
Next add the marinated gravy and let cook till it gets dry. Keep aside.
In the same pan , heat 1 tbsp oil, add the  cardamom, cinnamon and cloves and fry , once it starts to sputter, add the rice, achari prawns with gravy  and toss gently for a few minutes. Add salt if required.

Serve hot with any curry of your choice.

Calcutta/Kolkata Fish Biryani

Calcutta/Kolkata Fish Biryani -

The third in the list of famous Biryanis, Calcutta/Kolkata biryani evolved from the Lucknow style when Wajid Ali Shah, the last nawab of Awadh was exiled in 1856 to the Kolkata suburb of Metiaburj. He brought his personal Chef with him as he was very particular about his food. Due to recession at that point of time potato had been used instead of meat/fish. Later on that  became a specialty of Calcutta Biryani, though meat/fish is also served along with it. As compared to other Biryanis, Calcutta/Kolkata biryani is much lighter on spices but rich in flavor and taste. Kolkata Biryani is best made with mutton but fish can also replace mutton and can be prepared to perfection.

Ingredients :

2 and 1/2 cups  long grained rice (Basmati rice)
5 pieces Silver Carp/Katla/Hilsa ( can use any fish of your choice, preferably any oily fish)
2 large onions, chopped lengthwise
2 large potatoes, cut into quarter
1, 1" cinnamon
1 Black cardamom
2 Green cardamom
3 cloves
1 Anise seed
1 Bay leaf
3/4th tsp Nutmeg powder
1/2 tsp Mace powder
1 tsp Turmeric powder
1/2 tsp Chili powder
1/2 tsp Cumin powder
2 tbsp Lemon juice
1 cup Milk
2 pinch Saffron (can also use yellow/orange color)
1 n 1/2 tsp sugar
Salt to taste
1 tsp kewra water
2 n 1/2 tbsp Ghee
4 tbsp Oil
Coriander leaves,  to garnish

Method:

Marinade the Fish pieces with salt, a pinch of turmeric powder, cumin powder ,red chili powder, 1 tbsp lemon juice , keep aside for 10 to 15  minutes.  In the mean time, boil the potatoes, till it becomes a bit tender. Keep aside.
Next heat 2 tbsp of ghee and fry the Bay leaf, cinnamon, cardamon, cloves, anise seed , once fragrant, add rice and fry with all the spices for a minute. Add salt and water and boil till the rice is 90% cooked.
In the mean time, heat 2 tbsp of oil in a wide bottomed pan and fry the fish pieces to a light golden brown color on both the sides.Keep aside.
Next fry half of the cut onion to a golden brown color in 1 tbsp of oil , keep aside.
In the same pan, heat one more tbsp of oil , add the rest of the onion and fry till translucent, next add the half boiled  potatoes, salt and turmeric powder, sprinkle a little water and let cook covered till the potatoes are fully done. Take out from the heat, keep aside.
Grease a wide flat bottomed, non stick skillet with ghee . Divide the rice into two halves. Add one half of the rice to the pan and spread out with a ladle to make a bed.
Sprinkle sugar , mace powder and nutmeg powder on the rice bed. In a spoonful of warm milk, add two pinches of saffron and drizzle half of it on the rice. Add half of the fried potatoes with onion and reserve the rest for the next step.
Next add the remaining rice on top and spread out in all directions to make a bed . Pour a cup of milk on the rice. Drizzle the rest of the saffron milk , add the remaining fried potato, fried onion, and the fish pieces. Lastly add a tbsp of kewra water. Let cook covered on low heat for 12 to 15 minutes. Sprinkle a tbsp of lemon juice before removing from heat.
Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot with Raita and Salad.

Fish Biriyani

Fish Biriyani -

Ingredients :

1 lbs Catfish (You can use any fish of your choice)

2 medium sized onion

1 medium sized tomato

1 tbsp Red chili powder

Coriander leaves, 1/2 bunch

1 tbsp lemon juice

2 cups Basmati rice

whole garam masala (1 cinnamon stick, 1 star anise, 2 cloves, 1 black cardamom)

Ghee/butter, as required

Oil, as required

Salt to taste

2 -3 drops kewra water

Marination for fish :

3/4 cup yogurt

1 tbsp Ginger and Garlic paste

1 tsp black pepper powder

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1 and 1/2 tbsp Biriyani Masala (I always prepare Biriyani masala at home.)

Following are the ingredients for Biriyani Masala:

Cinnamon- 2 inch piece 

Cloves 8-10

Cardamom - 8

Black cardamon - 2

Nutmeg -1 

Bay leaves- 1

Fennel seeds- 1tsp

Mace  5-6

Caraway seeds/Shah Jeera- 1 tbsp

Star Anise-1          

Method:

Wash the fish thoroughly and cut into 2" pieces. Wash the basmati rice properly and keep aside.

Marinate the fish with the ingredients as mentioned above and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Heat 1 tbsp ghee/butter  in a non stick deep skillet, fry the whole garam masala, add rice and fry again for less than a minute . Add water , a pinch of salt and cook rice till its half boiled.

Heat 1 tbsp of oil , fry 2 chopped onions with 1 tbsp red chili powder till it gets golden brown .Then add 1 chopped tomato and cook till it gets pulpy. At the end, add the marinated fish and cook till the fish is half done. 

In an Oven safe large serving dish with a tight lid, lay the rice at the bottom and spread. Layer with the fish gravy. If you wish, you can add a layer of fried onions (You can either use store fried onions or make it at home). Sprinkle a few drops of Kewra Water . Repeat with a layer of rice and curry followed by sprinkling kewra water . Layer until all the rice and gravy has been used up. Pour the lime juice on top.

Put the lid on the vessel. Make a seal so that the steam cannot escape at all. Put this dish inside a preheated oven at 250 deg F. Let sit for 15 to 20 minutes and turn off the oven. 

Do not remove Biriyani for atleast one hour from the Oven.

Served with Raita.