Chicken Biryani Punjabi Style
A classic, delicious and spicy one-pot dish with chicken, rice and aromatic Indian spices.
Posted by Aditi
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You Will Need (25 things)
- 2 cup Basmati Rice
- 4 cup Water
- 4 pieces Chicken Breast (or chicken thighs cut into 2 each)
- 3 tbsp Oil (or Clarified Butter or a mix of both)
- 1 Star Anise
- 1 tsp Cumin Seeds
- 1 tsp Coriander Seeds
- 2 small Cinnamon Stick
- 1 small Bay Leaf
- ½ tsp Fennel Seeds
- 1 tsp Green Cardamom Seeds
- 1 ½ tsp Whole Cloves
- 1 tsp Black Peppercorns (whole)
- 1 medium Red Onion , puréed
- 1 tsp Ginger , finely chopped
- 3 medium Tomatoes , puréed
- 4 Garlic Cloves , finely chopped
- 3 Green Chili , finely chopped
- ½ tsp Red Chili Powder
- ½ tsp Coriander Powder
- 1 tsp Garam Masala
- ½ tsp Ground Nutmeg
- Salt to taste (start with about 1.5 teaspoons)
- 1 tbsp freshly chopped Cilantro
- a few Mint Leaves
Steps (12 steps, 30 minutes)
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1
Coarsely grind the star anise, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, cinnamon sticks, bay leaf, fennel seeds, green cardamom seeds, cloves,photo (64) whole black peppercorns and set aside- this is your biryani masala. Instead of coarsely grinding these you may use whole spices also, which I do sometimes, but coarsely grinding these ensures you get the flavour but not the whole spices when eating the biryani. :)
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2
Soak the rice in 4 cups of water for half an hour.
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3
In the meanwhile, heat (on medium heat) the oil in a heavy bottom pan and add the coarsely ground spices. Sauté for about 2 minutes.
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4
Next, add in the puréed onions and ginger and sauté until the onions become translucent, for about 2-3 minutes.
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5
Then add in the tomato purée, garlic and the cook for about a minute. Add in the salt, red chili powder, coriander powder, garam masala and nutmeg.
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6
Next add in the chicken and roast on medium-high flame until the mix gets a little dry and the chicken starts roasting. This should take about 12-14 minutes.
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7
Once the mix is dry and chicken slightly roasted, keep adding a few splashes of water and cook on low heat covered with a lid until the chicken is almost cooked. This could take another 9-11 minutes. At this stage the chicken should not be completely cooked as it will continue cooking when you put in the rice later.
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8
Then add in the coriander and mint leaves and mix well.
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9
Next, increase the heat to medium-high and add in the soaked rice along with the water in which it was soaked. Bring it to a boil. Add about a teaspoon salt or more if needed.
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10
Once the rice comes to a boil, lower the flame, cover with a lid and cook until the water dries up and the rice is cooked.
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11
Garnish with fresh coriander leaves and serve with fresh onion tomato mint raita!
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12
Notes
It’s always best to use chicken with bones in biryani ‘coz they are more juicer. If you are not a big fan of picking out bones from the chicken, add at least one piece with bone in and the remaining can be boneless. Also, as always, for a moist chicken use chicken thighs instead of breast pieces.