Chicken biryani - this takes me back to my childhood in the United Arab Emirates. The array of spices, saffron in the basmati rice, curried chicken thighs, and yogurt is one of the world's greatest combinations.
Serving size: makes about 6 servings
Ingredients
Chicken biryani
750g chicken thighs, skinless and boneless, cut in half
Marinate
2/3 cup Greek yogurt
½ cup water
2 tbsp vegetable oil
6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/2 tsp turmeric
2 tsp finely grated fresh ginger
¼ tsp cinnamon
½ tsp cayenne
3 tsp garam masala
1 tsp curry powder
2 tsp cilantro
1 tbsp cumin
2 tbsp paprika
1 ¾ tsp salt
Rice
2 tbsp salt
6 bay leaves
2 ¼ cups basmati rice, uncooked
12 cups of water
Crispy onions
1 cup of vegetable oil
4 medium yellow onions, finely sliced (if you prefer less onion, use 2 medium onions)
Saffron
1 tsp saffron threads, loosely packed
2 tbsp warm water
Biryani
1 cup cilantro
¼ cup unsalted butter
Garnish
Crispy onion
Chopped cilantro
Yogurt
Yogurt
1 cup of Greek yogurt
3 tbsp finely chopped cucumber
2 tbsp finely chopped red onion
½ tsp cumin
½ tsp garlic powder
¾ tsp salt
Instructions
Chicken
Mix marinade in a large pot (11-inch diameter) and add chicken and coat well. Marinade for 30 minutes or over night
Rice
Bring 3 liters of water to boil, when boiling add salt and bay leaves
Add rice, bring back to boil, and when boiling cook for 4 minutes, or until rice is almost cooked but the middle is still quite hard. Rice will tasty salty at this stage, this is normal
Drain the rice and set aside
Crispy onions
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat, cook onions in four batches, about 3-4 minutes until they begin to turn golden brown. Do not let them burn!
Remove and soak on a paper towel-lined plate
Saffron
Place saffron and warm water in a bowl for at least 10 minutes, make sure the saffron is loose
Biryani
Place pot with chicken on a stove over medium heat, cook for five minutes covered
Remove the lid, cook the chicken for another 5 minutes, turning the chicken twice
Remove from heat
Make sure the base of the pot is lined with the chicken, scatter over half the onion then half of the cilantro
Top with all of the rice, gently pat it down to flatten the surface
Pour saffron across the top of the rice in a random pattern, then do the same with the butter
Place pot over medium heat, covered, as soon as you see steam, turn down the heat to low and cook for 25 minutes
Meanwhile, prepare the yogurt dip (see below for directions)
Remove from stove and allow to rest for 10 minutes, covered
Serve with remaining cilantro, crispy onions, and yogurt.
Yogurt
Mix all ingredients together and serve with biryani
--Notes--
When serving, use a large spoon and dig deep into the pot to get as much of the chicken at the bottom of the pot
You can also add 1 star anise, 10 cloves, and 6 green cardamon seeds to the rice while it boils
You can make this with bone-in chicken thighs with skin, it adds even more flavor, I opted to use skinless chicken thighs because there is less fat
Saffron isn't necessary in this dish, it can be very expensive! I do want to say that it does add a unique flavor to the dish and colors the rice.
Adapted from: Chicken Biryani by Nagi (Recipe Tin Eats)
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