Chicken biriyani with basmati rice

An uncomplicated and straightforward biriyani for you.. :-)

The innards of the scrumptious biriyani..

Basmati rice - 2 cups

For marination,

Chicken, curry cut - 1 kg

Yogurt - 1 cup

Kashmiri chili powder - 1 tsp

Turmeric powder - a pinch

Salt - 1/4 tsp

Pepper, freshly crushed - a tad

Lemon - 1/2

Coconut oil - 3 Tbsp

Cardamom, green - 2

Cloves - 2

Aniseed - 2 petals

Cinnamon - 1 small stick

Carom seeds - 1/4 tsp

Onion - 3

Ginger - 1/2 inch

Garlic - 3 cloves

Green chili - 2

Kashmiri chili powder - 1/2 tsp

Turmeric powder - a smidgeon

Coriander powder - 1 tsp 

Meat masala - 1 tsp

Salt - 1/2 tsp

Coriander leaves - a few

The mechanism...

Clean chicken pieces well. Sous with the marinating ingredients and refrigerate overnight.

Submerse rice in water for an hour. Clean rice and drain water. Keep the chicken out, on the counter.

Cut up onion into thin, long slices. Hash chili, ginger and garlic. Heat a deep bottomed saucepan and mizzle oil. Cast in cardamom, cloves, aniseed and cinnamon. After a few seconds, throw in carom seeds, onion, chili, ginger and garlic. Toss around till the onions are caramelized. Put away half of this melange for decorating the biriyani.

Add in the chicken steeped in spices, into the saucepan. Cover with a lid and cook for 15 minutes, stirring oft. Include rice and immerse it in the chicken gravy. Cover the saucepan with a tin foil and then with the lid so that the rice cooks in the steam. Cook for 10 minutes, checking in between to see if additional water is required. Remove foil and lid. Intermingle rice and chicken. Platter in a deep bowl, garnishing with the caramelized onion and coriander leaves. Get a kick out of the lovely fragranced rice cooked with chicken!