Hyderabadi Chicken Biriyani

Hyderabadi Chicken Biriyani

Ingredients:

Marinating Chicken for 3 hrs or 24 hrs:

Boneless Chicken - 1 kg (diced in to pieces), Green Chillies - 4 no. (slit length ways), Yoghurt - 1/2 cup, Milk - 1/2 cup, Chilli powder - 5 tsp, Big Lemon - 2 no.(take the juice), Salt - 2 & 1/2 tsp, Ginger & Garlic Paste - 3 tsp, Garam masala - 1 tsp, Turmeric - 1/2 tsp., Red Orange Color - 1/2 tsp.

Mix all the above and marinate for minimum 3 hrs or overnight.


For Par-boiled Rice:

Basmati Rice - 6 rice cups (electric cooker measure), Whole Cloves & Cardamom - 4 each., Shahjeera - 1 tsp, Cinnamon - 1/2 inch., Water - 9 cups

Par-boil rice (please read tips and comments too) with all the above. Once half boiled drain and spread it on a plate.


Deep Fried Onions:

Onions - 2 no. large (Sliced thinly), Oil - 1 cup (use electric rice cup measure, only)

Deep fry sliced onions until light golden color, keep these aside on a plate. (please read tips).


Powder these in Pestle:

Cardamom - 10 no., Whole Cloves - 10 no., Cinnamon Stick - 1 inch, Salt - 2 tsp.

Powder first three ingredients in hand pestle. Add salt, powder again and add very little water to dilute. Keep covered.

For garnishing:

Mint leaves - 1 big Bunch, Corainder leaves - 1 bunch, Lemon juice - 1 no.

Chop these together and add lemon juice to it.

Proceed:

1) We need a large pressure cooker. Smear some ghee from top to bottom, add chicken marination inside the cooker. Spread evenly.

2) layer with some deep fried onions.

3) Layer the top with some half boiled rice.

4) layer the top with some chopped herbs.

5) Sprinkle some of the powder liquid on top.

6) You can even add few tspns red orange color liquid (1/4 tsp ROC which is been diluted in little milk).

7) Repeat the layers from Point2 - Point6.

8) Top it with the oil in which onions were fried earlier.

Close it with a stainless steel lid and wrap a wet cotton towel (remove water by twisting) around it and cook this on medium-low for 40 - 45 mins until u get this nice aroma while cooking. Switch off once cooked.

After 30 mins stand by mix gently with fork or dig in through layers and serve.

For Hyderabadi dinner party:

Serve it with Haleem, Perugu Chutney or Raita, Mirchi ka Salan and for dessert Double-ka-meetha


Tips:

Always use Kohinoor Basmati Rice for quality and aroma, next bet would be Daawat.

Par-boil? When u cook the rice it just reaches bubbling or boiling point (60% cook rice). At this point switch off and drain immediately in a colander and spread it on a thali or a plate.

Always fry onions until golden color. Drain it on a plate, once cooled it turns in to dark color. If u cook the onions darker, it will taste bitter. Here we need sweetness from onions.

Always prepare this dish when everything is ready. Do not do multi tasking.

Always check the wet cover, if is dry wet again and wrap around the lid or u can keep atta dough around to seal the edges well. If the steam is escaping put the atta paste to stick where it is damaged.

Use pressure cooker utensil only, not stain less steel utensil, other wise you will burn the dish.

Electric element works even cooking, where as some gas cooking elements burns the dish. So keep an eye and sniff method while cooking.

Cooking on gas, then keep a skillet (means dosa pan) underneath the pressure cooker to get even cooking. As always said keep an eye on it.

If you are unable to powder the ingredients in pestle use coffee grinder to powder only. Remove this in to small bowl and add very small amount of water as shown in the picture.

Don't forget to post your comments, much appreciated:-)

© 2007 by Rajani Rayudu

Kothimeera Pachadi/ Coriander leaves Chutney

Kothimeera Pachadi

Ingredients and proceed:

Coriander seeds - 5 tsp

Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Red Chillies - 10 no.

Oil - 1 tbsp

Roast these in oil until golden color. Keep aside in chutney jar. Grind these first.

Kothimeera - 1 big bunch (only leaves and young stem)
Oil - 1 tsp

In the same skillet add oil and roast leaves, until wilted. Add this to chutney jar.

Tamarind - 1/2 lemon size (add water until just immersed microwave for 1 & 1/2 min, soak for few mins)

Add the tamarind to the above jar and salt to taste and grind everything into smooth paste by using very little tamarind water which u kept aside. Check for salt, scrape this into a small serving bowl and do seasoning.

Seasoning:

Oil - 1 tbsp

Chana Dal - 2 tsp

Urad Dal - 1 tsp

Curry leaves - 1 sprig

Red Chillies - 2 no. (split in half)

Garlic cloves - 5 no. (smashed lightly).

Do seasoning in the above order. When finished add it to above grinded coriander paste.

Serve with Rice, Dal or Curry and Yoghurt on side.

© 2007 by Rajani Rayudu

Andhra Chepala Pulusu/ Andhra Fish Curry

Andhra Chepala Pulusu

Marinating Fish:

Fish - 1 kg pieces (please read tips)
Turmeric powder - 1 tsp
Chili powder - 3 tsp
Salt to taste

Mix these together and keep aside.

Ingredients:

Green chillies - 6 no. (slit lengthwise)
Curry leaves - 3 sprigs

Onion - 1 large (diced, fried in 2 tsp of oil and then pureed) or Shallots - handful (peel and sliced thinly)

Ginger and Garlic paste - 1/4 tsp each
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
Masala powder - 3 tsp (please read tips)

Tamarind - Big lemon size (add water until the tamarind is immersed, microwave for 2 mins, and squeeze to make pulp)

Coriander leaves - handful (chopped finely)
Oil - 7 tbsp

Proceed:

1) Heat oil in a non-stick Kadhai, add green chillies and curry leaves and fry well, keep few for garnishing

2) To the above add onion paste or sliced shallots and fry for 5 mins. on medium heat.

3) Add gg paste, turmeric, red chilli powder and masala powder and fry for few mins. Mix well.

4) Layer the fish pieces on top, close the lid and cook for few mins, turn over carefully, rotate the dish and cook for few more mins. by closing lid.

5) Add water until fish pieces are immersed, keep the heat on high, when it is started boiling, simmer and cover for 10 mins.

6) Add tamarind pulp, close the lid and cook until oil floats on top and the raw smell of tamarind disappears, do not mix the curry with the spatula instead carefully hold both the handle of the dish and rotate.

7) Add coriander leaves and check for salt, cook it for 5 more mins and serve. While serving, garnish with curry leaves and green chillies which is been fried earlier.

Serve with Plain White Rice. 


Tips:

* For this dish use shallots, if you don't have then do as above. I would recommend to use shallots to get that authentic taste of Andhra Chepala Pulusu. For shallots no need to fry or grind as normal onion, you can slice them thinly and fry in oil directly, just follow point 2.

* When u have added fish pieces, do not mix with spatula, instead rotate the dish or otherwise fish becomes mushy.

* For Indian curry's do not use Salmon. Any other firm fish will do. For Indians use Bochu Cheppa, Sheelavathi, Pulsa variety.

* Only for River fishes (ex: Bochu cheppa, Pulsa, Rohu) we do pulusu style. For Sea fish ( ex: Tella Sanduva or Silver Pompfret, Vanjeeram) do iguru type, means with out adding any tamarind to it, but replacing with my chicken masala powder to the above method.

* Pulusu and Iguru type curries have their own masalas, so do not add cloves and say pulusu. In here we omit the cloves and cinnamon.

Masala Powder (no need to roast spices):

Coriander seeds - 3 tsp, Poppy seeds (white) - 1 tsp, Cardamom - 4 no. {Grind all these together in to fine powder}.

********For New Zealand Fish:

Blue Warehou and Mullet are good for Fish Curry or Pulusu. Trivally and Red Snapper is good for Fish Vepudu or Fry.

Meaning:

Mullet = Koyyingalu (we call these in telugu language, when they are small we call them katti chepalu, big we call them koyyingalu)

© 2007 by Rajani Rayudu