'Biryani'
is a
rice dish from the Indian Subcontinent made from a mixture of spices,
basmati rice, meat/vegetables and yogurt. There are many kind of biryanis and each kind has a uniqueness about it. From
Kashmir to Kanyakumari, from East India to West India, there are different varieties of the dish. It can be considered a
casserole dish, as the ingredients are ideally cooked together in the final phase and is time-consuming to prepare. Pre-mixed biryani spices from different commercial names are easily available in markets these days, which reduces the preparation time though the taste differs considerably.
The spices and condiments used in biryani are what primarily contribute to the
taste; these are generally cloves, cardamom, cinnamon, bay leaves,
coriander and mint leaves, apart from ghee, ginger, onions, garlic and
yoghurt. The premium varieties include saffron. For a non-vegetarian biryani, the main ingredient that accompanies the
spices is the meat or chicken, Domestic goat, lamb or sometimes beef, though
vegetable biryani varieties are also popular. The dish is usually served with
raita.
Though
there are several methods of preparing biryani, the Hyderabad Biryani is by
far the most popular version. Historians claim that the earlier Nawabs of
Hyderabad, wore a matching turban for each variety of biryani. The Nizam's
kitchen boasted of 49 kinds, which included biryani made from fish, quail,
shrimp, deer and hare. The Sindhi variant of biryani is very popular in
Pakistani cuisine and biryani of all types are eaten in all parts of Pakistan.
Another popular form of biryani is the Awadhi biryani.
In Pakistan during the past 5 years, biryani has acquired substantial
popularity. This is specially the case in Karachi, where the chicken version
is popular with both young and old alike as a dish of choice. This is related
to Awadh biryani but combines elements of Bombay biryani and includes
potatoes.
The vegetarian version might have some textured vegetable protein based
protein balls to present the impression of a meat-based dish for vegetarians.
The difference between biryani and pulav is that while biryani may be made by
cooking the items together, pulav, is used to denote a dish where the rice is
cooked separately from the other ingredients.
HYDERABADI
LAMB BIRYANI
Meat - 1
KG Boneless
Basmati Rice - 1/2kg
Onion - 2 Big
Lime Juice - 1/4 Cup
Curd - 500 GM
Ginger Garlic Paste - 4-6 Tsp.
Red Chili Powder - 1/2 Tsp.
Green Chili - 4-6 grind into fine past
Shazeera - A Pinch of Shazeera
Clove - 1-2
Cinnamon - 1-2
Cardamom - 2-3
Coriander Leaves - A bunch finely chopped
Mint leaves - 8-10 sticks - Plucked only leaves
Saffron - 2 pinch of saffron, immerse in water
Saffron color - A pinch of color liquefied with water
Ghee - 2 Tsp.
Oil - 2 Cup oil
Salt - To taste
Cut the meat
into 4" square pieces and wash it. Add ginger garlic paste to the washed
meat and Marinate it for 1 hour.
While
marinating you cut the onions thinly lengthwise and Fry the onions in the oil on
low flame till it becomes golden brown. Now remove the golden brown onions from
the oil and spread it on the plate, when it cool then crush it with your hand.
Now add the curd 3/4 part of crushed fried onion, Red chili powder, Green chili
paste, Cinnamon, Cardamom, Shazeera, Clove, Coriander leaves, Mint leaves and
saffron water, salt to taste and remaining part of the oil into this marinated
meat and leave for one hour.
After one
hour take basmati rice and washed and now pour water into the rice as you cook
it and add salt one tea spoon, Cinnamon, Cardamom, Shazeera, Clove, Coriander
leave, mint leave, Green chili 2 cut into length wise. Now put on flame but when
rice start cooking when the rice becomes half cooked. Then remove it flame.
Drain out the water completely. Now spread this half cooked rice on the
marinated meat. Upon the rice layer you spread lime juice, saffron color and
ghee and remaining part of the crushed onion.
Now cover
the utensil with lid tightly. Keep it on a very low flame After 1/2 hour exactly
take it out from the flame. Now the Hyderabadi Biryani is ready to eat.
LAMB
PULAO
2 lbs Lamb
1 1/4 th cup Basmati rice
3 medium
Onions, sliced thin
A few sprigs of mint to garnish
For the Marinade
- 2 medium onions
- 6 cloves garlic
- 4 inch ginger root
- 1 sprig of mint
- 4 small green
cardamoms
- 4 cloves
- 2 teaspoons poppy
seeds
- 1 inch stick
cinnamon
- 4 green chilies -
according to to taste
-
- 2 cups plain yogurt
Grind
together all the above ingredients, except the yogurt to form a smooth paste.
Add the ground spices to the yogurt and mix well. Marinate the lamb pieces in
this mixture for about 2 hours.
Cooking the Lamb
Fry the
sliced onions in a few table spoons of little ghee, until they are golden brown.
Add the the lamb marinade and mix thoroughly. Add about 1 pint of water over the
lamb and heat and bring to boil. Lower the heat, cover and cook until the
lamb is tender.
Cooking the Rice
Wash the
rice in cold water. Wash it at least three times. Drain all the water out from
the rice. Set aside for 20 minutes. In a pot add 3-4 tablespoons of ghee and
sauté the drained rice until the rice grains separate and then start sticking
together again. Remove from heat. Add salt to taste. Mix well. Set aside.
Layering
the Lamb Biryani
- 3 Medium onions,
sliced thinly and fried to golden brown
- 1/2 cup of Sliced
almonds, fried to golden brown
4 Tablespoons Golden raisins
1/2 tsp Saffron and 3 tablespoons warm Milk
Mix the
Saffron with the milk. Set aside.
In a large
ovenproof "Corning" container add a layer of rice followed by a layer
of the cooked lamb along with a little sauce from the lamb. Now sprinkle the
fried onions, almonds, raisins, and saffron mixture.
Now add a
layer of rice and lamb and again sprinkle the fried onions, almonds raisins and
saffron mixture. Add the final layer of rice and again for the final time
sprinkle the fried onions, almonds, raisins, and saffron mixture. Add about 3-4
tablespoons of melted ghee on top.
Add enough
water until you see the water level about a 1/2 inch higher than rice.
Cover the saucepan well with a tight fitting lid. Or you can cover with aluminum
foil. Put the pan inside the oven. Oven temperature should be over 450 F for 45
minutes. Garnish with a few mint sprigs.
Enjoy it
with a Raita
or Kachumber.
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