Chicken Biryani – Indian Cuisine

Step 1: Prepare Onions for Gravy

Finely chop 1 large onion and set aside.

Step 2: Prepare Onions for Frying

Thinly slice 1.5 onions. Separate the rings and set aside.

Step 3: Fry Onions until Golden Brown

Heat a pan with plenty of neutral oil or chicken fat on medium heat. Fry the thinly sliced onions, moving them continuously, until they are dark brown but not black. This should take about 10-15 minutes.

Step 4: Drain Fried Onions

Remove the fried onions from the pan and drain them on paper towel. Reserve the flavored oil in the pan.

Step 5: Prepare Basmati Rice

Wash 500g (2.5 cups) Basmati rice well, changing the water often, until the water runs clear. Cover the rice with fresh water and let it soak for 30 minutes.

Step 6: Prepare Flatbread Dough

In a bowl, mix 350g (3 cups) all-purpose flour, 3g (0.5 tsp) salt, 250ml (1 cup) water, and 15g (1 tbsp) oil or ghee. Work it into a smooth dough. Cover the bowl with a damp cloth and let it rest.

Step 7: Sear Chicken Pieces

Heat a pan with ghee or a touch of oil. Sear the 6-8 bone-on chicken pieces (thighs or drumsticks) until they are nice and golden brown on all sides. Set the seared chicken aside.

Step 8: Sauté Chopped Onions for Gravy

In the same pan used for searing chicken (with the fond), add the finely chopped onion and 30g (2 tbsp) ghee or oil (preferably the flavored oil from frying onions). Sauté until the onions have softened.

Step 9: Add Whole Spices

Add 4-6 dried bay leaves, 1-2 cinnamon sticks, 6-10 green cardamom pods, 2-3 mace blades (or grated nutmeg), and 1g (0.5 tsp) fenugreek seeds to the pan. Fry for a few minutes with the onions to release their flavors.

Step 10: Cook Ginger-Garlic Paste

Once the onions are nice and brown, add 75g (5 tbsp) ginger-garlic paste. Cook it out real well, stirring constantly, until the raw fragrance is gone and it smells exceptionally good.

Step 11: Add Tomato Paste

Add 25g (1.5 tbsp) tomato paste and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly.

Step 12: Add Powdered Spices and Tomatoes

Add 20g (4 tbsp) Garam Masala and 2g (1 tsp) Kashmiri chili powder. Follow up with 200g chopped tomatoes. Let it simmer for a few minutes.

Step 13: Season Gravy Base

Add a touch of water or chicken stock if the mixture is getting too pasty. Season with salt to taste and a touch of sugar to balance the tartness of the tomatoes. Remove the pan from the heat to cool down slightly.

Step 14: Stabilize Yogurt

In a bowl, place 250g (1 cup) full-fat Greek yogurt. Add 2 tbsp double cream and 1 tsp cornstarch. Whisk it really well until it is completely homogeneous.

Step 15: Incorporate Yogurt into Gravy

Once the gravy base has cooled down a touch, add the whisked yogurt bit by bit, stirring constantly, until it is fully incorporated and the gravy is homogeneous. Do not dump all the yogurt in at once to prevent splitting.

Step 16: Simmer Chicken in Gravy

Add the seared chicken pieces back into the gravy. Slowly simmer the chicken until it has cooked through. Stir in any fat that rises through the gravy to the top. Make sure it doesn't boil fast or burn.

Step 17: Preheat Oven

Turn your oven to 220°C (≈430°F) (approximately 430°F) (425°F (≈220°C) (approximately 220°C)) to preheat.

Step 18: Prepare Saffron Sauce

In a small saucepan, combine 120g (0.5 cup) double cream, 60g (3 tbsp) butter, and 3 large pinches of saffron strands. Give it a good 3 to 5-minute steady simmer until it is beautifully golden and the saffron has fully bloomed.

Step 19: Prepare Rice Pre-cooking Liquid

In a pot, combine 600g (2.5 cups) chicken stock or water, 6g (1 tsp) salt, 6 cardamom pods, 3 star anise, 5 cloves, 4-5 bay leaves, a few mace blades, 0.5 tsp turmeric powder, and 1 fat spoon of ghee or butter. Bring this mixture to a boil and let it infuse for a few minutes.

Step 20: Pre-cook Rice

Add the soaked Basmati rice to the boiling flavored liquid. Give it a stir and boil for 2-3 minutes. The rice should be able to break between your fingers but still have a little bit of raw rice in the middle.

Step 21: Drain Rice

Drain the pre-cooked rice, reserving the leftover liquid for other uses (e.g., soups or curries).

Step 22: Choose Cooking Vessel

Select your cooking vessel: either a traditional clay pot (which can be sealed with foil or the prepared dough) or a large enough saucepan/pot (which can be sealed with foil and a lid).

Step 23: First Layer: Saffron Sauce

Start by pouring a thin layer of the saffron sauce into the bottom of your chosen pot.

Step 24: Second Layer: Rice

Add a layer of the pre-cooked rice over the saffron sauce.

Step 25: Third Layer: Herbs and Chilies

Scatter sliced green chilies (if using), indiscriminately torn fresh mint, and randomly scattered fresh cilantro over the rice.

Step 26: Fourth Layer: Crispy Onions

Sprinkle a generous amount of crispy fried onions over the herbs.

Step 27: Fifth Layer: Chicken and Gravy

Place a couple of pieces of the cooked chicken and a touch of gravy over the onions. Be careful not to add too much moisture.

Step 28: Repeat Layers

Repeat the layering process: rice, saffron sauce, chilies, herbs, crispy onions, and chicken with gravy.

Step 29: Final Layer

Finish with a final layer of rice, saffron sauce, chilies, herbs, and crispy onions.

Step 30: Seal the Pot

If using a clay pot, roll out the prepared dough into a long strip and use it to seal the lid tightly around the pot. If using a regular pot, cover it tightly with aluminum foil, then place the lid on top.

Step 31: Bake the Biryani

Bake the sealed pot in the preheated oven at 220°C (≈430°F) (approximately 430°F) (425°F (≈220°C) (approximately 220°C)) for 25-30 minutes.

Step 32: Make Flatbreads (Optional)

While the biryani is baking, take the leftover dough, roll it into small balls, then flatten and roll each ball into very thin round sheets on a well-floured surface. Heat a skillet or pan on high heat. Dry roast the flatbreads in the skillet, pressing down gently with a slightly damp cloth to make them puff up. Cook both sides until nicely brown and puffed.

Step 33: Brush Flatbreads

While the flatbreads are still warm, brush them with a touch of melted butter or ghee to ensure they stay soft.

Step 34: Rest and Serve Biryani

Once the biryani is baked, carefully open the lid (taking care not to steam your fingers). Let it rest for 5 minutes before dishing up. Garnish with more fresh herbs and crispy onions. Enjoy traditionally with your hands, with a spoon, or by scooping it up with the freshly made flatbread.

• If you're lazy, you can buy crispy shallots and toast them in the oven instead of frying fresh onions.

• Frying your own onions provides flavorful onion oil to cook with later.

• To prevent the yogurt from splitting in the gravy, use full-fat Greek yogurt (6% fat or above), whisk it with double cream and cornstarch until homogeneous, and add it bit by bit to a cooled-down gravy base.

• Do not salt the chopped onions early when frying for the gravy, as this prevents browning.

• The leftover rice cooking liquid is delicious and can be used in soups or other curries.

• You can use boneless chicken thighs instead of bone-on pieces, but avoid chicken breast as it tends to dry out.

• If you don't want to buy individual spices, use an extra tablespoon of Garam Masala in the gravy.

• If you don't want to use yogurt, you can use a touch of cream instead, but you will lose the authentic tangy taste the yogurt provides.

• For pre-cooking the rice, you can simply use salted water and butter instead of the full flavored liquid.