Kuska Rice and Boneless chicken biriyani | Learn how to make plain biriyani rice and boneless Chicken Biriyani

3

I am back with another biriyani recipe. The chicken biriyani that I made before was with chicken on bone cooked in dum style. Today I tried boneless version without dum cooking. I was trying to replicate my childhood favorite rice item Kuska Rice from my father's hotel. It's nothing but plain biriyani rice.  Me and my sisters loved to eat this kuska rice with sherva (Plain Savji curry). In the hotel they used keep the Kuska rice ready and prepare chicken/Egg/Mutton or Veg biriyani with it as and when the order was placed.

So this Kuska rice came out really well and it had all the flavors of a good biriyani. Then I thought of making a chicken masala and preparing biriyani with it. I had some boneless chicken in store so out came this delicious chicken masala and the biriyani! It tasted just like the famous Meghana Boneless Biriyani. My family loved it. This has all the qualities to be out next family favorite dish:) I have noted down the recipe to make Kuska Rice and the boneless chicken biriyani with it. You can replace it with chicken on bone. It was just another pefect Biriyani :) Please read on for the recipe.

Kuska Rice /Plain Biriyani rice recipe: 
Ingredients:

Rice: 3 cups

Green chillies: 4-5

Onion: 3

Ghee/Oil: 3 tbsp

Caraway seeds (shahijeera): 1 tsp

Cardamom pods: 3-4

Clove: 4

Cinnamon stick: 1

Bay leaf: 1

Ginger garlic paste: 1 tbsp

Yogurt/curd : 1/2 cup

Chopped coriander and mint leaves: 1 fistful

Salt to taste
Safrron: 1 pinch
Rose water: 1 tbsp (Optional)
Kewra Water: 1 tbsp (Optional)

Preparation:

1. Wash and soak rice in enough water for 30 mins

2. Thinly slice onion, slit green chillies, chop coriander and mint leaves.

3. Soak saffron in 2 tbsp of warm milk or water.

Method:

1. Heat ghee/oil in a thick bottomed wok, add caraway seeds and whole garam masalas - clove, cardamom, cinnamon and bay leaf. Sauté until the ghee is fragrant.

2. Add thinly sliced onion and fry until onion turns to golden brown and crispy.

3. Now remove 2 tbsp of fried onions and keep it for garnishing. Add ginger garlic paste and green chillies, sauté until the raw smell disappears.

4. Add beaten yogurt, salt, chopped mint and coriander leaves and mix well. Cook for 1-2 minutes.

5. Add soaked rice and fry it for 2-3 minutes. Add 4.5 cups of water (1.5 cups for 1 cup of rice)

6. When it starts boiling cover with the tight lid and cook until the water on top is dried.

7. Open the lid sprinkle 1 tsp of rose water and kewra water and saffron milk  and put the lid back and keep it on low flame for 15 mins and turn of the flame.

8. Allow it to cool for 10 mins, open the lid and mix the rice up slowly without breaking it.

Garnish with fried onions and the rice is ready. You can serve it some spicy gravy of your choice or make biriyani with it. Read on to to know how to make boneless chicken biriyani.

Boneless Chicken Masala for Biriyani:

For Marinade:

Lemon Juice: 2 tbsp
Red chilli powder: 2 tsp
Turmeric: 1/2tsp
Coriander powder: 2 tsp
Cumin powder: 1 tsp
Biriyani powder: 2 tsp
Egg: 1
Corn Flour: 2 tsp
Salt to taste
Boneless chicken cubes: 500 gms

In a large mixing bowl add all the items listed for marinade and mix well. Add boneless chicken pieces and mix. Keep it refrigerated for 2 hours.

For chicken masala:

Ingredients:
Ghee: 5-6 tbsp.
Cashews: 10-12
Onion: 2
Green chillies: 2
Ginger garlic paste: 1 tbsp
Mint and coriander leaves: 3 tbsp

Yogurt: 1 cup
salt to taste

Method:
1. Heat ghee in a pan and fry cashews until golden brown, remove and keep aside.

2. To the remaining ghee, add sliced onions and fry until golden brown, add ginger garlic paste and saute until the raw smell disappears.

4. Add slit green chillies, salt, coriander and mint leaves saute for a while.

5. Mix in marinated chicken and fry for 5-6 minutes. Add a cup of beaten yogurt and cook until the chicken is done. It shouldn't be too dry, should be of thick gravy consistency. Add a little water if required.

6. Squeeze in lemon juice and the chicken masala is ready to go!

Serving:
1. In a serving bowl, add the plain biriyani rice and top it up with chicken masala and garnish with fried cashews, fried onions, chopped mint and coriander leaves. Serve hot with yogurt raita.

Notes:
1. Do not over cook the rice, Biriyani rice grains should be separated in a good biriyani :) you can add orange food coloring if you like the rice to be colorful.

2. Adding rose water/Kewra water is optional but recommended as it really brings the biriyani flavor out.

3. You can adjust the chicken masala according to your taste, you can add tomato puree or also can add 2 tbsp cream to make the gravy rich.

Please click here to know how to make biriyani powder.--> Fresh Biriyani Powder in a Jiffy

Read More »

Biriyani powder in a jiffy.

0

Fresh biriyani powder is the soul of a good biriyani. You can buy ready made biriyani mixes from the market but the freshly ground biriyani powder makes all the difference. It certainly brings that "the biriyani flavor". I make very small batches of this powder so that I have the freshly pound masala everytime I make Biriyani. For 1 kg meat about 3 tbsp of this aromatic biriyani powder would be sufficient. 

It only takes 5 minutes to prepare the powder if you have all the ingredients at home.

Ingredients:
Cloves: 8-10
Black Cardamom - 3-4
Green Cardamom - 8-10
Mace(Javithri/Japathre) - 2
Bay leaf - 1
Cinnamon Sticks: 3-4
Peppercorn - 8-10
Kasuri Methi (Dried Fenugreek leaves): 1 tbsp

Stone flower (kalpasi/dagad Phool): 1 tbsp
Cumin powder: 1 tsp
Turmeric: 1/4 tsp
Coriander Powder: 2 tsp
Red Chilli powder: 1/2 tsp
Anardana powder : 1/2 tsp (Optional - it works as a meat tenderizer)

 Method:
1. Put all ingredients except the powders in the blender and grind to coarse mixture, Add in all the powders and mix well. Store in an airtight jar.
2. Do not use more than 3 tbsp for 1 kg Chicken otherwise the garam masala tastes overpowers the biriyani flavor.

If you make a big batch of biriyani powder it's better to dry roast the ingredients before grinding so that it stays fresh for longer.

Read More »

Chicken Dum Biriyani | Restaurant style chicken biriyani

0

Side effects of being married to a big foodie!! One way or the other you are always thinking about cooking something new for your better half who just loves to eat. I was a simple rice - rasam type girl before marriage and in last 5+ years I not only learnt cooking but started enjoying cooking so much that I started my own blog. Doesn't it feel good to make something and get appreciated for it every time :-) 

Some side effects of being with a foodie or being a foodie yourself are so glaring.

1. You are just finishing your lunch and you start thinking about cooking dinner.

2. In the supermarket , you are almost like a robot scanning the vegetables/meat - your mind starts thinking about all possible recipes and what you can cook this week.

3.You have no issues with your spouse inviting guests for dinner every other weekend.It's an even prouder feeling to receive appreciation from guests ;-)

Do you have any other side effects??- do comment below so we can laugh a bit together:))

Every time there are guests coming over, I start planning  the menu and this Hyderabadi Chicken Biriyani has to be the first in the list. Then I go on adding my specialties such as Roasted chicken, Fish Rava fry or Masala fry, Chicken sukka etc as certified by the foodoholic of my house aka my husband:) 

There are 100s of variations of making biriyani, the process and the ingredients differ a lot but who can beat the taste of a biriyani with the aroma of spices, fried onions, fresh mint leaves etc.  This post has been in the draft for the longest time and finally I am posting it with all my love for Biriyani. The whole process of making this biriyani is very interesting and I split it into three categories - marinating the chicken with the spices, cooking the rice to the right consistency to be layered and finally dum cooking the biriyani in a handi (pot).

So lets get started with the ingredients, do not faint looking at the long list, after all it's not everyday one makes such elaborate and special dish :-))

Ingredients:

Chicken on bone: 1 kg

Long grained basmati rice : 1 kg
Shahi Jeera/ caraway seeds: 1 tsp
Cloves: 3-4

Oil: 1tsp

Saffron: few strands
Water/Milk: 2-3 tbsp 
Salt to taste
Ghee: 3 tbsp
Broken Cashew Nuts: 15-20
Rose water: 1 tbsp (Optional)
Kewra water: 1 tbsp (Optional)

For Marinade:

Biriyani powder : 3 tbsp

Red chilli powder: 1/2 tsp

Cumin powder:1 tsp

Coriander powder:1 tbsp

Turmeric powder :1/2 tsp

Green chillies: 3-4

Ginger garlic paste: 1 tbsp

Curd: 1 cup
Oil: 2 tbsp
Salt to taste
Lemon juice: 2 tbsp

Chopped Mint leaves: 1/4 cup +1/4 cup 

Chopped Coriander leaves:1/4 cup +1/4 cup

Fried onions: 1/4 cup +1/4 cup

Method:
Marinating the chicken:
1. Take all the ingredients for marinade and mix well. Save half of the chopped coriander leaves, mint leaves and fried onions for dum cooking. Add cleaned chicken pieces and marinate for 3-4 hours or overnight in the refrigerator.

Cooking the rice:

2. Wash and soak rice in enough water for 1 hour. Heat water in a big pot and add salt, 1 tsp oil, caraway seeds and cloves. when the water starts boiling add the soaked rice. We are going to cook it partially. When the rice starts popping up take a grain and press it with your fingers, it will break into 2. It should be half cooked at this stage. Turn off the flame and drain the rice in a colander. Do not overcook the rice as it will get mushy after Dum cooking with Chicken.

Dum cooking the biriyani.
3. Take a thick bottomed pot with a tight lid and heat ghee in it. Fry Cashew nuts and take it out. Soak Saffron in warm milk or water and keep aside.

4. Now add marinated chicken to the remaining ghee in the pot and gently mix it.

5. Add half cooked rice on top of the chicken in layers, arrange the remaining chopped coriander leaves, mint leaves and fried onions on top of the rice, sprinkle rose water, kewra water, saffron milk and add fried cashews.

6. Put a thick cloth on top and cover with the tight lid or you can also seal the lid with chapathi dough.

7. Keep it on high flame for the first 15 minutes and simmer the flame and let it cook for 30-45 minutes. You can also keep the pot on a heavy bottomed pan so the pot is not directly on fire and the chicken won't burn at the bottom of the pot.

8. Let it cool for 15 minutes. Open the lid and check the rice it would have turned fluffy and fully cooked. Gently mix the chicken and rice together and serve with chilled Cucumber Raita.  

Simple Cucumber raita:
Finely chopped onion: 1
Finely chopped green chillies: 2
Finely chopped/grated slender long cucumber: 2
Chopped Coriander leaves: 2-3 tbsp
Salt to taste
Chilled Yogurt/Curd: 3 cups

Mix all the ingredients together and chill in the refrigerator.
Please click here to know how to make biriyani powder.--> Fresh Biriyani Powder in a Jiffy

Read More »