Thalappakatti Chicken Biriyani

Preparation Time : 20 minutes | Cooking Time : 60 minutes

Ingredients

For the Masala
5 Green Chillies
3 small two inch cinnamon sticks
3 cardamom
3 cloves
⅛th of a nutmeg (Jaadhikai)
1 small piece Mace (Jaadhi Pathiri)
50 grams ginger

Main Ingredients
500 ml Seeraga Samba Rice
750 grams Chicken with bone
Meat to Rice Ratio - 1 Rice 1.5 Meat

Other Ingredients
25 grams Ghee
75 grams Sunflower Oil
50 grams crushed Garlic
50 grams crushed shallots (small onions)
1 teaspoon Red Chilli Powder
½ cup curd
11/2 teaspoon salt
1 hand full Mint Leaves
2 hand full Coriander Leaves
Juice of half a lime

Method
Peel the garlic. Crush the garlic in a mixie without adding any water. Set aside. Crush the shallots in a mixie without adding any water. Set aside.
Grind all the masala ingredients to a very fine smooth paste. Add ¼ cup of water while grinding. Chop the ginger into small pieces and break the cinnamon into bits before grinding.
Soak the rice in water now. The rice needs to soak for half an hour.
Heat Oil and ghee in a heavy pan and add in the Masala paste, crushed garlic and crushed shallots-small onions. Fry on medium flame for a good 10 minutes until the oil separates from the mixture.
Add in the chicken. Add in the chilli powder. The ratio of rice to chicken should be 1 rice to 1.5 meat. Saute the chicken so the masala coats evenly. Reduce the flame to simmer and cover it with a lid and let it cook. Don’t add any water. The chicken will cook in its own juices. Just saute once in 5 minutes so the chicken doesn’t scorch in the bottom. After 15 minutes, the chicken should be done and there should be some gravy too.

Add in the yogurt/curd. Cook with the lid open for 5 minutes.
Remove the cooked meat to a bowl and roughly measure how much liquid is left behind. Mine had about 1.5 cups of liquid. Just measure roughly. It need not be accurate.
We are using 2 cups rice and 750 grams meat. We require 2 times water to the quantity of rice. So we need to add 4 cups water. There was already 1.5 cups gravy that we measured before. So I added 2.5 cups water to the mixture. Add salt. Add in the chopped coriander leaves and the mint leaves. Let the mixture come to a boil.
Add back the meat and let it come to a boil again. Check for seasoning. Add more salt if necessary.
Drain the soaked rice and add it to the pan. Wait for it to boil. Add in the lemon juice.
Cover the pan with a lid and let it cook for the first four minutes on medium flame. Open the lid. Gently mix once from the bottom, cover the lid again and simmer for 10 minutes on very low flame.
After that time, open the lid and see if the rice has been cooked. Cook for a couple of minutes more if necessary. Switch off the flame and close the pan with a lid. Do not disturb for the next 20 minutes. The rice will get swollen and absorb all the left out moisture. This time is very important. Do not rush.

Enjoy with raitha and salad!

Courtesy - Suguna Vinod

Sausage rice

Preparation time: 15 mins | Cooking time: 20 mins

My greatest dilemma is to decide what to pack for lunch for my family. I think a few of you might share my problem :-). This recipe is ideal for it because it is quick and easy at the same time taste is not compromised.

Ingredients
Sausages or frankfurters (cut in small pieces)-12
Basmati rice- 2 cups
Onions-3
Chicken cube(stock)-1
Garam masala-2 tsps
Red chilli powder -2 tsps
Coriander powder-3tsps
Garlic ginger paste-2 tsps
Soya sauce-2 tsps
Coriander leaves(chopped)-1 tbsp
Mint leaves(chopped)-1 tbsp
Oil-3 tbsp
Salt for taste



Method
In a cooker, fry the onions in oil. Once the onions are translucent, add the garam masala, coriander powder, red chilli powder, garlic-ginger paste, soya sauce, chicken cube, coriander leaves, mint leaves and let it fry for a minute on slow flame. Add the frankfurters to this, mix the ingredients and fry again for a minute. Wash the rice, add to the frankfurters mixture and mix again. Add 3 cups of boiling water and salt. Close the lid and cook. Turn off the gas after 1 whistle. Let the cooker cool on its own for 10 minutes. Open, mix everything again and serve hot with raita.

Mutton Biryani

Preparation time: 40 mins | Cooking time: 60 mins

My 50th post :-)......

This blog is special to me for 2 reasons. First of all I'm completing half a century with this recipe, thanks to all my blogger friends for their encouragement and all the silent visitors who have dropped by. The second reason is-I cooked this for my husband's birthday, as it is the best among his favourites. :-)

Ingredients
For Gravy
Mutton-500gms
Onions-2
Ginger(chopped)-1tbsp
Garlic(chopped)-1tbsp
Green chillies-3
Coriander powder-3tsp
Chilli powder-1tsp
Garam masala-1/2tsp
Turmeric powder-1/4tsp
Tomatoes-2
Coriander leaves(chopped)-3tbsp
Mint leaves(chopped)-2tbsp
Yogurt-2tbsp
Oil-2tbsp
Salt to taste

For rice
Basmati rice-400gms (2cups)
Bay leaves-2
Cardamom-2
Cinnamon-2, 1inch stick
Cloves-3
Ghee-2tsp
Water-3 1/2cups
Salt to taste

For layering
Onion (cut into rings)-1
Cashew nuts-a few
Coriander leaves(chopped)-1tbsp
Mint leaves(chopped)-1tbsp
Garam masala-1/2tsp
Lime juice-2tbsp
Ghee-3tbsp


Method
Gravy
Clean the mutton and cut them into medium size pieces. Make a paste of ginger, garlic & green chillies and marinate the mutton in this mixture for about an hour.

Heat oil in a pan, add thinly sliced onions and saute until they are light brown in colour. Now add the mutton along with the marinade and fry until it slightly changes colour. Add all the dry masalas and fry for about 5 minutes. Add chopped tomatoes and cook until everything is blend well. Add the yoghurt, coriander & mint leaves to this. Adjust the salt and add a little water if needed, cook till the mutton is well done. The gravy should be of thick consistency.

Rice
Wash the rice well and soak for about 20 minutes, drain and keep aside. Boil water in a heavy bottom vessel. Add the whole garam masalas, ghee and salt. Now add the rice and cook on medium flame until the rice is done.

Layering and dum
Deep fry the onion rings in oil until golden brown and fry the cashews in ghee until light brown.



Smear the vessel(heavy bottom) with ghee. First add a layer of rice, top it with the mutton along with the gravy. Sprinkle some garam masala, lime juice, coriander leaves, mint leaves and the fried onions on top. Add another layer of rice and the secret lies here. Make sure that you press the rice well so that the flavour of the mutton mixes well with the rice. Repeat the same for another layer of mutton followed by rice. Finally add the fried cashews, onions and the coriander, mint leaves. Close the vessel with a tight lid or with an aluminium foil and keep it over a large pan and cook on slow flame for about 30 minutes. You may add water in the pan so that it does not get over heated. This procedure is to dum the biryani.

It should be served with raitha, papadom and lime pickle.

Mushroom & Spinach Pulao

Preparation time: 20 mins | Cooking time: 30 mins

Necessity is the mother of all inventions. :-) I say this because mushrooms & spinach are abundantly available here. I started experimenting on many dishes with these ingredients. I came across this recipe from a continental cookery book. I indianised it to suit our taste. It was a hit among kids too.

Ingredients
Onions (finely sliced)-2
Garlic (crushed)- 2 cloves
Butter-50gms
Mushrooms-150gms sliced
Cinamon-1 stick
Cloves-2
Cardamom-2
Coriander powder-1tsp
Chilli powder-1/2tsp
Basmati rice-250gms
Juice of 1/2 a lemon
Veg stock- fresh cube or concentrate – 450 ml
Spinach-200gms and roughly chopped.

Method
Cook the onion and garlic in the butter in a large shallow pan until soft and golden. Add the mushrooms and cook until it softens. Add the spices and cook for 2 minutes. Now add the veg stock, rice and salt, cover and cook on a slow heat until the liquid has been absorbed. Stir through the spinach and lemon juice. Cover for 2 min until wilted & serve.



Note: To wilt spinach quickly put it in a colander and pour a kettle of boiling water.

Chicken Dopiaza with jeera rice

Preparation time: 20 min | Cooking time: 45 min

In Hindi, "do" means two and "piaza" means onions - hence the origin of the name of this dish, which has prominent flavours of onion. I recently happened to see a cookery show in which they add onions in two different ways to the curry. This is another interpretation of "do-piaza".

It is a very aromatic dish and goes best with parrotta, chappathi & jeera rice etc. It is an authentic dish to treat your guests at home.

Ingredients
Whole Chicken(cut into medium pieces)-1
Onions (cut into rings)-4
Tomatoes (cut into 4)-2big
Kashmiri chilli powder-1tbsp
Garam masala powder-1tsp
Roasted cumin powder-1/2tsp
Kasuri methi-3/4tsp
Ginger (julienne)-1tbsp
Green chillies (cut)-4
Cashew nuts-50gms
Coriander leaves-1tbsp
Oil-1 1/2tbsp
Salt to taste

For paste
Onions(chopped)-3
Tomato(chopped)-1
Garlic(chopped)-1 1/2tbsp
Ginger(chopped)-1tbsp
Chilli powder-1/2tsp
Coriander powder-1/2tsp
Turmeric powder-1/4tsp

Method
Boil all the ingredients under the paste section with a little water until they are cooked well. Cool it and make a paste of it using a mixer. Now take a pan, add the chicken, the paste, 1/2tsp of garam masala, salt and cook until the chicken is done.

In another pan heat some oil, add ginger juliennes and green chillies and saute for about 5 minutes. Then add the onions cut into rings and saute until it is transparent. (do not over cook the onions). Now add the tomatoes and then add cumin powder, remaining garam masala, chilli powder and kasuri methi(should be roasted and crushed with hand) and mix well. To this add the cooked chicken along with the gravy. Mix all of them together and then add the cashew paste(soak the nuts in water for 1/2 hour before grinding) and cook until the gravy boils. If you do not prefer a thick gravy you may add a little hot water to loosen the consistency. Garnish with coriander leaves.

Here I've shown it along with jeera rice which is a quick recipe to make.



Jeera Rice
Ingredients
Basmati rice-1cup
Cumin seeds-1/2tsp
Butter or ghee-1tbsp
Water-2cups
Salt to taste

Method
Heat the butter in a vessel, add the cumin seeds, when they crackle add the rice(washed and soaked for 1/2 hour) and saute for 5 minutes. Now add salt and hot water and cook until the rice is done.

Bisibelebath

Preparation time: 30 mins | Cooking time: 30 mins

This is an authentic dish of Karnataka. Many of us think it is a mixture of sambar and rice. But the recipe is slightly different. There are various versions available. I've taken a combination of them and made a recipe of my own which suits our taste.

Ingredients
Rice-200gms
Tuvar Dal-150gms
Carrots-2
Potatoes-2
Beans-10
Cauliflower-15 florets
Onions-2
Green peas-1/2cup
Tomato-1
Tamarind pulp-1tbsp
Turmeric powder-1/2tsp
Mustard seeds-1/4tsp
Curry leaves-few
Oil
Salt to taste

For Masala
Urad dal-2tsp
Channa dal-2tsp
Coriander seeds-3tsp
Red chillies-3 to 4
Pepper corns-10
Grated coconut-1/4cup
Cloves-3
Cardamom-2
Cinnamon sticks (1 inch)-1
Cumin seeds-2tsp
Aniseeds (saunf)-2tsp
Fenugreek seeds-1/4tsp

Method
Dry roast all the ingredients under masala until the coconut turns slightly brown, grind it to a fine paste and keep it aside.

First cook the dal until its half done and then add the rice, sufficient water and salt and continue cooking until the rice is almost done.

Take some oil in a pan, add the mustard seeds & curry leaves. When the seeds pop, add the onions and saute for about 5 minutes. Then gradually add the vegetables-potatoes, carrots, beans, cauliflower & peas. Season with salt and cook until the vegetables are half done. Now add the tomatoes and the masala paste. Add a little water and allow it cook for a while. Add the tamarind pulp and cook for about 5 minutes. Finally add this mixture into the rice and mix thoroughly. Cook for about 5 to 10 minutes. Take care that it is not dry but semi-watery. It tastes best when served hot.

Add some ghee before serving.



Note: You may garnish with fried cashew nuts.
Potato chips or kara boondi is the best accompaniment with this dish.

Egg fried rice with Szechuan Chicken

Preperation time: 15 min | Cooking time: 10 min

Fried rice is a prominent Chinese dish that has gone through a lot of innovations as it moved to other parts of the world. For instance, the fried rice from a chinese restaurant in India would be indianised and so forth. In this recipe I've used basmati rice instead of small grain rice or jasmine rice which they use.

Ingredients
Cooked rice-1cups
Chopped carrots-1tbsp
Chopped mixed bell peppers(capsicum)-2tbsp
Chopped spring onions-2tbsp
Chopped garlic-1tsp
Eggs-2
Soya sauce-1tsp
Oyster sauce-1/2tsp
Salt & pepper as per taste.
Oil

Method
Take a wok, add oil and on high flame, add chopped garlic and the vegetables and saute for 5 minutes. Scramble the eggs and add it to this mixture. Mix them well. Season it with salt and pepper. Now add the rice and the sauces, mix it well on a high flame until the rice is hot. Sprinkle the spring onions in the end. Serve hot because fried rice is best eaten that way.

Note: It is always better to use cold rice.

Preperation time: 10 min | Cooking time: 40 min

Szechuan Chicken Ingredients
Chicken breasts(small peices)-500gms
Ginger-garlic paste-1/2tsp
Chopped ginger-2tsp
Chopped garlic-1tsp
Chilli flakes-1tsp
Egg-1
Soya Sauce-3tbsp
Chilli sauce-1tbsp
Tomato ketchup-1tbsp
Onion-1
Tomato-1
Spring onions for garnishing
Corn flour-2tbsp
Pepper-1/2tsp
Oil
Salt to taste

Method
Take a bowl, add the ginger-garlic paste, salt & pepper powder, a tbsp of soya sauce and a egg. Mix well and marinate the chicken in this for about 3 hours. Deep fry the chicken until cooked. Keep it aside.



Heat oil in a pan, add chopped ginger, garlic and onions(thinly sliced) and saute for about 2 minutes. Add chilli flakes and chopped tomatoes, saute for 5 minutes. Now add all the sauces and cook until it is well blend. Add the fried chicken to this and mix well. At this stage you can garnish with spring onions and relish it as dry Szechuan chicken or mix a tbsp of corn flour in a cup of water and add to the chicken mixture to get a thick gravy. The consistency can be adjusted as per individual taste.

Egg Biryani

A big good bye to the brutal winter and a warm welcome to the serene spring. We had a long weekend and planned for lunch outside one day. All of us were thrilled to go out. We had a light breakfast to keep our tummies ready for the lunch ahead. All set to go and there my husband's business mobile started screeching. Looking at my husband's facial expressions I was sure there would be some changes in our plans. There was some critical problem at work and he was engrossed in it. Our hopes gone down the drain in just a few minutes.

The kids became gloomy and to be honest, so did I. It was short lived for me because i had to cook something quick to compensate. With the available ingredients, Egg Biryani flashed my mind.


Ingredients to cook rice
Basmati Rice-2 cups
Ginger/Garlic paste-1tsp
Garam masala powder-1/2tsp
Turmeric powder-1/4tsp
Whole garam masala (cinnamon stick, cloves, cardamon & bay leaves)-2 each
Lime juice-2tsp
Salt as per taste
Oil
Ghee-1tbsp

To cook egg gravy
Hard boiled egss-6
Ginger(chopped)-1tbsp
Garlic(chopped)-1tbsp
Green chillies(slit length wise)-2
Onions(chopped)-3
Tomatoes-3
Corriander powder-3tsp
Chilli powder-1 1/2tsp
Garam masala powder-1/2tsp
Turmeric powder-1/4tsp
Coriander & mint leaves(chopped)-2tbsp
Yoghurt-1tbsp
Salt as per taste
Oil

Methods
Eggs
Make a paste of yoghurt, 1/2tsp chilli powder and salt and rub it over the slit eggs and keep it aside for 10 minutes and shallow fry them. (slit the eggs vertically without cutting them to pieces.)



Gravy
Heat oil in a pan, add onions and fry for 5 minutes. Add chopped ginger, garlic and green chillies and saute well. Now add all the masalas and saute for 5 minutes. Add the chopped tomatoes and cook for sometime until the oil separates. Add some water and when the gravy begins to boil add the fried eggs and cook it for sometime. Garnish it with coriander and mint leaves.

Rice
Wash the rice clean and soak it for 30 minutes. Take a heavy bottom vessel, add 1tbsp ghee and 2tbsp oil, add the whole garam masalas when the oil is hot and when they splutter add 1tsp ginger/garlic paste and saute for sometime. Add the rice, fry for sometime until the rice glistens. Add 4 cups of water, salt, 1/2tsp garam masala powder, 1/4tsp turmeric powder, 1tsp lime juice and cook the rice.

Dum
Smear the heavy bottom vessel with some ghee. First add a layer of the rice and on top of it a layer of the egg curry. Sprinkle a bit of garam masala powder & 1tsp lime juice, chopped coriander & mint leaves. Layer it with rice again. Repeat the layer once again.




The secret lies here. Make sure that you press the rice well so that the flavour of the curry mixes well with the rice. Close the vessel with a tight lid or with an aluminium foil and keep it over a large pan(dosa pan) and cook on slow flame for about 30 minutes. You may add water in the pan so that it does not get over heated. This procedure is to dum the biryani.

All of us relished the delicacy and there were no complains from my family.

Note: You may garnish the final product with fried onions, cashews and kismis which I avoided to make my kids happy. :-)
You may use biryani masala instead of garam masala.
You may also adjust the masalas as per individual tastes.

Prawn Biryani

We have been far away from our family for about half a year and we really miss everyone a lot. The only solace we have is to keep in touch with the friends over here. In the midst of making new friends I got introduced to someone who is the wife of my husbands very old friend. I haven't met her but had numerous phone conversations (as you know women spent more time on phone than men). This recipe is a result of one such phone call. I've never made this before but my friend had all praise for this dish. I made a few changes though.

Ingredients
Large Prawns(cleaned)-250g
Basmati rice-1cup
Whole garam masala (cinnamon stick, cloves, cardamon & bay leaves)-1 each
Onions-2
Tomatos-2
Yoghurt-1tbsp
Ginger/Garlic paste-2tsp
Corriander powder-2tsp
Chilli powder-1 1/2tsp
Garam masala powder-1/2tsp
Turmeric powder-1/2tsp
Lime juice-2tsp
Corriander & Mint leaves for garnising
Oil
Ghee-2tbsp
Salt to taste

Methods
Marination
Marinate the prawns with youghurt, 1/2tsp chilli powder, 1/4tsp turmeric powder, 1tsp ginger/garlic paste & salt. Keep it aside for 2 hours. Shallow fry these prawns for about 10 minutes.



Gravy
Heat a frying pan, add oil and saute the well chopped onions until translucent. Now add the remaining ginger/garlic paste and continue sauting for about 5 minutes. Add corriander powder, chilli powder to the mixture and saute for another 2 minutes. Finally add the chopped tomatoes and saute until the oil separates. Add 1/2 a glass of water and when the gravy begins to boil add the fried prawns and cook for about 5 minutes. You may add corriander and mint leaves at this stage if required.



Rice
Wash the rice clean and soak it for 30 minutes. Take a heavy bottom vessel, add 1tbp ghee and 1tbsp oil, add the whole garam masalas when the oil is hot and when they splutter add the rice, fry for sometime until the rice glistens. Add 2 cups of water, salt, 1/4tsp garam masala powder, 1/4tsp turmeric powder, 1tsp lime juice and cook the rice.



Dum
Smear the heavy bottom vessel with the remaining ghee. First add a layer of the rice and on top of it a layer of the prawns curry. Sprinkle a bit of garam masala powder & 1tsp lime juice, chopped corriander & mint leaves. Layer it with rice again.



The secret lies here. Make sure that you press the rice well so that the flavour of the prawns mixes well with the rice. Close the vessel with a tight lid or with an aluminium foil and keep it over a large pan(dosa pan) and cook on slow flame for about 30 minutes. You may add water in the pan so that it does not get over heated. This procedure is to dum the biryani.


Note: You may garnish the final product with fried onions, cashews and kismis which I avoided to make my kids happy. :-)
You may use biryani masala instead of garam masala.
You may also adjust the masalas as per individual tastes.