Chicken Biriyani- Kerala Style

Ingredients for rice 

Basmati rice       :2 cups
Water                  :4 cups
Cloves                :4 numbers
Cardamom pods :4 numbers
Cinnamon stick  :1 inch pieces
Bay leaves          :1 number
Lemon juice       :2 teaspoon
Salt to taste

For marinating chicken. 

Chicken                  :1/2 kg.
Turmeric powder    :1/4 tbsp.
Red chilli powder   :1 teaspoon.
Yogurt                     :1/2 cup.
Biryani masala        :1/2 teaspoon.
Salt to taste

For chicken masala. 

Onion              : 4 medium (thinly sliced)
Tomato            : 2 medium (chopped)
Green chillies  :15 to 20 (chopped)
Ginger             :1 inch peace
Garlic              : 8 to 10 cloves

Biryani masala. 

Red chilli powder                 :1/2 teaspoon.
Coriander powder                 :2 tablespoon.
Turmeric powder                  :1/4 tablespoon.
Mint leaves                           :1/2 cup chopped
Cilantro/ coriander leaves    :1/2 cup chopped.
Oil or ghee                            :2 tablespoon.

For Nutty paste. 

Fennel seeds        :1 teaspoon.
Poppy seeds         :1 teaspoon.
Grated coconut    :3 tablespoon
Cashew nuts        :10 numbers

For garnishing. 

Cashew nuts                 :handful
Raisins                          :handful.
Ghee                             :3-5 tablespoon.
Onion                            :1/2 cup sliced
Coriander leaves           :handful.
Saffron                          :1-2 strand.
Warm milk                    :2 teaspoon.

Preparing the nutty paste

Soak the poppy seeds fennel seeds cashew nut in the water for half an hour and grind it to smooth paste along with grated coconut and keep separately.

Cooking the chicken masala

1. Clean the chicken with a Pinch of turmeric and cut it into medium sized pieces. Allow water to            drain well.
2. Make a coarse paste of ginger, garlic and green chillies and keep aside.
3. Marinate chicken with all above mentioned ingredients.
4. Heat oil or ghee in a pan, add sliced onion, saute until it is transculent, add the ginger, garlic, green      chilli paste, again saute until brown colour and add chopped tomatoes and again saute for few              seconds.
5. Add turmeric powder, chilli powder, biryani masala, coriander powder and saute until the smell          goes up.
6. Add chopped coriander and mint leaves and mix well.
7. Add the shallowed fried chicken and cook at medium flame for about 10 minutes and add water if      needed and adjust salt.
8. Add the Nutty paste and cook for couple of minutes, when done remove and keep it aside.

Cooking rice

1. Soak rice for 30 minutes and drain the water completely.
2. Boil the required water with half of the whole masala with a little olive oil and salt.
3. Heat ghee in a pan and splutter whole masala. Add the clean rice, when the rice starts cracking add      it into boiled water and cook covered for 8 to 10 minutes.
4. When the rice is done, drain the excess water immediately and spread the rise on a tray and                  sprinkle the lemon juice. Allow it too cool for sometime.       

Preparing for garnish. 

1. Heat ghee and fry thinly sliced onion till golden colour and crispy for 15 minutes, add little sugar        to caramelize, remove and drain on to a paper towel.
2. Now fry cashews and then raisins until golden colour, drain and remove on to the paper towel and      keep it aside.
3. Mix Saffron strand in warm milk and keep it aside. 

Final cooking or layering 

Cooking in oven:   

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In an oven proof dish, grease your Cooking dish and spread half of the chicken masala and some        cooked rice
3. Sprinkle biryani masala, fried cashew, raisins, fried onions, chopped coriander leaves and mint            leaves, sprinkle remaining ghee and few drops of saffron milk over the rice as the final layering.          Repeat this process.
4. Close with tight fitting heat resistant lid or close it with Aluminium foil. Bake it for 20 minutes
5. When it is done, remove and keep the dish covered until serving.

Cooking in Stove top, Dum method : 

1. Make a dough of Maida with little water.
2. Place flat cast iron Skillet or tawa on the lowest burner of your stove. The flame should be at the        lowest setting
3. Layer the chicken masala and rice, sprinkle biryani masala, fried cashew, raisins, fried onions              chopped coriander leaves and mint leaves, Sprinkle remaining ghee and few drops of saffron milk      on the rice asthe final hearing and repeat this process.
4. Close with the tight fitting lid and Seal the edges of the lid with the above prepared dough and            cook for 15 minutes and turn off the flame.
5. Let it rest unopened for another 15 minutes and break open the seal, now dum is also done. And          its ready to serve.