Chicken Biryani

Hyderabadi Biryani is one of the most popular dishes of India. I tried Bombay Biryani and doesn't come anywhere close to the taste of hyderabadi Biryani. Take it from a person who doesn't like any Biryani in the first place
        Biryani is a tasty concoction of half cooked rice mixed with half cooked meat. And when you comebine them and cook them to completion combined then the magic happens and you get the best of both worlds. None-the-less I am not a fan of any rice dish which has meat mixed in it. But the Biryani recipe I am presenting here is a very tasty one and I do eat it, even though the whole world likes it and I don't
            Other than the rice and meat in the biryani, the next most important ingredient here are the fried onions. So, don't be lazy, fry those onions first
Fried Onions

Fried Onions

Ingredients:

1. 1 big red onion sliced thin
2. Oil for deep frying for 2-3 tablespoons oil

People usually deep fry the onions till they turn dark brown and drain them but I just shallow fry them in 2-3 tablespoons of oil, so as to limit the amount of oil these onions absorb. The results are the same either ways. Fry the onions and set aside
Chicken Curry for Biryani

Biryani layers

Ingredients:

1. 1 whole chicken cut into 10-12 pieces
2. 1 medium onion sliced thin
3. 3-4 green chillies sliced
4. 3 tablespoons oil
5. 1 tablespoon ginger-garlic paste
6. 2 tablespoons yogurt (optional)
7. 1 teaspoon each of salt, chilly powder, coriander, cumin powder
8. 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
9. Few cloves, 2 inches cinnamon, 1 elaichi (pounded a few times)

Wash and pat dry the chicken and marinate with all the powders for 20-30 minutes. Add yogurt if using and marinate for atleast 1 more hour. In a pressure cooker heat the oil and fry the onions till they start turning brown. Add ginger-garlic paste and green chillies and fry for a couple of minutes. Add chicken pieces and fry without moving them for 3-4 minutes . Add 1/4 cup of water and cover the cooker and cook for 2 whistles. Set aside

Biryani

Chicken Biryani

Ingredients:

1. 3 cups of rice cooked till half done
2. 1/3 cup each of chopped cilantro, mint, fresh sqeezed lemon juice
3. 1 tablespoon of finely chopped fresh ginger (optional)
4. 4-6 hard boiled eggs (optional)

In a baking tray 9x12 or larger, layer the half cooked rice, topped with mint and cilantro and half of chicken curry topped with fried onions and ginger pieces. Drizzle half of lemon juice. Repeat all the layers again. Cover and bake for 45-60 minutes at 300 degrees. Enjoy biryani with Dahi Raita and Vinegar Onions

Dahi Raita, Kachumbar

Kachumbar

Ingredients:

1. 1 cup plain yogurt beaten
2. 1 tablespoon frsh squeezed lemon juice
3. 2 tablespoons each of finely chopped onions, cucumber, tomato, cilantro
4. 1 green chilly finely chopped
5. 1/2 teaspoon salt
6. 1/4 cup water

Mix all the ingredients and your Kachambar is ready

Vinegar Onions

Ingredients:

1. 1/4 cup finely chopped red onions
2. 1/3 cup white vinegar
3. 1 green chilly finely chopped
4. 1/2 teaspoon salt

Mix all the ingredients together and enjoy