A couple of months ago the hubby came across an easy biryani recipe which he wanted me to try out. Till the time I tried it I didn’t consider biryani making an ‘easy’ process but I was stumped after I tried this one. The best part about this biryani is that the only time you spend is preparing the marination for the chicken and after that you just cook the rice, place it on the marinated chicken and cook it together on ‘dum’ and voila! a mouthwatering biryani is ready! If you want to make this biryani for a party and don’t want to kill yourself in the kitchen you can marinate the chicken ahead of time and on the day just cook it along with the rice – so easy yeah?
I tried making this a couple of times as I wanted to perfect it and then I decided to post it just in time for Eid. For those who are celebrating it ‘Eid Mubarak!’ and may you be blessed richly by the Almighty! Spend precious time with your loved ones and do enjoy the festivities!
This recipe by Chef Harpal Singh Sokhi’s was discovered by the hubby, tried by me and enjoyed by all. I hope you enjoy it!
Chicken Hyderabadi Biryani
A classic recipe from Hyderabad made simple. This aromatic and flavourful combination of rice and chicken with some spices can be your next party dish
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Ingredients
To be marinated:
- 1 kg chicken on the bone
- 2 tablespoons plain red chilli powder * adjust to taste
- 1 teaspoon garam masala powder
- 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon cardamom powder
- 1/2 teaspoon kitchen king masala optional
- 1/4 cup mint leaves chopped
- 1/4 cup coriander leaves chopped
- 3 tablespoons ginger garlic paste
- 1 cup browned fried onions * see notes
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1 cup thick yogurt curds
- 4 tablespoons melted ghee
- Salt to taste approx 1-1/2 or 2 level tsp
To make the rice:
- 3 cups (600gms) basmati rice
- 2-3 teaspoons salt to taste
- 12 cups of water
Ingredients to be wrapped in a muslin cloth potli:
- 1 teaspoon black cumin kala jeera
- 3 black cardamoms badi elaichi
- 6 cardamoms
- 6 cloves
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 inch stick of cassia bark or cinnamon
For layering (to be divided between two layers)
- 4 tablespoons chopped mint
- 4 tablespoons chopped coriander
- 1 teaspoon cardamom powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garam masala powder
- A pinch of saffron powdered and soaked in 2 tablespoons milk
- 4 tablespoons melted ghee
- 4 tablespoons fried onions
Instructions
- Clean and cut the chicken into medium big pieces (biryani cuts). Wash and drain or pat dry with a kitchen tissue.
- In a wok/kadhai heat some oil or ghee and fry the sliced onions till golden brown. Remove onto an absorbent kitchen tissue and divide portions as required for the marination, layering and garnish. Fry the raisins and cashew nuts in the same oil or ghee and remove.
- In the pan in which you will make the biryani (make sure it is sufficiently big as the chicken and the rice will be cooked in the same pot – I used a large kadhai) marinate the chicken with all the ingredients mentioned under ‘to be marinated’ for a minimum of 30min.
- Wash and soak the rice in plenty of water for 15-20 mins then drain and keep aside. In another large pan bring about 12 cups of water to a rolling boil and drop the muslin cloth potli and the washed rice and cook till the rice is al dente (about 80% done) – this could take about 10mins so keep an eye on it. Remove the pan from heat.
- Using a slotted spoon remove half the rice and layer it over the chicken. While you are doing so if some of the liquid (in which the rice was cooked) comes along with the rice it is ok – it will provide the required moisture to cook the rice but don’t add too much.
- Layer half the ingredients mentioned under ‘for the layering’ and then cover with the remaining rice and sprinkle the remaining half of the ingredients meant for layering
- Randomly poke deep holes into the biryani and pour any remaining ghee into it (or some extra if you wish). Cover the pan tighly with chapathi dough or foil and then place a well fitting lid over it so that no steam can escape.
- Place the pan over a medium heat and cook for 8-10 minutes and then reduce the heat to a sim and continue to cook for 5 minutes. Once done, carefully open the pan and lift a small section of the foil and dig into the biryani to see if the meat is cooked. The chicken would be tender by now and the rice fluffy and aromatic. Remove from heat
- Gently remove into a serving dish and serve hot with raitha of your choice
Notes
1. Depending on the spice level of the chilli powder you are using please adjust the quantity. Also, increase or decrease the quantity if you are going to cook more than 1kg of chicken. It is best to taste the marination before adding more.
2. To make the fried onions take 3 medium-big onions and finely slice them and fry till golden browl. For this recipe you need a total of 3 onions – they will yield approx enough onions for marinating, layering and garnishing. Instead of shallow frying the onions and to speed up your work you can deep fry them in a large deep frying pan/kadhai that has been only half filled with oil. Remember that onions contain moisture and when you drop them in the hot oil the oil will come to the surface. If your kadhai is full, the oil may spill out and cause a terrible kitchen disaster so please be extra careful. You can store the deep fried onions in a freezer safe, airtight box to be used whenever you wish.
3. If you are making this for a party it is best to marinate the chicken a day in advance so that it pulls in all the flavours very well. The next day your job becomes really easy as all you have to do is cook and layer the rice before placing the pot on dum.
4. You can use any marination for your biryani and proceed with the same techqniue of cooking it.
2. To make the fried onions take 3 medium-big onions and finely slice them and fry till golden browl. For this recipe you need a total of 3 onions – they will yield approx enough onions for marinating, layering and garnishing. Instead of shallow frying the onions and to speed up your work you can deep fry them in a large deep frying pan/kadhai that has been only half filled with oil. Remember that onions contain moisture and when you drop them in the hot oil the oil will come to the surface. If your kadhai is full, the oil may spill out and cause a terrible kitchen disaster so please be extra careful. You can store the deep fried onions in a freezer safe, airtight box to be used whenever you wish.
3. If you are making this for a party it is best to marinate the chicken a day in advance so that it pulls in all the flavours very well. The next day your job becomes really easy as all you have to do is cook and layer the rice before placing the pot on dum.
4. You can use any marination for your biryani and proceed with the same techqniue of cooking it.
Disclaimer
The nutritional values are only indicative.
Tried this recipe?Please leave a comment & rate the recipe below or share a photo on Instagram and tag me @ruchikrandhap
Yummy.Cant wait weekend must do.
hi, I had tried the same recipe from Harpals biryani video and it was a sure shot hit! Sorry to say that I have not yet compared your recpir to his…. ingredients wise nor preparation wise…. planning to do it shortly and will let you know the result. Glad anyway that your recipe is simpler to follow.
hi shireen, I have tried both versions- yours as well as harpal's.
In my opinion – I would think that harpal's is a little more richer and so can be made for festivals but for regular sunday lunch and for those who do not want a very heavy dish but flavourful yet light and healthy – yours is the way to go!!
keep it up. pl give us some veggie curries and prawn curries as well- thnkx
Hi Shireen,
I hope all is ok with you, as there is no new post from you for a long time.
@ Maria: Nice to hear that! Actually I followed his recipe almost completely and loved it 🙂
I will post some veg and prawn curries soon so do stay tuned!
@Derricjennifer: Thanks so much for your concern, I was busy with my son's vacations and now I am back in action!
is 15 mins enough for the chicken?
@ Tina Castelino: The chicken is marinated with yogurt and lime juice which help soften the meat and cook faster. If you are using home bred chicken then maybe the time will increase, but the commercially sold chickens which are not more than 1kg in weigh are pretty tender – at least that's what we get here in Dubai. I have tried this recipe thrice and it has always worked for me.
Ok thanks. Can't wait to try this recipe.
One more question – how about if I just use boneless chicken breast and thighs? Think it should be ok on the same time?
@Tina: Boneless chicken will take as much time as chicken with bone. It all depends on how tender the flesh of the chicken is. Chicken with bone is always preferred for biryanis since the bones release extra stock that adds juiciness and flavour to the biryani!
What exactly is Kitchen King masala. What spices it contains.
Kitchen King masala is a blend of spices. Similar to the garam masala but some brands also include spices like chillies, turmeric etc
Hi Shireen, I tried this recipe this week and it has come out delicious!!! Using the powdered spices was easy to follow! I’ve shed my fear of cooking the biryani as this one was very easy to follow step by step! Thanks!
So happy to hear that Sandy! I am doing a happy dance 😀 Hope you try out more biryani recipes henceforth!
Shireen
Chicken takes at least 30mins to cook. Just marinated and kept. Do you think it’ll be done in 15mins as mentioned in the recipe? Thank you.
Hi Ruffina,
We get very tender broiler variety of chicken (I use Sadia brand frozen chicken in the UAE) – it generally cooks in 15 minutes. If you are using a chicken which is slightly more than 1 kg or if the quality and variety is tougher (like nati-koli (country chicken) or Giri raja that we use in Mangalore) if you feel that you need to cook it for longer please do so.