Shahjahani Murgh Handi

This is a very tasty and rich dish. This is called Handi because it is cooked in a Mud pot/vessel. Cooking in a mud vessel give a nutty and delicious aroma to gravy. This is an Awadhi cuisine which is rich and creamy wherein the chicken is cooked in a rich masala made with fried onions and spices.
  
This is a different recipe from the normal Awadhi cuisine,  a twist  to the traditional one, by adding mayonnaise and cheese.  Do try this, its finger licking.

Ingredients

500 Grams Boneless Chicken -  cut into medium cubes
1/2 Cup Yogurt - beaten
4 Tablespoons Mayonnaise With Egg-Homemade
1/4 Cup Cheddar Cheese
2 Tablespoons  Desiccated coconut
1 Tablespoon  Khus -Khus / Poppy seeeds
1 Tablespoon Ginger - Garlic paste
3 Large Tomatoes - finely chopped
5 Kashmiri Red Chillies - soaked in warm water
1 Teaspoon Sugar
1 Teaspoon Salt 
½ Teaspoon Black Pepper powder
1 Teaspoon Roasted Cumin Powder
1 Teaspoon Garam Masala powder
½ Teaspoon Turmeric powder
4 Tablespoons Fried Browned Onions / Birista 
4 Tablespoons Oil
3 Tablespoons Fresh Cream - reserve a tablespoon for garnishing
For Garnishing
1 Tablespoon  Fresh Coriander - finely chopped
1 Tablespoon  Mint leaves - chopped

Method

In a small mixer jar grind the soaked red chilies, poppy seeds and desiccated coconut  to a fine paste. 

In a bowl add chicken, ground paste rest of the ingredients mix well till chicken is well coated with spices.  Then keep it for marinating for at least an hour or two.

After 2 hours heat oil in mud vessel add this marinated chicken, cover and cook on very low flame. Stirring in between after every 3 minutes so that it does not get  burnt at the bottom.  Cook till the chicken is done and oil surfaces. Garnish  with fresh cream, chopped mint and coriander leaves.
Serve hot  with rotis or naan.  

Enjoy  this yummy, juicy chicken pieces in a rich and creamy gravy!!!
Labels : Chicken, Awadhi Cuisine, Mayonnaise, Yogurt, Tomato, Birista, Handi

Making Crispy Deep-Fried Onions / Birista

If you are familiar with Indian food, you have eaten their birista (bah-REES-tah): thinly-sliced crispy, golden, deep-fried onions. They are eaten as a snack and used as an additive to, or a topper for, delectable dishes like biryani, curries, steamed rice, mashed potato filling, soups, salads, sandwiches, grilled meats, meat patties and savory breads.
These onions are full of flavor and enhance the dish to a great extent.   So lets make it ......

Ingredients

4 Large Onions - peeled

Oil for deep frying

Method

Cut onions into thin slices, and keep them to dry spread on a sheet for an hour at least.  Then using your fingertips just separate them.

After an hour,  heat oil  deep fry pan or kadai, heat it on medium flame, place a handful of them at a time in it.

Using your fingertips, sprinkle a little, don't dump all at once the sliced onions into the hot oil.

Using a long-handled fork,  give the onions a quick stir to make sure they are separated.

After three minutes, during the cooking process, they will look like this, just beginning to show signs of browning.

Give the onions another quick stir with the fork to, once again, make sure they are staying separated.

Continue to fry, another 3 minutes.  They will look like this photo: golden brown with white centers.

Stir onions one last time and when you find this light golden brown color remove them with a slotted spoon on to a absorbent paper ( do wait till they are very dark brown or else they will have a burnt taste). Repeat the process until all onions are deep-fried. 

Cool at least 1 hour before serving.

They stay good if kept in the deep freezer for months.

Labels : Rice, Vegetarian, Onion, Fried Onions, Biryani, Birista

Masoor Biryani

The recipe I am going to share today is Masoor Biryani. I had this at friends birthday party and from that time on wanted to try this recipe. I have made this recipe many times, it's tasty and is a keeper. You will not fail if you try this recipe that is assured. 
As you know biryani is a lengthy process, but let this not deter you from making it, because it taste awesome. So, lets prepare this awesome recipe.

Ingredients
2 Cups Whole Masoor Dal - (Soaked and boiled)
7 Onions - sliced
4 Potatoes  (cut into quarters and fried)
3 Tomatoes - finely chopped
1 Cup Yogurt
2 Tablespoon Biryani masala
1 Tablespoons Chilly powder

1 Teaspoon Turmeric powder
1 Tablespoons Cumin
1 Bay Leaf
2 Big Brown Cardamons
1 Inch Cinnamon
3 Cloves
3 Peppercorns
3 Tablespoons Coriander powder
2 Tablespoons Ginger & garlic paste

Oil
A pinch of Kesar/Saffron strands soaked in milk
3 Tablespoons Lemon juice 

Method
Heat oil in a pan ,add cumin seeds and bay leaf, cardamons, cinnamon, cloves and peppercorns, let then crackle. Then add half the onions fry till golden brown.  Add ginger- garlic paste, tomatoes, chilly powder, turmeric, coriander powder, biryani masala and fry till oil separates . Add yogurt and fry for a few minutes till moisture evaporates. Then add the dal and fry well taking care that the dal is not mashed.

The Masoor dal is ready.
In a another pan had enough oil and deep fry  the remaining onions till brown and crisp.   This  Crispy Deep Fried Onions / Birista ,will be used for garnishing and layering of the biryani.
For the rice
Ingredients
2 Cups Basmati Rice ( I used sela basmati rice)
2 Tablespoon Ghee
1 Bay leaf
2 Small Green Cardamoms
1 Tablespoon Ginger-Garlic paste
Salt to taste
3 Cups Water
Method
In a pan heat ghee, add the bay leaf and cardamoms. Add the ginger garlic paste. Add water and salt and bring the water to a boil. Add the rice and cook on high till all water evaporates and then on slow for till rice is 3/4th done. Just sprinkle oil or ghee and spread it on a plate to cool.

For the layering
Grease a thick bottom vessel with oil or ghee. Then, first place a layer of the dal.

Sprinkle the lemon juice, garnish it with mint leaves and coriander leaves. Arrange the fried potatoes. Then sprinkle some fried onions.

Then cover this with a layer of cooked rice. Sprinkle kesar/saffron milk evenly on the rice. Then continue with the dal and the rest of layering process .

Lastly sprinkle the last of the kesar/saffron milk, garnish with fried onions.

Dot some butter or ghee on top cover with foil or a tight lid and cook on slow flame for 15 minutes.

My Notes: I arranged the layers in an oven proof dish and covered it with foil. Place this dish it in a preheated oven at 180 degrees for 20 minutes.  
I have also place tomato wedges as the sides. 

We enjoyed this dish with curds, papad cone and salad with sliced onions and cucumber sticks with a sprinkle of chat masala.

Sending this to Mireille's, challenge cooking with seeds.

Labels: Complete Meal, Masoor dal, Lentils, Rice, Healthy, Main course, Cooking with seeds,  Gluten free, Biryani, Birista