Chicken biriyani (WIP)

• 200g basmati
• 300g chicken thighs
• 150g yoghurt
• 10g garam masala
• 2 onions
• raisins/apricots
• Coriander
• Mint

1. In the dutch oven: chicken, yoghurt, garam masala, some lemon juice, some salt, and the coriander/mint (chopped).
2. In a sauce pan, wash the rice and leave it to soak in plenty of water. Add cinnamon sticks, star anise, bay leaves, and salt
3. Slice the onions. In the wok, heat up tonnes of oil. Medium fry the onions until browning.
4. Pre-heat the oven (150C).
5. Boil the rice until 70% done (still starchy in the middle)
6. Heat the dutch oven on high to cook the chicken and thicken the sauce.
7. Drain the rice, and mix in raisins or apricot pieces.
8. Tip rice onto the chicken. Top with onions.
9. Pour over 1 cup of milk with turmeric, and some of the onion oil.
10. Cover with foil, put the lid on, and smoothe the foil down the sides.
11. Bake for 20 mins at 150C.

Here’s how I did it last time:

1. Marinade chicken (dutch oven).

• 333g chicken thighs
• ~170g yoghurt (too much?)
• 20g garam masala (way too much! Try 10g)
• some lemon juice
• some salt I should have rubbed the salt/spices directly into the chicken, apparently. But the chicken came out very tasty so maybe don’t bother… I did this first to give it some time to tenderise, but it was only sitting there for like 30 mins.

1. Wash and soak rice (sauce pan)

• ~250g basmati (too much)
• plenty of water
• salt
• cinnamon sticks, star anise, bay leaves
• cloves, coriander seeds - skip these, too annoying when eating

1. Slice and fry onions

• 1.5 onions (too few?)
• tonnes of olive oil. Medium fry.
• I removed them onto kitchen paper after. Not sure why. Probably unnecessary.

1. Pre-heat the oven (150C).
2. Boil the rice. Until “70% done” apparently. I did it for too long.
3. Cook the chicken and thicken the sauce.
4. Drain the rice. Next time, mix in some raisins or apricot pieces.
5. Tip rice onto the chicken. Top with onions. Pour over 1 cup of milk with turmeric, and some of the onion oil.
6. Cover with foil, put the lid on, and smoothe the foil down the sides.
7. Bake for 20 mins at 150C.
8. I mixed in chopped coriander and mint at this point. Probably better to mix it in earlier (with the marinade?)