Hyderabadi Chicken Dum Biryani

Hyderabadi Dum Biryani is world famous dish from India, native to Hyderabad. Coupled with flavors of spices delicately combined with rice and chicken makes an aromatic combination that is hard to resist. This rice dish has two major ingredients chicken and basmati rice. The rest is playing around with ingredients and spices to create this flavorful Chicken Biryani.

Ingredients

• 500gm chicken
• 2 large onions, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup cashew nuts
• For rice
  • 2 cups basmati rice
  • 5 cups water
  • 1 tsp oil
  • salt to taste
  • 1 tsp black pepper
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 inch cinnamon stick
  • 2 – 3 cardamom pods
  • 4 – 5 cloves
  • 1 green chili, slit
  • 1 tsp pudina leaves, finely chopped
  • 1 tsp coriander leaves, finely chopped
• For marinating chicken :
  • 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste
  • 2 green chilies, slit
  • 1.5 tsp chilli powder
  • 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
  • 1 tsp coriander powder
  • 1 tsp garam masala
  • 3 tbsp curd
  • juice of 1/2 lemon
  • 2 tsp vegetable oil
  • 1 tsp ghee
  • 2 tbsp fried onion
  • 1 tsp pudina leaves, finely chopped
  • 1 tsp coriander leaves, finely chopped
  • salt to taste
• 1 pinch saffron threads
• 2 tbsp milk
• 2 tbsp oil

Method

• Clean the chicken and marinate : add chilli powder, coriander powder, ginger garlic paste, salt, turmeric powder, garam masala, curd, green chilies, oil, ghee, fried onion, lemon juice, pudina and coriander leaves. Mix well and refrigerate for 5 – 6 hours.
• Add enough oil and fry onions and cashew nuts till golden brown. Remove from oil. In the mean time, soak saffron strands in hot milk and keep aside.
• Boil water in another vessel, add rice, whole spices, bay leaf, salt, oil and allow it to cook, When rice is 3/4 cooked, strain it. Keep aside.
• Heat oil in another pan add the marinated chicken and cook the chicken until soft. Do not over cook the chicken.
• Further, in a biryani pot add the cooked chicken, layer it with rice, pudina, coriander leaves, fried onions, cashew nuts and saffron milk.
• Next step is to cover the pot with a lid (don’t allow pressure to go out).
• Reduce the flame and cook for 5 – 10 minutes.
• Serve hot with raita, pickle or any Indian salna/gravy of your choice.