Chicken Breyani

I had to make a proper Indian Breyani before I could move on from the curries and start exploring something new. I was sent a traditional recipe from a former colleague, thanks Jay!


I only slightly adjusted her recipe to accommodate our western palates by reducing the amounts of ginger, garlic and chilli. I also had to make do with red lentils instead of black lentils.

It was delicious! More than enough kick for our taste but it won't kick your teeth out.


Here's the recipe:

1. 2kg lamb or chicken
2. 1 cup plain yoghurt
3. 5 ripe tomatoes
4. 4cm piece of ginger root
5. 6-7 cloves garlic
6. 6 green chillies 
7. 1 cup coriander
8. ½ cup mint
9. 10 curry leaves
10. 3 tablespoons garam masala
11. 2 teaspoons turmeric
12. 2 tablespoons chilli powder (optional)
13. 2 ½ tablespoons salt
14. 1 cups black lentils (masoor dahl)
15. 5 cups basmati rice
16. 250g butter
17. 2 onions sliced
18. 4 potatoes
19. ¾ cup oil

Method

Cut meat into slightly larger than bite size portions. Rinse and place in a colander to drain excess water.  In a food processor place ingredients 4-9 and process finely.

You don’t want your guests biting into pieces of ginger, not pleasant.  Once processed add tomatoes to mixture and blend until tomatoes are pulp and blended with all ingredients. Lastly add the yoghurt to the mixture.

Place this marinade into a bowl, add ingredients 10-13.  Then add meat and mix so that all the meat is covered in the marinade.  

This mixture can be left overnight in the fridge on made early in the morning if cooking later in the day.  The longer the mixture stands the better the taste.

Boil lentils with a teaspoon of salt until soft to the touch but not mush then drain water and set aside.  Cook rice in salted water halfway through (this is important) then stain and rinse with cold water to stop cooking process. Once lentils and rice is cooled then mix together, set aside.  Cut potatoes in four, and using the same pot that breyani will be steamed in, fry in batches until golden, no need for them to be cooked through, then remove and aside.

Fry onions in the same pot, in batches might be best, then once the onions are golden in colour and crisp, remove and set aside.

To the remainder of oil left in the pot, add 125g butter and once melted add your meat and cook halfway through.  

Remember your liquid should not completely dry out.

Remove half the meat mixture, then add half the potatoes to the meat in the pot, layer half the rice mixture. Repeat this process with the remainder of the meat mixture, potatoes, rice and lentils. Pour 1 cup water over this, then sprinkle fried onion over and cut the remainder of 125g butter into cubes over rice.  Cover with foil and lid and then steam on low heat for about an hour.