CHICKEN KEEMA BIRIYANI

Who can ever resist biriyani ???

 we have so many variations of them with vegetables, mutton, chicken and today I have made with chicken mince for a change. 

Ingredients:
Chicken Keema/Mince .... 200 gms.
Rice .................... 2 cups
Eggs ................. 2 (hard boiled to garnish)
Onions ................ 1 big ( about 1 cup sliced)
Tomatoes ............ 1
Green chillies ..... 1-2 (as per your preference)
Mint leaves ......... handful
Coriander leaves .. handful
Garlic paste ......... 1 tsp
Ginger paste ....... 1 tsp
Cardamoms ...... 2-3
Laung/cloves .... 2-3
Bay leaf ........... 1
Cinnamon stick .. 1" piece
Yogurt .............. 1/2 cup
Orange food colour .. a pinch
Turmeric powder .. 1/4 tsp
Coriander powder .. 1/2 tsp
Cumin powder ....... 1/2 tsp
Red chilli powder ... 1/2 tsp
Garam masala ....... 1/2 tsp
Biriyani Masala ...... 1 tbsp ( I use the Shan Sindhi Biriyani Masala, available in the Indian grocery stores in USA)
Salt
Oil

Method:
1. Heat oil in a pan and add the sliced onion.
2. Saute for 5 minutes and add the tomato, chillies, garlic-ginger pastes and the cleaned chicken mince.

3. Stir-fry until it is brown and cooked, adding the cumin, coriander, turmeric,chilli, garam masala powders and salt.

4. In a bowl beat the curd/yogurt and mix the finely chopped coriander and mint leaves and biriyani masala.

5. To make the rice, heat some oil and tip in the whole cardamoms, cloves, bay leaf and cinnamon stick.

6. When they leave out aroma, add the washed and soaked rice. Saute and add salt and three and half cups of water. (little less than double, because we will add curd while layering) Cook until done.

7. In a small bowl take little cooked rice and add the kesari/orange food colour.


8. In a pyrex serving dish, layer the biriyani. First white rice, the keema, yogurt with greens-biriyani masala and spoon a little coloured rice. Pour hot oil on each layer. Repeat this again until the rice and mince are used up.

9. Cover it with a foil and keep it in a pre-heated oven for dum. about 5-7 minutes. You can even layer it in a different pan and keep for dum on the gas, low flame keeping the pan on a tawa/griddle.
Garnish with boiled eggs before serving. It can be served with raita or Mirch ka Salan.