Hyderabadi Chicken Biriyani

Ingredients:
1. Chicken - 1kg
2. Biriyani rice - 3/4 kg

Ingredients to marinate Chicken:-
1. Onions - 4 (sliced long and thin)
2. Ginger paste - 2 tsp.
3. Garlic paste - 1 tsp.
4. Chilli powder - 1tsp.
5. Green chillies - 2 (slit lengthwise)
6. Coriander leaf - 3/4 cup
7. Mint leaf - 3/4 cup
8. Lemon Juice - 2 lemons
9. Cinnamon - 1 big piece
10. Cloves - 6
11. Cardamom - 5
12. Black Cumin - 1 tsp.
13. Pepper corns - 1 tsp.
14. Salt - as required.

Ingredients for cooking rice:-
1. Cardamom - 6
2. Cloves - 8
3. Bay leaf - 2
4. Cinnamon - 1 big piece
5. Salt - as required.

Other Ingredients:-
1. Ghee - 1/2 cup
2. Oil - for frying onions
3. Cashewnuts - 1/2 cup
4. Dried Grapes -1/2 cup
5. Milk - 1/2 cup
6. Saffron - 1/2 tsp.
7. Mint leaves - 1/2 cup
8. Coriander leaves - 1/2 cup

Method:-
* Powder cinnamon, cloves, pepper, black cumin, cardamom and keep it aside.
* Fry the onions to a golden colour in oil, powder it and keep it aside.
* Marinate the cleaned and washed chicken pieces for 2 hours with the fried onion powder, some oil in which the onion has been fried, ground masala, sliced green chillies, juice of 2 lemons, ginger and garlic paste, chilli powder, salt, cut coriander leaves and mint leaves.
* In 14 cups of water add 6 cardamoms, 2 bay leaves, 8 cloves, 1 piece cinnamon, 1 and a 1/2 tsp. salt and let it boil. Add the washed rice to it and let it cook. When it is cooked, drain the water and spread the rice on a flat plate.
* Dissolve the saffron in the half cup of warm milk and keep it aside.
* Fry the cashewnuts and dried grapes in half cup ghee and keep aside.
* Cook the marinated chicken by adding 1/2 cup water.
* After the chicken has cooked and gravy thickened, remove it from the stove.
* In a heavy bottomed vessel add 1/4 cup ghee. Now add half of the cooked rice on top, then sprinkle a little of the saffron milk. Now on top of this layer the chicken with the gravy. Now layer the rest of the rice, saffron milk, coriander leaves and mint leaves. Lastly add the rest of the ghee on top. Now close the vessel with a lid, which will not allow the steam to escape and cook on low fire for 10 minutes to allow the steam to build up inside. When the steam has circulated nicely inside remove it from the stove and biriyani can be served.

Source: Laxmi Nair's Magic Oven Recipes.