Hyderabadi Chicken Dum Biryani & Mirchi Ka Salan

Chicken - 500 gms
Bamati rice - 500 gms
Onions: 2, thinly sliced
Cinnamon - 02 gms
Cardamom - 02 gms
Cloves - 02 gms
Jeera ( cumin seeds ) - 02 gms
Curd - 200 gms
Ginger - garlic paste - 2 teaspoon
Turmeric powder - 02 gms
Coriander powder - 04 gms

Red chilli powder - 04 gms
1/2 bunch mint leaves
Salt to taste
Ghee - 50 gms ( for rice )
Extra ghee - 50 g ( for dum )
Saffron - 1 teaspoon saffron soaked in 1 tablespoon warm milk

Pick and soak the rice for about an hour.

Cut chicken into 6 pieces and marinate it with curd, turmeric, coriander and red chilli powders, ginger - garlic paste and coriander powder. Add the sliced onion and salt and mint to the marination.

In boiling water add ghee, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves and jeera and boil the rice till 40 per cent cooked.

Add rice to the meat. Pour a little fat and saffron water and cook the rice on dum for about 45 minutes. Serve hot garnished with fried onion and chopped coriander.

The best gravy to serve with biryani is mirchi ka salan. This salan is an excellent accompaniment to the biryani and enhances the taste of biryani.

Long light green chillies (boiled in salted water till colour changes and drained) - 250 gms
Onion (sliced fine)-1
Dessicated dry coconut -1 tablespoon
Chironji - 1 teaspoon
Til ( sesame seeds ) - 1 ½ teaspoon
Coriander powder -1 teaspoon
Jeera ( cumin seeds ) - 1 teaspoon
Ginger-garlic paste -2 teaspoon
Chilli powder - ½ teaspoon
Turmeric powdeer - ¼ teaspoon
A few curry leaves
Tamarind (walnut sized dissolved in 1 ½ cups water)

Oil - 3 tablespoon
Salt to taste

Lightly roast and grind the following to a paste: til, chironji and khopra ( dessicated dried coconut ). Add dhania powder, chilli powder and haldi.

Heat oil and add the jeera, allow it to splutter.

Then add the masala paste and ginger-garlic paste and fry till oil separates.

Add the drained chillies, curry leaves and fry a little. Pour in tamarind water, adding salt to taste.

Serve with biryani.