biryani (spicy mutton rice)

Shahi biryani:

Ingredients:

1. mutton/chicken: 1 kg (cut into small pieces)
2. rice: 500gm
3. red chillies: 1tsp
4. cinnamon sticks:2, cardamom: 2, cashew nuts: 7
5. mix spices: 2 tsp(ground)
6. onion: 2 medium size (sliced and fried crispy)
7. cloves : 5
8. ginger garlic paste: 2 tbsp
9. yogurt: 1 cup(beaten)
10. lemon juice: 2 tbsp
11. fresh coriander and mint leaves: small bunch chopped
12. green chillies: 2
13. food color(yellow): 1tsp(dissolve in 3/4 cup milk)
14. ghee/oil: 5 tbsp
15. salt to taste

Method:

Marinate the mutton pieces with the ginger-garlic paste and beaten curd and keep aside fry red chillies and ground cashew nuts in four tbsp of ghee/oil. To this add mutton, 1/4 of the fried onion, 1tsp garam masala (mix spices ground) and salt to taste. When the ghee/oil separate from the mixture, add one and a half cups warm water and cook till tender. Make a mixture of the chopped coriander, mint, green chillies and salt to taste and enough water for the rice to cook. When the rice is cooked, spread it on a plate and remove the spices.

Take another wide-mouthed and thick bottom vessel and smear it with oil (inside). Spread a layer of rice in it and cover it with half the mutton. Sprinkle the rice with food color mixture. Cover tightly and cook for twenty minutes over slow fire. Serve hot.