BONJOUR SERIES # 4 - KOLKATTA CHICKEN BIRIYANI

Hey People.. It is officially fall here., the weather is beautiful.. a bit cold but I am so fond of cloudy sky :) 
and the more exciting thing is I made a few nice friends here.. they all are very sweet and comfy.. and I get to have girls outing all the time.. how fun is that..?? :) 


Today , Our guest blogger is Deepika from "Yummy in the Tummy". She is an adorable sweet girl.. not that I know her personally.. but we have been talking thro' emails and she sounds very bubbly and cheerful.. and guess what., She is moving close to where I stay.. and we planned to meet up :))


She shared a picture of her with her beloved ... How sweet is she han?

Ok, now that we have a face behind the scene.. it seems real and like you really know the person. :) 


Now, that the intro is done, I present you Deepika - in her own words. 


                -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Deepika's Guest Post

Link To My Blog:
http://absolutely-yummy-in-the-tummy.blogspot.com/

A bit about myself:
My Name is Deepika Anand. I am happily married to the best guy anyone can ever ask for and am extremely thankful to God for him. My husband is my rock to lean on, my  best friend and my guide. He loves to eat different cuisine and I love to cook all of it just to make him happy and proud. I have been cooking since the age of twelve and it is my hobby. I show my love and affection to people through my food. Currently I am pursuing my Masters In Taxation at San Francisco, California.

My Likes and Dislikes:
Biryani - I am obsessed  with this dish. I would easily give it the "No 1" dish in the world award. I like to try to make different types of Biryani at home. I also like any dishes made of rice. Curd rice with different kinds of pickles and potato fry is my favorite too. I also enjoy "Soul food" or "Southern food" found in the southern states of USA.
Sweets - I dont know why but I dont have a sweet tooth. I can tolerate cakes, cookies and chocolates but only a small piece or so. I do not like hot beverages either like tea, coffee etc.

How did I come across Jabeen's corner?
I came across Jabeen's corner through Food Blogger's Cafe on Face book. This is my first experience as a guest blog ever and I am happy to be featured in Jabeen's page. "The personal touch" is a good idea as it gives the readers a glimpse of the face behind the recipe. Keep it up Jabeen. Now I am a happy follower of your blog. Love your recipes.

My Signature Dish:
My signature dish is called "Kolkatta Chicken Biryani" I am a big biryani addict and by far this is one of my most favorite one. This biryani evolved from the Lucknow style when Wajid Ali Shah, the last nawab of Awadh was exiled in 1856 to the Kolkata suburb of Metiaburj. But he did not forget bringing his personal Chef with him as he was very particular about his food. The recipe then spread all over the city and the poor people substituted meat with potato. Later on that became an iconic difference in Calcutta Biryani, though meat is also served along with it. In addition, Kolkatta biryani is much lighter on spices than compared to other Biryanis.

This dish reminds me of the four years that I spent in Kolkatta in my early teens.  It reminds me  of the friendly laid back people, the lazy pace, old buildings, Durga pooja, Strikes, Metro Rail and the countless sweet/roll/chap shops and Jhalmuri/Puchka wallas at every nook and corner of the city. I love the Biryani from "Shiraj" (an extremely old and famous joint) at Kolkatta and I tried and tried for years to perfect it. I finally did and here is the recipe: 

Ingredients:

4 cups Basmati (soaked in warm water for 30 minutes)
1lb Potato
2 Tomatoes
2 medium Onions (slit lengthwise)
6 Green Chillies
1 bunch of Cilantro Leaves
1/2 bunch of Mint Leaves 
1-2 tbs Rose water or kewra water
Salt to Taste
1/4 cup warm milk
1 Lemon
Ghee

For Marinating:

2 lb Chicken  (always use chicken thigh for biryani as the meat is red and will be tender and  full of flavor when cooked)
4 tbs Plain Yogurt
Salt to taste
1 tsp Garlic Paste
2 tsp of Ginger Paste
1 tsp of Red Chilli Powder
4 tbs lemon juice

Whole Spices:

8 small Cardamoms
4 big black Cardamoms
10 Cloves
10 pieces of Black Peppers corns
1 tsp Cumin (Shahi Jeera)
1 Cinnamon Stick
2 Bay Leaves
10- 15 pieces of raisins
2 tsp of Saffron

Method:

Chop chicken into small pieces (big pieces where there is thigh bone).  Mix together all ingredients mentioned for marinating.  Cover the marinade and set aside for a minimum of 4hours.

Take the sliced onions fry it in ghee until its light brown (add a pinch of sugar for caramelization). Add all the spices (except raisins and saffron) and sauté. Then add the chopped tomatoes and fry this until the water is dry and ghee leaves the side. Add the meat along with the marinade and fry it again for 10 minutes. Then add the raisins to the mix. Add some water and cook on medium-low flame until the meat is cooked.
 

Mean while Peel the potatoes and cut them into large chunks. Boil them until they're half cooked.  Fry it in ghee with turmeric powder and salt. Set the chunks aside.

Separately soak Rice in warm water for 20-30 mins. Remove water from Rice and after its dry sauté it in a pan with some ghee. Now add 2 pieces of cloves, a pod of cardamom, a bay leaf and salt to the mix and put it in the rice cooker.  Use 5 cups of water for 4 cups of rice. Make Sure that rice has to be 3/4th cooked and not totally cooked. When the rice is ready set it aside.

At the end when there is only  thick gravy and meat left  in the mix,  Add the fried potatoes and chopped mint leaves and mix well. sprinkle the kewra or rose water on it mix.  

Take a thick bottom vessel, apply ghee to the entire inner surface of the vessel. First put a layer of rice then add a layer of  the masala  then again add another layer of rice and then again another layer of masala and so on.  The last layer should be rice. Heat ghee and pour all over the last layer of rice. Pour saffron soaked in milk all over the rice. On the gas keep a tawa and then place the biryani vessel on top of it. Cover tightly and keep some weight on the lid so that no steam can escape. Keep on slow fire for 5-7 minutes or till aroma starts spreading from the vessel. Your dum biryani is now ready to eat.

Calcutta Biryani is generally not served with raita. So serve with Kushka.  Serve hot immediately as rice tends to get dry as you delay.