Lamb Biryani
450g / 1 lb boned tender lamb [with a little fat] cut into 4 cm / 1.5 inch
pieces.
2 medium onions, skinned and roughly chopped
5 ml / 1 level tsp salt
900 ml / 1.5 pints water
1 large onion skinned and chopped
1 garlic clove, skinned
2.5 cm / 1 inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
450g / 1 lb basmati rice
45 ml / 3 level tbsp Ghee / clarified butter / butter. (Again, ghee makes a
difference, butter is a reasonable substitute.)
2 medium onions, skinned; chop 1 finely, slice the other.
2.5 cm / 1 inch stick cinammon
1 bay leaf
1 black cardamom (use 3 green if you can't find the black)
2 green cardamom
2.5 ms / 0.5 level tsp cumin seeds
2 cloves
5 ml / 1 tsp rose or kewra water
pinch saffron
15 ml / 1 Tbsp warm water
Wash meat well under a cold tap. Place the meat, chopped medium onions, salt
and water in the heavy-based saucepan. Bring it to
the boil, and remove any scum that may form on top. Cover, reduce heat and
allow to sommer rapidly for 1 - 1.25 hours until the
meat is almost tender. Strain through a sieve, reserve the stock and the
meat and onion pulp separately. (You could do this in a
pressure cooker for 25 minutes after the first whistle.)
In a blender or food processor grind the chopped large onion, garlic and
ginger. Put the rice in a sieve and wash throughly under a
running cold tap until the water runs clear. Soak in plenty of cold water
for 30 minutes. Heat 30 ml [2 level tbsp] ghee in a large
heavy-based saucepan, add the roughly chopped onion, and stir fry for 3-5
minutes to a golden brown. Add the ground onion
mixture and all the whole spices. Stirring frequently fry the mixture for
4-5 minutes to a pale golden color, then add the strained
meat and onion. Increase heat slightly and stirring continuously, fry the
mixture for 5-10 minutes to a deep golden brown color. The
meat should brown well; if it tends to stick to the bottom of the pan add
about 30 ml [2 Tbsp] of water at a time to prevent this.
Drain the rice in a sieve and let it stand for a minute or two. Add to meat
and onion mixture and continue frying for another few
minutes so that the rice begins to turn a plae golden color. Leave the rice
and meat in the pan, carefully pour in the meat stock and
top it up with enough water to cover the rice by 2.5 cm [1 inch]. Cover the
pan with a close fitting lid, reduce heat and allow to
cook for about 20 minutes until both the rice and meat are almost tender.
Stand well back to avoid the steam, remove the lid and
sprinkle the rose or kewara water on top. Replace lid quickly and cook for
another 2-3 minutes.
In the meantime infuse the saffron in the warm water. Once again remove the
lid, pour in the infused saffron water and cover.
Continue cooking the rice for another 3-4 minutes until it is tender and the
water has been absorbed. Turn off the heat and let the
rice stand, covered, for a few minutes. Remove the lid and gently fork the
rice. This will also help to distribute the saffron color.
Meanwhile, heat the remaining ghee in a small frying pan, add finely sliced
onion, and fry quickly to a crips golden brown. Serve
the Biryani hot with the crisply fried onion sprinkled on top.
Serving suggestion: serve accompanied only by plain yogurt.
Farkas D. Gabor (nem probaltam ki)
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