Emirates Food Channel
Lamb biryani and yoghurt raita
No one is born a great cook, one learns by doing. Techniques are easy to learn, but the attitude you start with towards cooking is much more important.
Ingredients
Nutrition
Instructions
- Dry roast biryani masala spices (fennel, green cardamom, mace, cloves, black pepper, cinnamon, star anise, cumin, coriander seeds, Kashmiri chillies, onion seeds).
- Grind all dry spices (except black cardamom and bay leaves) and store masala powder in an airtight container.
- Combining 125g yoghurt, mustard oil and 45g of biryani masala in a large glass bowl for marinating.
- Toss the lamb chunks into the bowl and rub yoghurt mixture into the meat.
- Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
- Fry cashews separately in ghee. Reserve for garnishing.
- Fry one cup of the sliced onions in the same ghee. Reserve rest of the onions for later.
- Remove the marinating lamb chunks from the fridge and set aside for it to reach room temperature.
- Heat remaining ghee in a casserole, add 60 g garlic, 35 g ginger, 250 g Roma tomatoes and remaining chopped onion.
- Add the meat chunks to the sautéing mixture, cover the casserole and let it cook until the lamb is tender and the oil has separated.
- Wash and rinse the rice until the water runs clear.
- Soak rice in lukewarm water for 20 minutes, drain and set aside.
- Boil six cups of water in a pot and add three tablespoons of salt.
- Add drained rice to boiling water and cook for 14 minutes.
- Drain the rice and return it to the pot.
- Set pot aside and cover for 15 minutes.
- Spread parboiled rice on a plate.
- Remove lamb chunks from the casserole.
- In the same pan add a layer of cooked rice, followed by a layer of lamb chunks and another layer of rice.
- Between each layer, sprinkle some fried onions, coriander, mint, fenugreek leaves, saffron, kewra water, raisins and fried cashews. The final layer on top should be rice.
- Cover the lid and cook on low flame for 10-12 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and garnish with remaining fried onions, mint, fenugreek leaves and coriander.
- Serve hot lamb biryani with cool raita on the side.
- Mix together yoghurt, salt and roasted cumin powder in a bowl.
- Add diced tomato, cucumber and chopped coriander to the bowl and mix well.
- Garnish with chilli powder and serve cool to enjoy with biryani.