Chicken Biryani Recipe

Step 1

Place the chicken in a bowl with the all of the marinade ingredients.

Step 2

Stir together to coat, then cover and place in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or up to overnight.

Step 3

For the rice, heat the water in a saucepan along with the salt, cloves, cumin seeds, bay leaves and cardamom pods until boiling.

Step 4

Add the rice, stir once, bring back to the boil and simmer (no lid) for 5 minutes.

Step 5

Drain the rice in a sieve.

Step 6

Now make the fried onions. Heat the 4 tbsp oil over a medium heat in a large cast iron pan.

Step 7

Add the sliced onions, and cook for around 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until dark brown. Be careful not to burn them, as they will taste bitter. Note - we're going to be using the same cast iron pan to cook the biryani, so if you're worried the onions are catching on the pan (which may effect the taste of the biryani), you can fry them in a separate frying pan if you prefer.

Step 8

Scoop the onions out of the pan using a slotted spoon and place in a bowl for later.

Step 9

Now take the marinated chicken out of the refrigerator and add to the pan with the oil from the onions. Stir in 3 tbsp of water.

Step 10

Cook over a medium heat for 2-3 minutes, stirring a couple of times, to just very lightly seal the chicken.

Step 11

Now place the 3 tbsp of chopped coriander (cilantro) and 1 tbsp of chopped mint on top of the chicken.

Step 12

Next spoon the rice on top of the chicken and flatten it out slightly.

Step 13

Mix together the saffron and milk and let it sit for a minute, then drizzle the mixture over the rice, followed by the melted ghee.

Step 14

Spoon on the fried onions and toasted almonds.

Step 15

Place a lid on the pan, but allow just a tiny gap.

Step 16

As soon as you see steam coming from the gap, place the lid on fully and turn the heat down to low and cook for 20 minutes, then turn off the heat and allow to rest for 10 minutes.

Step 17

Top with a little more fresh coriander if desired and serve.