1 Hour Chicken Biryani

Background: 

Biryani is the catch all term for a layered rice dish. While traditionally this dish can take a few hours to make not accounting for the 24hr marination of the protein we wanted to share a version which can easily be made as a quick week night dinner. 

Time: 1 hour 

Special equipment: 10-12" pot/pan with at least 2" sides or dutch oven. 

Ingredients:

• 1 lb bone-in chicken thighs, skin removed
• 1 lb bone-in drum sticks, skin removed
• 2 cups of full fat yogurt
• 2 cups basmati rice
• 4 hard boiled eggs, peeled and cut in half
• 1 large sweet white onion, julienned
• 1 Mumbai Spice Company 7 spice starter kit
• Oil or ghee
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 4-5 threads of saffron, placed in 1/2 cups of warm water. (optional but recommended)

Directions: 

1. Put rice into a bowl or strainer and wash thoroughly until water runs clear. Set aside.
2. Take onion and add to medium to hot pan with 1 tbsp oil. Cook down onions until color has changed to a deep brown. You might need a tbsp of water to release onions from the pan. This will take 10-15 minutes. 
3. In a mixing bowl, combine 1 cup of yogurt and 1 cup of water. Add 1 tsp of  Mumbai Spice Company garam masala, cumin powder, and salt. Add two tsps of Mumbai Spice Company coriander powder. Mix until combined. At this stage I recommend tasting the mixture to see if the flavor needs adjusting. Add 1/2 tsp increments of the spices until your desired flavor. 
4. Once your onions are cooked down, add them to the yogurt mixture. 
5. Add chicken to the yogurt mixture and stir to combine all ingredients. Make sure each piece is covered. Let rest at room temp for 15-20 minutes. 
6. In a separate pan bring 4 cups of water to a boil. Once boiling, add rice and cook uncovered for 7-10 minutes. Strain rice and set aside. 
7. While rice is cooking, take chicken and marinade and add to a 10-12" pan with at least 2" sidewalls. Cook down mixture until liquid has reduced by half. Chicken should be about 70% cooked or 125 degrees internal temp. 
8. Remove chicken from the pan.
9. Clean pan and place back on heat. Temper 1 tsp Mumbai Spice Company mustard seeds. Add strained rice and stir. 
10. Add chicken mixture to pan and combine.
11. Layer the hard boiled eggs over the mixture. 
12. In a bowl take 1/2 cup of yogurt and combine with 1/2 cup of water. Add 1/2 tsp Mumbai Spice Company turmeric and red chili powder. Stir to combine then pour this mixture over the rice. 
13. Pour saffron water over the biryani.
14. Cover your Biryani with a lid and cook over low heat for 15 minutes. Serve and enjoy. 

Video Resources

This tutorial is for a more complicated biryani but the technique shows how to do some important methods. Check it out! 

Although this is not our video. Ethan does a really good job of explaining his take and technique for an easy biryani. It's worth a watch if you're learning.