Kaadai Biryani (Biriyani)

Ingredients
Basmati rice - 2 cups
Quail (Kaadai) - 4 (each kaadai cut into 4-5 pieces)
Onion - 1 large/2 small (chopped)
Tomato - 2 (finely chopped or crushed)
Ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp
Coriander leaves - ¼ cup (finely chopped)
Mint leaves - ¼ cup (finely chopped)
Green chillies - 5 no's (finely chopped)
Oil -3 tblsp
Ghee - 3 tblsp
Water-Coconut milk mixture - 3 cups ( 1/2 cup coconut milk diluted with remaining water)
Salt - to taste
Whole Garam Masala - 1 Bay leaf, 2 Cinnamon sticks, 1 Star Anise, 5 Cloves, 3 Cardamom

For Marination
Salt - 1 tsp
Yoghurt - 2 tblsp
Lemon juice - 1 tblsp
Ginger garlic paste -1 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1 tsp
Coriander powder - 3 tsp
Chilli Powder - 3 tsp
Fennel Powder - 2 tsp
Cumin Powder - 1 tsp
Garam Masala - 1 tsp
Pepper powder - ½ tsp
(Bachelors and beginners can use 2 tblsp yogurt, 1 tblsp lemon juice and 3 tblsp of store bought biryani masala instead of all the above individual spice powders.)

Preparation Steps
1. Wash the quail thoroughly. It will have lot of hair that you need to pluck. Cut each into maximum 5 pieces. Since the kaadai is bony and smaller than chicken, you need to cut it into big pieces.
2. Marinate using all ingredients from "For marination" and let it rest in the refrigerator for about half an hour.
3. Rinse the rice, soak it for 15-30 minutes, drain all water from it and keep aside.
4. I like to roast the rice with some ghee till a nice aroma comes. This prevents the rice from sticking to each other. You can skip this step if you don't have time.
Method
1. In a heavy deep vessel/ pressure cooker heat oil and ghee together. Once it gets heated up, add the whole garam masala. You can grind the garam masala and add it if you do not like whole masala coming in your mouth.
2. Add the onions and chopped green chillies.
3. When onions turn slightly brown, add the ginger garlic paste, chopped coriander and mint leaves. Fry for few minutes.
4. Add the tomatoes and sauté. The tomatoes will first become pulpy and then all the juices will dry up.
5. At this stage add the marinated quail (kaadai) along with all the marination mixture. Sauté everything for 5-10 minutes.  
           After this step, you can proceed in any one of the following ways depending on the vessel you are using:-
Cooking in a pressure cooker
6. Add the coconut milk and water mixture and required salt. Bring it to a boil. Add the soaked rice, check for all seasoning and adjust if needed.
7. After it boils, reduce the flame to simmer, cover the pressure cooker and put the whistle.
8. Cook for about 20-30 minutes. (You may not get any whistle as the flame is very low. Just switch off after 20-30 minutes and the biryani will be done. If you increase the flame, there are chances that the bottom might get burned.)

Using a rice cooker
6. Add the prepared gravy, soaked rice, required salt and the water-coconut milk mixture in the rice cooker. Mix well and adjust any seasoning if needed.
7. Switch on the rice cooker and cook till it is done.

Cooking in an open vessel
6. Add the coconut milk and water mixture to the gravy and bring it to a boil. Add the soaked rice, adjust the seasoning and bring it to a boil again.
7. Cover the pan with a tight lid to prevent the steam from escaping. Reduce the flame to the lowest possible setting and leave it for half an hour.
(You can use an aluminium foil to cover the top of the pan and then put the lid if the lid is not very tight. That way no steam will escape.)

Cooking in convection oven  
6. Add the gravy and soaked rice to a oven safe dish along with water and coconut milk mixture and mix well.
7. Cover the dish tightly with an aluminium foil to prevent the steam from escaping. Cook it for 45 minutes in a 350 degree F (180 degree C) oven.
   
Cooking in Microwave Oven
6. Add the gravy and soaked rice to a microwave safe dish/ micro cooker along with water and coconut milk mixture and mix well.
7. Check for salt, cover the dish and cook it on micro power high for 20 minutes.

Whichever method you follow, your whole house will be filled with the aroma of basmati rice cooking with quail meat. In about an hours time you
will have a very tasty kaadai biryani to enjoy with all your five senses.
Garnish with finely chopped coriander leaves, toasted cashew nuts and raisins. Serve with boiled eggs, kaadai fry and raita.  

Hyderabadi Biryani (Dum Biryani, Hyderabadi Murg Pakki Biryani, Hyderabadi Biriyani)

Ingredients
To make rice
Basmati Rice - 3 cups
Onion - 1 big
Green Chilly - 6
Ginger garlic Paste -  1 tsp
Salt - as needed
Fennel Powder - 1/4 tsp
Coconut Milk - 1 cup
Water - 3 cups
Ghee - 2 tblsp

To make Gravy
Chicken - 2 lbs (cut into pieces)
Onion - 2 (chopped)
Tomato - 3 (chopped)
Ginger Garlic Paste - 2 tblsp
Green Chilly - 10 (slit)
Mint Leves - 1 cup (chopped)
Cilantro - 1 cup (chopped)
Curd - 4 tblsp
Fennel Powder - 1/2 tsp
Cumin Powder - 1/2 tsp
Corriander Powder - 2 tblsp
Chilly Powder - 2 tblsp
Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tsp
Pepper Powder - 1 tblsp
Garam Masala Powder - 1 tsp
Whole Garam Masala - 1 Bay Leaf, 2 Cinnamon Sticks, 5 Cloves, 3 Cardomom
Salt - as needed
Ghee - 2 tblsp
Fried Onions (Birista) - 1 cup
Roasted Cashews - 10 pieces or as needed
Lemon Juice - 2 tblsp
Orange food colour/ Saffron - a pinch

Vegetable Biryani

Ingredients
Basmati Rice - 2 cups
Onion - 1 medium (chopped)
Ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp
Green Chillies - 3-4
Mixed Vegetables - 1 cup (can use vegetables like potatoes, green beans, carrot, cauliflower, green peas, baby corn etc)
Mint leaves - handful
Cilantro - handful
Garam Masala Powder  - 2 tsp
Fennel Powder - 1 tsp
Pepper Powder - 1 tsp (add only if you like the biryani extra spicy)
Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp
Lemon Juice - 1 tblsp
Bay Leaf - 1
Salt - as needed
Oil/ Ghee - 2-4 tblsp
Coconut milk diluted with water - 3 cups (You can also use only water)

 

Method
1. Heat the oil/ghee in a pan and add the bay leaf. Saute the onions till it turns golden brown.
2. Add the ginger garlic paste and green chillies and fry till the raw smell vanishes.
3. Next fry the finely chopped mint and cilantro leaves.
4. Add the garam masala powder, turmeric powder, fennel powder and pepper powder.
        Tip :- Sometimes when I do not have all the powders readily available, I make a paste of fennel seeds, whole garam masala, peppercorns and green chillies along with the ginger and garlic. After sauteing the onions, fry this paste till oil separates from the masala.
5. Add all the vegetables and fry for a minute. Next add the rice and fry for a minute.
6. Transfer everything to a rice cooker. Add the coconut milk - water mixture, lemon juice and required salt.
7. Cook till the rice is done. Garnish with some more cilantro and/or roasted cashews.
8. Vegetable Biryani is ready to server. Serve with some curry and raita.

Tips
      - You can make the biryani with one vegetable alone like beans biryani, potato biryani, baby corn biryani, carrot biryani, cauliflower biryani, chikpea biryani, peas biryani, paneer biryani, okra biryani etc. These one veggie biryani can be made on any day for lunch box depending on the vegetable you have on hand.
      - To add okras to the biryani, fry the okras (ladies finger) separately and mix it with the cooked biryani.

Chicken Biryani

Biryani is a dish made with rice, lots of spices and some meat/vegetables. It is a favourite and famous dish among Indians and even other parts of the world. The recipe given below is that of chicken biryani. Using the same recipe but changing the ingredients instead of chicken , you can make different biryanis like turkey (van kozhi) biryani, mutton biryani, quail (kada) biryani, duck biryani, beef biryani, pork biryani, mushroom biryani, soya biryani, fish biryani, prawns biryani, corn biryani , chikpea biryani or vegetable biryani ( with mixed vegetables).

Ingredients-1 
Basmati rice - 3 cups
Chicken- 1 lb (1/2 kg) (cut into small pieces)
Onion -1 large/2 small ( cut lengthwise)
Tomato - 2 ( finely chopped or crushed)
Ginger garlic paste -1 tsp
Coriander leaves - ¼ cup (finely chopped)
Mint leaves - ¼ cup (finely chopped)
Green chillies - 5 no's (finely chopped)
Oil -3 tblsp
Ghee - 3 tblsp
Yoghurt -1/4 cup
Water Coconut milk mixture - 4.5 cups ( 1 cup coconut milk diluted with remaining water)
Salt - to taste
Chilly powder - 2 tsp ( or as needed)
Fennel Powder - 2 tblsp
Turmeric powder - ¼ tsp

Ingredients-2 ( For Marination)
Salt - ¼ tsp
Lemon juice /Yoghurt - 2 tblsp
Turmeric powder - ¼ tsp
Coriander powder - 1 tsp
Cumin Powder - 1 tsp
Garam Masala - 1 tsp
Pepper powder - ½ tsp
Chilly Powder - 1 tsp
Ginger garlic paste -1 tsp

Garam Masala
Bay leaf - 2
Cinnamon - 4
Star Anise - 2
Cloves -5
Cardamom -3

Preparation Steps
1. Wash and cut chicken into small pieces. Marinate using all ingredients from list-2 and let it rest in the refrigerator for at least half an hour .
2. Rinse the rice, soak it for at least 15 minutes, drain all water from it and keep aside.
3. Optionally, toast the rice with some ghee till a nice aroma comes. This will make the biryani even more flavourful and prevent the rice from sticking to each other. You can omit this step if you don't have time.

Method
1. In a heavy deep vessel/ pressure cooker heat oil and ghee together. Once it gets heated up, add the whole garam masala. You can grind the garam masala and add it if you do not like whole masala coming in your mouth.
2. Slowly add onions along with chopped green chillies.
3. When onions turn slightly brown and crispy add ginger garlic paste, chopped coriander and mint leaves.
4. Next add tomatoes and sauté for a while till the oil separates.
5. Now add marinated chicken along with turmeric powder, chilly powder, fennel powder, yoghurt and salt. Sauté everything for 5-10 minutes until it thickens to a gravy consistency.
( If you are making biryani with mutton or pork, you have to cook it completely before adding the rice.)
 
        After this step, you can proceed in any of the following ways :-
Using a pressure cooker
6. Add the coconut milk and water mixture to the gravy and bring it to a boil. Add the soaked rice, check for salt and bring it to a boil again.
7. Cover the pressure cooker and put the whistle, reduce the flame to the simmer and let it cook for 20-30 minutes. (You may not get any whistle as the flame is very low. Just switch off after 20-30 minutes and the biryani will be done. If you increase the flame, there are chances that the bottom might get burned.)

Using a rice cooker
6. Add the gravy and soaked rice to the rice cooker along with water and coconut milk mixture and mix well.
7. Check for salt and cook them in a rice cooker.

Using a heavy bottomed pan
6. Add the coconut milk and water mixture to the gravy and bring it to a boil. Add the soaked rice, check for salt and bring it to a boil again.
7. Cover the pan with a tight lid to prevent the steam from escaping. Reduce the flame to the lowest possible setting and leave it for half an hour. (You can use a aluminium foil to cover the top of the pan and then put the lid if the lid is not very tight. That way no steam will escape.)

Cooking in convectional oven   
6. Add the gravy and soaked rice to a oven safe dish along with water and coconut milk mixture and mix well.
7. Check for salt, cover the dish with an aluminium foil to prevent the steam from escaping and cook it for 45 minutes in a 350 degree oven.
   
Cooking in Microwave Oven
6. Add the gravy and soaked rice to a microwave safe dish/ micro cooker along with water and coconut milk mixture and mix well.
7. Check for salt, cover the dish and cook it on micro power high for 20 minutes.


  Finally whatever method you use, the outcome is a flavourful, mouth watering biryani. Garnish with coriander leaves, toasted cashew nuts and raisins.
Serving Suggestions
  - Biryani is usually accompanied by a cool raita.
  - Other sidedishes for biryani include hard boiled eggs, chicken fry, kaadai fry, ennai kathrikai, chicken curry, chicken 65, achari murg, mint chutney etc.

Egg Biryani (Ande Ki Biryani, Mutta Biryani, Egg Dum Biryani, Egg Biriyani)

(Ande Ki Biryani, Mutta Biryani, Egg Dum Biryani, Egg Biriyani)

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Ingredients
Basmati Rice - 3 cups
Eggs - 4 + 3
(4 Hard Boiled eggs + 3 eggs scrambled)
Saffron - a pinch (soaked in 2 tblsp of milk)
Whole Garam Masala - (2" cinnamon stick, 4 cloves, 3 cardomom, 1 Bay Leaf, 1 star anise, 1 bay leaf)
Shahi Jeera - 1/2 tsp
Oil - 1 tblsp
Salt - as needed
Water - about 10 cups
Mint Leaves - handful

For Masala
Onion - 2 medium (chopped)
Tomatoes - 2 (chopped)
Ginger garlic Paste - 1 tblsp
Cilantro (Coriander Leaves) - handful (finely chopped)
Mint Leaves - handful (chopped)
Green Chillies - 3 or 4 (chopped/slit)
Yogurt - 4 tblsp
Lemon Juice - 2 tblsp
Ghee and/or Oil - 2 tblsp
Biryani Masala - 1.5 tblsp
(You can also substitute with 1 tsp chili powder, 4-5 peppercorns, 1 tsp coriander powder, 1 tsp cumin powder and 1/4 tsp turmeric powder)
Salt - as needed

Preparation Steps
1. Hard boil 4 eggs, peel it and cut it into half lengthwise.
2. Sprinkle a pinch of biryani masala, little salt and little corn flour on the eggs and shallow fry. Keep it aside.
3. Scramble the remaining 3 eggs with little salt and black pepper powder and keep aside.
4. Cook the rice in plenty of water (about 10 cups) along with 1 tblsp oil, shahi jeera, whole garam masala, salt and some mint leaves. (You can add a pinch of turmeric powder too if you want a bright yellow colour).
5. When the rice is 3/4 th cooked, drain the water and spread it on a tray to cool.
6. Preheat oven to 350 degree F.

Method
For making masala
1. Heat ghee and oil in a pan and add the onions and green chillies. Sauté till the onions turns brown.
2. Add the ginger garlic paste and fry for a minute. Add the chopped mint leaves and cilantro.
3. Add the tomatoes and cook till it gets mashed up.
4. Add the yoghurt, biryani masala and salt. Cook this till you get a nice masala and the oil separates from the masala.
5. Add lemon juice to the masala just before switching off.

Layering the Biryani
       The dum process can be done in a conventional oven or stove top. Take a tray or a big heavy bottomed vessel and do the layering as follows.
1. Grease the bottom of the vessel/tray with some ghee or oil.
2. Spread half of the cooked rice at the bottom. This will be the first layer.
3. Pour the egg masala over the rice as the 2nd layer.
4. Put the scrambled layer over the masala followed by the remaining rice.
5. Top this with the saffron flavoured milk, some ghee, some fried onions, finely chopped cilantro and mint leaves.
6. Arrange the hard boiled eggs on the top.
7. Cover with an aluminium foil and seal all sides so that the steam wont be able to escape.
8. Leave it in a 350 degree oven for half an hour. By this time the aroma of the biryani will fill the house.
(If you are doing the dum on stove top, reduce the flame to the lowest setting and cook for about 20 minutes.)
9. Gently fluff up and mix the rice before serving. This way the masala and scrambled egg will be evenly distributed in the rice.

Serving suggestion
     - Serve this biryani with some raita and any non-veg side-dish.
     - This tastes delicious with some pickle and potato chips too.
Serves : 4-5

Tips
     - You can use the same recipe to make Fish Biryani and Shrimp Biryani.

Some other recipes with EGG.

Dahi Balle( Curd Vada, Dahi Vada, Thayir Vadai, Dahi Bhalla)

Ingredients
Urad Dal - 2 cups
Green Chilli - 3 or 4 nos
Roasted Jerra Powder - 1/2 tsp
salt - to taste
Sugar - 1/2 tsp(optional)
Oil for frying the Vada
Yogurt(curd) - 2 Cups
Chilli Powder - 1/2 tsp
Water - for soaking vadas

Method
1.Soak Urad dal in water for an hour.
2.Grid The urad with the green chillies and salt, without adding water.
3.In a kadai add oil let it heat upto 350 degrees.(Drop a small piece of batter to see if the oil is warm enough).
3. Make patties of urad dal and add it to oil and fry it.
4.When the vadas turn golden brown scoop it out from the oil and drop it in a bowl of salt water ,let it soak for few minutes,meanwhile make one more batch of vada.
5.Let the vada soak in water until the second batch is done and repeat the same for the second batch.
6.Beat the yogurt in a bowl with little salt and sugar(optional), jeera powder .
7.Squeeze the vada(s)from the water and put it in the yogurt mixture,let it soak for a while sprinkle it with little chilli powder.

Tip
     - Need to drop the vada in water as soon you take it out from oil.

Beej ki Barfi

Recipe Cook Time	:	1 Hour
Recipe Rating	:

Tags: dussera, egg less, healthy, picnic, winter

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup melon seeds
  
  1 tbsp ghee (clarified butter)
  
  1/4 cup khoya
  
  1/2 cup sugar
  
  1/2 cup water
  
  A greased plate to set the barfee in

Method

Roast the seeds on a griddle till they start to splutter and take out on just a suggestion of colour.

Remove from the pan and set aside to cool. Place a heavy-based pan on the stove.

Put in the ghee and the khoya and sauté till it appears to be of uniform consistency and looks slightly fried.

Turn off the heat; add the roasted melon seeds and leave to cool.

In another pan, warm the sugar and water together over low heat, stirring a few times till the sugar dissolves.

Make sure to not let it boil before the sugar dissolves.

Once the sugar dissolves, let the syrup boil over high heat till it thickens.

Mix immediately with the cooled khoya mixture, stirring vigorously to blend well.

As you mix it in, it will begin to set. So, it is essential to blend it in as fast as you can.

Transfer onto the greased plate, pat to level, and leave to cool and set.

Cut into pieces of desired size using a sharp knife. Arrange in a serving dish and serve.

Can be stored in an airtight container for 8-10 days or more.

Key Ingredients: Melon Seeds, Clarified Butter, Khoya, Sugar