Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 1 hour
Serves: 2
Ingredients:
- 1 cup of basmati rice
- 2 tbsp + 2 tbsp of ghee
- Half a fistful of whole spices like cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, star anise, and one bay leaf A small bunch of coriander leaves (cilantro)
- A small bunch of mint leaves
- 2 green chillies
- 2-3 cloves of garlic
- 2″ piece of ginger
- cups of large onions, sliced long
- 1/2 cup of cubed ripe tomato
- 1/2 tsp of red chilli powder (adjust to taste)
- 1/4 tsp of turmeric powder
- 1 tsp of jeera or cumin
- 1 tsp of fennel seeds or sombu (perumjeerakam)
- 1 tsp of coriander powder
- 2 cups of thick coconut milk (optional)
- 1-2 tsp of biryani masala or garam masala
- 1 tsp of ginger garlic paste (freshly made is best)
- 3 Arogya OMEGA 3+ DHA eggs, boiled.
- 1/4 cup of cashew nuts and more coriander leaves and mint leaves, for garnish
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Wash and leave the basmati to soak in some water.
- Start with a medium-sized pan and heat 2 tbsp ghee. Add the cashew nuts and fry until golden. Drain and set aside.
- To the same pan, add half of the sliced onions. Fry until golden, drain and set aside.
- Grind together coriander leaves, mint leaves, green chillies, ginger, garlic and salt.
- In the same pan with the ghee (add some more ghee if needed), add the whole spices.
- Once the spices turn fragrant (about 15 seconds), add the ground paste and fry for another 30 seconds or so. Turn off flame.
- Add the soaked rice and this fried spice mixture along with enough water to cook the rice to a rice cooker or pressure cooker. Leave it to cook while you proceed with the rest of the recipe. (Once the rice cooks, fluff it gently with a fork)
- Heat 2 tbsp ghee and add the remaining sliced onions. As they begin to brown, add the ginger garlic paste and sauté for 10 seconds.
- Next, add the spices and powders – coriander, turmeric, fennel seeds, cumin seeds, chillie powder. Sauté until they are roasted, about 10 seconds. Top off with the chopped tomatoes and more coriander leaves and mint if desired.
- Sauté until the tomatoes turn soft and mushy and the mixture is cooked. This will take about 5 mins or so.
- Add the coconut milk with 1/2 cup of water.
- Let the mixture simmer on low flame for about 10 mins until the masala becomes thick. Add salt and garam masala or biryani masala, mix well, and turn off flame. The ghee will be visible on top of the masala.
- Mix the cooked rice to the masala until nicely combined.
- Add the sliced, boiled Arogya OMEGA 3+ DHA egg on top and cover with rice. Pat down tightly and cover. Let the biryani sit for at least one hour for the flavours to blend.
- Garnished with the fried onions, cashew nuts, and more coriander leaves before serving.