Recipe Name – Achari Chicken Biryani
Introduction – Biryani is one of the most loved delicacy not only in India but across the globe. It is said that, it was bought by Mughals in India. Since then biryani has gone through many changes and today we have multiple versions of biryani available in India.
I am happy to share one of the loved version of Biryani called “Achari Biryani” which has awesome flavor of Pickle masala’s.
This recipe is a fool proof recipe, so just follow it step by step and to the point. Flavor of Achari “Pickle” masala is balanced in this recipe but if you like spicy biryani, you can choose to increase the quantity of Achari masala.
What all do you need?
I have divided this recipe into three parts for your ease to follow.
- Making achari masala
- Cooking achari chicken for biryani
- Layering of biryani
1: Ingredients for achari masala
- Fennel seeds (Sauf) – 2 tablespoon
- Coriander seeds (sabut daniya) – 2 tablespoon
- Carom seeds (Ajwain) – ½ teaspoon
- Onion seeds (Kalauji) – 1 teaspoon
- Mustard seeds (rai dana) – 1 teaspoon
- Fenugreek seeds (methi dana) – ½ teaspoon
- Dried fenugreek leaves (shooki methi) – 1 teaspoon
- Cumin seeds (Jeera) – 1 teaspoon
- Turmeric powder – 1 teaspoon
- Red chili powder (for color) – 1 tablespoon
- Chili flakes (kuti lal mirch) – 1 to 2 tablespoon
2. Ingredients for Chicken Biryani
- Chicken with bones – 1 kg
- Basmati rice – 700 - 750 gm
- Curd (Dahi) – 1 cup (approx 250 gm)
- Ginger garlic paste – 2 tablespoon
- Tomato – 6 medium size (sliced in round shape)
- Salt – 3 teaspoon
- Big green chilies – 5 to 10
- Oil – ½ cup (approx. 125 gm/ 120 ml)
- Lemon juice – 2 tablespoon
3. Ingredients for biryani layering
- Potato – 2 to 3 mediums size (sliced in round shape, just like chips & fried on tawa with little amount of salt)
- Onion – 1 medium size (thinly sliced & fried till crispy & golden brown)
- Green coriander -1 cup (finely chopped)
- Mint leaves – 1 cup (finely chopped)
- Orange food color – ½ to 1 teaspoon
- Milk - 2-3 tablespoon
Method –
Cook Rice for Biryani
- Soak basmati rice in water for 30 minutes
- Take water in big utensil and let it come to the boil. Moment it starts boiling, add 3 tablespoon salt and 1 tablespoon cumin seeds.
- Now add soaked rice and let it come to the boil. Moment it starts boiling. Cover the lid and let rice cook on low flame for 3 minutes.
- After 3 minutes, strain the rice and let them cool down. I suggest to layer cooked rice on plates so that they can get cool down faster.
Prepare achari masala
- Dry roast all whole spices and coarsely grind them with powdered spices.
- Slit green chilies and remove their seeds.
- Take out 2 tablespoon achari masala and add 2 tablespoon lemon juice and pinch of salt in it. Mix well and now stuff this mix inside the silted green chilies.
Prepare achari chicken
- Heat oil in the kadhai and moment oil is hot enough, add ginger garlic paste with bay leaf (tez patta) and add chicken.
- Cook chicken on high flame till the time it is white in color.
- Now add sliced tomato, salt and remaining achari masala in the chicken. Mix well and cook on the high flame till the time tomatoes are soft and leaving water.
- Once tomatoes are cooked, add curd and let it come to the boil. Moment chicken starts boiling, cover the lid and cook chicken on medium flame for 10-15 minutes.
- After 10 to 15 minutes, uncover the lid and put the gas on high flame so water in the chicken is dried and oil comes on top.
- After water is dried, add masala stuffed green chilies in the chicken, cover the lid and cook on low flame for another 2-3 minutes.
- After 2 -3 minutes your achari chicken is ready. Take out some oil from chicken which we will use while layering up the biryani.
Layering of Biryani & keeping biryani on dum
- Take big utensil, layer potato chips on the bottom of the utensil and layer half of the rice.
- Now layer cooked chicken and remaining rice on top.
- Sprinkle chicken oil and food color mixed with milk. You can also add some ghee on top to enhance the flavor of biryani.
- Now sprinkle chopped mint leaves, fried onion and chopped green coriander on top.
- Use dough on the corners of the utensil as we are going to cook biryani on dum.
- Cover the lid on top which should get stick to the dough.
- Put griddle (tawa) on gas and then keep your biryani utensil on top of it.
- Keep gas on high flame for 5 min and then on low flame for 10-12 minutes.
- After this switch off the gas and do not open utensil at least for 30 minutes.
- After 30 minutes, open the lid and serve tasty biryani with spicy chutney and onion raita.
Tips –
- This recipe will give you balanced flavor of achari masala but if you like spicy biryani, you can increase the quantity of achari masala and add more stuffed green chilies.
- Ratio of chicken and rice is 1kg chicken with 700 to 750 gm of basmati rice. You can accordingly increase or decrease the ratio if cooking for more or less number of people.
- Use basmati rice only.
- You can also add some ghee on top of biryani while layering to enhance the flavor.
- Adding food color is an optional step so if you wish you can skip this step completely.
- Instead of layering potato chips on bottom, you can also layer boiled egg.
- Cooking rice correctly is very crucial in biryani so follow timings of soaking and cooking to the point.
- Follow this recipe step by step and to the point and I guarantee you, you will become fan of this recipe. Enjoy!