Prawn Biryani – One Pot meal prepared by cooking rice with prawns and freshly grounded spices.
Hello everyone! No one can deny their love for Biryani and the type of Biryani varies from region to region. Biryani is one pot meal and a must in a royal feast. The type and preparation for Biryani vary from region to region. The ingredients used also varies according to the culture and people. Biryanis can be prepared spicy in Hyderabadi style or can be made sweet like Kashmiri ones. Biryanis are versatile and can be prepared with either chicken, meat, prawns, fish or even with vegetables. Back home, Sundays are known for a grand feast in which Biryani is an essential and most loved food. I have grown up eating bowls and bowls of Vegetable Biryani. I could eat an entire bowl at a time if it is Biryani. But then, I have never ever tasted a non-vegetarian Biryani. My amma used to force me to taste the rice in the chicken biryani without chicken pieces. After her continuous insist, I tried one fine day and I eventually fell in love with the flavor of the rice. Since then, I used to eat only the rice for its flavor but not the chicken in it. Sounds funny, isn’t it? But that’s ME.
Once I started my job in Chennai, my husband, and my friend SAN used to keep a portion of chicken biryani rice from their plate for me. Sometimes, I end up in ordering biryani and rice goes to my plate whereas chicken goes to theirs. I have never tempted to eat chicken in biryani but chicken 65 attracts me every time they have on their table. Finally, I tasted it and now, I am so crazy about chicken. Any dish with chicken eventually finds its way on my table. I have been experimenting with chicken lately. But then, I have never cleaned it or cut it. That is entirely taken care by SAN. I tasted prawn fry at a friend’s place in Wilmington. She mentioned as it is easy to clean and suggested me to purchase half cooked deveined prawns sold in Target. I tried prawn fry in my kitchen once and loved it to bits. Why can’t I try my favorite flavorful biryani with prawns?
And I ended up in preparing this spicy Biryani in my own style. I love biryani prepared with Seeraga Samba rice. Since I couldn’t find samba here, I always prepare biryani with Basmati rice. Biryani tastes delicious only when the masala is grounded freshly and is spicy than other curries. I usually love to relish Vegetable Biryani with potato butter beans kurma than with raitha. But, this prawn biryani is a spicy concoction of freshly grounded masalas that you will look for raitha to subside it. I prepared onion raitha but it sounds great with any raitha of your choice.
Ingredients:
- For Biryani Masala
- Shahi Jeera seeds – 1 tablespoon
- Fennel seeds – 1 tablespoon
- Cardamom – 5
- Cloves – 5
- Cinnamon Sticks – 4
- For Biryani
- 1 ½ tablespoon of Oil
- 2 Bay leaves
- 1 Cinnamon Stick
- 4 Cloves
- 3 Cardamom
- 1 Star anise
- 2 Cups of Basmati Rice
- 1 ½ cups of Prawn (of your choice), cleaned and deveined
- 2 Onions, finely sliced
- 1 tablespoon Chili Powder
- ¼ tablespoon Turmeric powder
- ½ lemon
- ½ cup of Curd
- 1 cup of Chopped Mint leaves
- 1 ½ teaspoon Salt (adjust according to your taste)
Method:
- Dry roast ingredients mentioned under Biryani Masala and grind them into a fine powder without adding water using a grinder.
- Slice the onions into fine pieces and fry them deeply in oil. The onions should be brownish and crispy.
- Soak basmati rice in water for about 30 minutes.
- In a bowl, add cleaned and deveined prawns, turmeric powder, 1 tablespoon of Biryani masala, chili powder, half lemon juice, ½ teaspoon of salt, ½ cup of chopped mint leaves, ½ of the fried onions and curd. Combine them well and set aside for about an hour.
- In a medium sized saucepan, add 5 cups of water, 1 tablespoon of biryani masala, cloves, cinnamon, bay leaves, ¼ cup of mint leaves, 1 tablespoon of oil and remaining salt.
- Boil water over high flame.
- To the boiling water, add the soaked rice to the pot and cook on high flame for about 4-5 minutes. Do not overcook the rice. Overcooking rice may make them mushy and rice might break.
- Drain the water from the rice immediately and set aside.
- Meanwhile, in another medium wide saucepan, spread the remaining half tablespoon of oil on the bottom of the pan
- Spread the marinated prawns as the bottom layer of the pan. Add the half of the remaining fried onions and spread them evenly above the prawns.
- Sprinkle the mint leaves evenly on the pan.
- Layer the rice over the masalas and spread them evenly.
- Garnish with the leftover fried onions. Dissolve a pinch of saffron in hot water and pour them on top of the layered rice.
- Cover the pot with the lid and cook the layered rice on high flame for about 10 minutes. Do not open the lid while cooking.
- Reduce the flame to medium level and Cook the biryani for about 20 minutes.
- Switch off the flame and remove the lid after 30 minutes of resting time.
- Combine the biryani well such that the masalas and rice will be combined well. Do not stir hardly as rice might break.
- Garnish with cilantro and serve spicy biryani with raita of your choice and lemon wedges.
If you try the recipe, do let me know how they tasted in comments. If you like space, do like and follow my profile at here –
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Yours Truly
Karthi
