Chicken Biryani

I’m not entirely sure where I found this recipe. I may have clicked on a colorful web-ad; I do that some times out of curiosity. The recipe I found was pretty basic and I had the stuff in the house to make it so I gave it a try. It was a winner.

I like that each bite provides a slight, um, tingle (for lack of a better word) on the tongue. It isn’t spicy hot; rather it a subtle building of flavors as you eat the dish.

Chicken Biryani
Servings: 6-8
Prep time: 10 minutes
Total time: 60 minutes

Ingredients:

• 3 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 lg. onion, divided (see below)
• 1.5 lbs. chicken thighs (boneless & skinless)
• 2 tsp. sweet curry powder, divided
• 2 tsp. garam masala, divided
• 1 1/2 cups long grain rice
• 2 1/2 cups water
• 1 cup frozen petite peas
• kosher salt & ground black pepper
• chopped parsley (garnish, optional)

Directions:

1. Prep the onion – cut it in half pole-to-pole and remove skin. Now thinly slice one half of the onion into long strips. Cut the other half into a 1/4″ dice.
2. In a small bowl combine 1 teaspoon of curry powder, 1 teaspoon of garam masala, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper. Stir to combine. Set aside.
3. Place remaining 1 teaspoon of curry powder in a small bowl and set aside.
4. Place remaining 1 teaspoon of garam masala in a small bowl and set aside.
5. Preheat oven to 350°F.
6. In a medium ovenproof saucepan, heat oil to shimmering over medium-low heat. Add the onion strips and sauté until strips are golden brown, 8-10 minutes. Line a plate with a double layer of paper towels. Remove onions with a slotted spoon and spread on paper towels. Leave as much oil as possible in pan.
7. Return the saucepan to the stove and raise the heat to medium. Flatten chicken thighs and sprinkle chicken with the combined spice mix. Saute for about 2 minutes on each side to brown. Transfer the chicken to the a clean plate. Tent with foil to keep warm.
8. Add the diced onion to pan with rice. Stir to coat with the remaining oil and spices. Cook, stirring every minute or so, for about 5 minutes. Some of the rice should start to brown.
9. Add the water and remaining curry powder to the saucepan, stir well, and bring to a boil.
10. Cover pan and bake in middle of oven for about 20 minutes, rotating once.
11. Cut chicken into bite-size pieces. Remove the pan from the oven, uncover and stir in the chicken (and any juices that accumulated), frozen peas and the remaining garam masala. Bake 5 minutes longer
12. Remove from oven. Uncover, place a clean dish towel over the top of the pan and recover. Let stand for 5 minutes.
13. Fluff rice with a fork. Serve with the sauteed onions you cooked at the beginning of the dish. A little chopped parsley is nice too.

Notes:
Our go-to spices are from Penzys. I use their Sweet Curry Powder for this dish. I haven’t been brave enough to try to Hot Curry Powder though we do have some in the house because the husband likes it hot. Maybe next time I make this I’ll use the sweet curry powder on the chicken and stir in 1 teaspoon of hot curry powder with the water.