Sunday, October 17, 2010

RASHMI BIRIYANI ( with Vege option)

My greetings to all of you on the occasion of Dushera festival. I am sure all of you have excused me for my absence from the blog sphere. Not that I post many recipes , but I do read all recipes, like reading novels, newspapers. I was stuck with lot of work ( rare occasion) at the home front, could manage to read few blogs and could rarely post my appreciations . I shall catch up now before I proceed on official work again.
My daughter visited us 1st time after marriage and had sent request in advance for cooking few of her favorite dishes. Biriyani Rashmi was one of them.
THE RECIPE.
This recipe is adopted from the famous book by Maharaja of Sailana, the ultimate Royal dish book.
The recipe is very different from all the Biriyanis you might have eaten. It is devoid of onion and garlic and the spicing is different. This gives a unique flavor to the dish. I know many types of Biriyani and pulao, but always end up cooking this in a gathering ( which is rare) as the guests are very demanding about this Biriyani.
This Biriyani is cooked with goat or lamb meat. I haven't tried chicken and wont, in near future. If you try let me know how was it. I will -prefer a  paneer , patato biriyani over chicken
I have given a vege option with Paneer and potato. Absence of garlic and onion makes this dish a absolute Vege one , Jain or temple dish or like a prashad.
NOTE: As directed by the Maharaja, please do not compromise or change the recipe while trying for the 1st time.
INGREDIENTS
Mutton pieces 1 Kg
Ghee 250 ml ( I have reduced slightly from the original recipe) 
Fresh curd 350 gms
Red chili powder 4 tsp ( level) You can use less hot one.
Ginger fresh , scrapped and ground 30 gms
Asafoetida ( Hing) 1 level tsp , 30 % active content diluted in water . (You can use your measure) 
spices 
Coriander seed powder 25 gms ( dont reduce)
Cumin seed powdered 2 gms
Black cumin seed powdered( It is Sha jeera and not the Kala jeera or Nigela ) 2 gms
Clove powdered 20 pieces ( freshly powdered) 
black Cardamom 4 pieces , freshly powdered.
Saffron a good pinch diluted in warm water

Basmati rice 500 gms
Milk 350 ml
Kewada water 30 ml. ( This is also known as Kiya, Keya, Ketaki water in India . English name screw pine, botanical name Pandanus fascicularis .) If you are using Kewra concentrate , add less.
(Punjabi BaDi 12 gms, powdered,  is there in the original recipe , but I haven't used it. But it gives a good taste.)
THE PROCESS 
Preparing the meat 
* Heat ghee in a thick bottom deep pan, add the Hing water, immediately followed by meat, whipped curd, Red chili powder, ginger paste, salt and mix.
* When the liquid dries up , brown the meat lightly.
* Add hot water little at a time  so that when the meat is tender, there will be very little water left. CAUTION: Dont over cook the meat..that means the meat must not be falling off the bones.
If it is slightly undercooked, dont worry, it will get cooked at a later stage . Please apply your experience in meat boiling ...avoid use of pressure cooker.
Ready for spice addition 


* Now add all the spices mentioned above i.e.  Coriander, both cumins, clove, cardamom, saffron and Punjabi Badi powder ( optional) 
*Stir the mix and simmer on very low heat till the water dries up and ghee remains. NOTE: Please dont burn the spices, if in doubt, quench with 2-3 tbsp water and mix.
Preparing the rice.
* Wash and soak rice in water for an hour.
* Heat plenty of water (about 3 liters ), add about 6-8 level tsp  of salt and bring to boil. Add rice and cook.
* When the rice is 3/4th done, drain into a sieve or colander removing water completely.
* Transfer the rice to a big tray and spread evenly ..allow it to cool a bit.
Arranging the rice and meat for dum ( sealed steaming)
This is an interesting step and the layering technique is applicable to most type of Biriyani.
* Heat the milk , close to boiling and keep aside. mix 30 ml of Kewada water.
* Grease a thick bottom pan lightly with ghee. Dont take too big a pan. Ideally the pan should be 80% full when every thing is added.
* Divide the rice into 4 parts 

* Add 1/4th of the rice to the pan and spread evenly.
* Sprinkle all the milk on the rice layer
* add 1/2 the meat and spread evenly.

* Now add rice, 2 parts out of 4 parts and spread evenly. ( i.e 2 portions of the 1/4th rice...I mean after this addition, you will be left with 1/4th of rice.)
* Add rest of the mutton and spread evenly. Top it with the balance 1/4th rice.

Put on Dum ( on steaming under sealed condition.)
*Put the pan on medium heat , and allow steam to be formed.
When steam is formed, cover and seal the edges with flour ( Atta) dough

There are few ways of putting it on dum. 
Heat an OTG or oven to 180 deg C, and cook for 30-40 minutes
Or Put a flat steel griddle on heat, then put a separator. Keep the Pan on the separator and cook for 30-40 minutes. Adjust heat , there may be slight burn out at the bottom...
Open the Pan on the dining table, so that every one gets the opening aroma 

VEGE OPTION WITH POTATO AND PANEER 
The spicing and procedure will be same with some variation.
Peel medium potato and cut to half. Dont take much, may be 11/2 pieces per head or more.
Take generous quantity of paneer ( cottage cheese), cut them to 11/2 inch by 11/2 inch pieces and 1 inch thick. ( you can use smaller size too. I use 1inch pieces.)
Fry the cheese in ghee to brown , poke it with fork and keep aside.

Take ghee, fry the potato to light brown, add, hing , curd, ginger, red chili powder, salt etc and dry out to light brown.
Add the spices, stir for  a minute , add 1 cup of water.
Mix well, add the paneer and simmer until only the ghee is left.
Proceed as above.
Happy eating.

58 comments:

Unknown said...

Hi,

Happy Dassera to you!!The rce looks yummy...:)

Dr.Sameena@

www.myeasytocookrecipes.blogspot.com

prasu said...

Ummmmmmmmmmmm........delicious recipe UshnishGi.

subhashini said...

DADA
I love your blog particularly for one thing that you always give veg option for non veg dishes.Any way lovely dish.

Gauri Gharpure said...

delicious!

sangeeta said...

Your description is always superb and this recipe is a keeper for sure. I will try it to the T sometime n let you know. The punjabi vadis i am not too convinced with though .
The rice grains look perfectly done n yet separate ..cooling the rice before layering is the trick.

Priya Suresh said...

Happy Dushera festival greeting to u and ur family..Rashmi Briyani looks absolutely marvellous, droolworthy and irresistible..thanks for sharing this beautiful looking dish..

Unknown said...

that is delicious!

Akila said...

very lovely briyani...

Rumana Rawat said...

This looks very very tasty:)

Sanjana said...

I'm trying this with the veggie option next week- It sounds amazing and I love the use of so many flavours. Kewra water is one of my favourite ingredients in biryani-type dishes too. Yum! Thank you for sharing! I'll let you know how it goes!

Siddhi Shirsat said...

hey happy duserra 2 u also uncle....
this biryani is simply superb....it vl taste awesome.....
vl try surely...loved the spices used

Fathima said...

That biryani looks perfect .... really droolworthy... mutton biryani is my all time fav.... Happy Dushera to you and family!

PJ said...

Happy dasara! the biryani looks so delicious and love those step by step photos.

Satrupa said...

Bijoya Pronam ..... Hope you had a wonderful time with your family ... I am sure you did with your daughter visiting you. I too get very demanding with my father whenever I am home, so can well imagine that :-)
The Biriyani looks so yummilicious ..... no wonder ur guests are demanding.

Regards,
Satrupa

http://satrupa-foodforthought.blogspot.com

Anonymous said...

Shubho Bijoya Ushnish Da..the mutton biryani has reminded of dashmi celebrations at my in laws house last year. It looks so delectable.
I generally do not get mutton here..and even if I do..they are too big pieces with lots of fat on them..there's no fun in making the biryani with those.
But I do have a biryani post on my blog with whatever I got! It doesnot look half as good as yours because of the quality of mutton.
I was waiting for a long time for your posts...and what a yummy post!

Sreelekha Sumesh said...

That looks truly tempting!Great recipe.Thanks for the wishes.Happy Dasara to u and ur family.

Jaisy James said...

wow looks yummy loved ur way of preperation. first time hearing rashmi biryani. sure i will try this soon. thanks for sharinng

Devasena Hariharan said...

this reminds me of hydrabadi biryani.. nice effort

Home Cooked Oriya Food said...

Looks wonderful... Would love to eat it!
Happy Dusshera...

Aparna S Mallya said...

Thanks for your comments. I have very little knowledge about Bengali sweets, so thanks for pointing it out.

Biryani looks delicious!

Madhu said...

Wecome back :) This biryani looks soo good that i am going to order some from a nearby restaurant soon :)

Shabs.. said...

Wow....that looks like an awesome biryani!i have never come across one without onions and i hate onion business...chopping, crying, sniffing.....eventhough i hav efood processor, i still cry:)......liked that (rare occassion)quotes......Happy dussera to u and ur family...
I would liek to give this biriyani ago apart from ur chicken 65 that is on my must try recipes..:)...Havent tried it yet!....I am moving to a new place this weeekend, so shall see u later..
Regards,
shabs.

Satya said...

heloo ushnish dada
Happy Dushere to u n ur family ...Gr8 to c u n ur comments after long time ..this biriyani looks wonderful ... so many flavors u used in this ...simply awesome ...thanks for this veggie option ..i will surely try it ...thanks for sharing

Satya
http://www.superyummyrecipes.com

Padmajha said...

briyani without onion and garlic is hard to find!!This one is a keeper.Would love to try it.Is there any substitute or Kewra essence.I don't get it here.Or can I leave it out?The briyani with vege option sounds delicious!!!

Btw,the is an award in my blog.Kindly collect it...

Lav said...

A very happy dusherra to you and your family too :) Bookmarked this recipe...looks awesome :) how was ur venice trip, i expereinced venice at macau, so romantic !!!

Lavanya

www.lavsblog.com

Sushma Mallya said...

Happy dusshera to you and your family....This biryani seems easy and looks very delicious too...

vandana rajesh said...

yummm biriyani is my fav...will try this with the chicken version(have an allergy to red meat) sooon.

Shanthi Krishnakumar said...

A lovely veg. version indeed. A post after a very long time. Hope you had a wonderful dussehra. Yes, It is necessary to use idli rice, a variety used to make idlis and dosas. It is not either the parboiled or raw rice which we use for cooking. This is something different , we call it as idli rice.

Nandinis food said...

Wow! Ooh! Yum! Slurp! The biryani is very flavourful and spicy! I love its royalty. I used to eat mutton in my childhood days but now I eat less meat. Happy Dussehra BTW.

Amritha Kalyani said...

I could actually smell the aroma in my house. I am sure you all would have enjoyed the dish. the vegetarian version my god.. am gonna try this. I love this process of keeping it in dum... i feel the aroma is intact within the dish. thanks for stopping by my blog and your encouragement ..

Jaya M said...

Ushnish Da,
prothome Bijoyar pranam and shubecha neben ..and it must be special for you that your daughter came to stay with you ..wish all girls can go back to their bape'er bari like Ma Durga on every durga Puja..
what can I say about this biryani , needs no words here..picture says it all :-)..I haven't made biryanis without onions/garlic , but seeing this I must say they looks absolutely delicious..I would prefer mutton over anything else anyday..Bhalo thakben..regards

Jayanthy Kumaran said...

Awesome biryani...looks divine

Tasty Appetite

aipi said...

Hi UshnishDa... good to see you back. This biryani does definitely look royal. I do make biryani but this definitely looks different as you stated. Different definitely gets my curiosity. Will surely try the veggie version. Good to hear about your daughter visiting. The first visit after marriage can definitely keep you busy :) Happy Dussehera to you too.

US Masala

Akila said...

There is a surprise waiting for you at my blog dear....

Regards,
Akila

Unknown said...

Hello Ushnishda..Hope u & ur family had a wonderful durga pooja..
Great recipe..Who would n't want that?? Iam feeling damn hungry looking at the stunning pic.It deserves a try..that too briyani without onion..will surely try this and let u know..
Btw for bitter gourd chutney u can use gree one too..:-)

Joyti said...

I especially love the veggie version, with the paneer and potato...it sounds PERFECT. YUM!!!

veena said...

Hi Ushnish
Yes. We all missed you in the blogosphere:-) I am sure you will have had a great time with your daughter. Just bought the kewra water. Will try the vege option and let u know. Thanks for sharing this lovely recipe

Adelina said...

WOW- fit for the kings!!! You amaze me all the time with the details you provide- and this recipe is WORTH trying- thanks for the veg version! BTW, where can one get the ultimate Royal dish book?

SE said...

Ushnishda, Belated dusshera wishes !!

Dish is definitely looking royal..yummy, thanks for sharing the recipe..

San said...

Ow that's a wonderful n a lip smacking biryani to try hand on .
Eventhough you deliver recipes after some time taking a break you are back with a bang always,i should appreciate it.The remembrance of your previous posts holds on till you post a fresh one :) Hope you enjoyed dussera .Take care.

Cool Lassi(e) said...

Ushnish-da,
This is extremely mouthwatering. I love all your recipes. Another must-try recipe from you.
My MIL does "Dum" biryani like you do. And for the mutton, I do want to use the pressure cooker..will just make sure I don't go beyond one whistle. Lovely recipe!

Vikis Kitchen said...

Congrats on that happy news about your daughter's wedding and the feast Ushnish ji. Convey my best wishes to the couple. How was Dussera? I too enjoyed it a lot. The biryani is very new to me. Now I wanna buy that book:) Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe, I am imagining the taste and can't stop drooling:) The dhum process is well explained. I am having one in a draft and feeling a bit shy to showcase the entire set up , because of that overcrowded kitchen counter:) yours look so neat and I absolutely enjoyed this post.

Rahin said...

Cannot imagine biryani without onions ! sure looks delicious, gotta try this one

Arti said...

Thank you for the veg version, as I am pure veg... Looks an interesting recipe.
I also heard that the road to char dham is in bad condition...

PreeOccupied said...

I am going to make this next. Khub shundor recipe ta. However hing diye kono din biryani khayi ni...baiye bolbo kerom holo.

Ushnish Ghosh said...

Dear Friends
Thank you very much for the appreciations which always encourages me a lot.
Here are few information.
1.The cook book can be purchased on the net . but it is 8-10 times more expensive than what you get at in India. If you are interested to get a copy from India send me an e mail.
2. Use of Hing : I think the origin of this dish could be from Kashmir or frontier as it doesn't have onion and Garlic. Hing is almost always used in all Kashmiri dishes, so I guess Maharaja has used Hing to maintain original recipe.
3. We dont see Biriyani without onion, there are very few Biriyani recipe , not having onion . These are mainly of Kashmir or frontier origin.

Karen said...

Great post! I learned some new things here, like sealing the pot with dough. I had no idea of that method.
The biriyani sounds so good...love the flavors and looks excellent over the rice!

Pari Vasisht said...

Dear Ushnish Da,
Thanks for all the kind words that you mailed me. Yes, it is surely a tough time but by God's grace we have coped well.
The biryani looks amazing and I can imagine the aroma. I am sure you must have had a great time with daughter and pampered her, lucky girl I must say.
FOODELICIOUS

Sutapa said...

Subho Bijoya Ushnish!
Lovely biriyani! I never thought of biriyani without onion, garlic and using nigella it must be a super surprise for any guest! I am making it in coming weekends and sure to love it!

Joyti said...

Re: your question about my blog title: I've never been to Darjeeling the place, the blog title is referring to Darjeeling the type of tea. I usually drink Darjeeling tea with sweets, and since my blog is full of recipes about sweets, it seemed 'right'.
Thank you for asking :)

Preeti Kashyap said...

thanks for coming to my blog Ushnish....i know i have been extremely busy past a few days as visiting relatives in India after 2 years is quite a tedious and exciting work...will be in scene soon. Take care and hope u have a rocking dassera.

Preeti Kashyap said...

This biryani looks too awesome...bookmarked!

Kim said...

Wow! Looks awesome. I love trying out different types of biryanis too. This looks like a good one to try next time.

Does it really need quarter kilo ghee though? I think I'll try it with a little less and let you know how it goes :)

Jhovaan

Oriyarasoi said...

Happy Bijoya!!!!!Lovely recipe but involves lots of effort!!! And OMG....soo much calories!!!!

Sanghamitra Bhattacherjee(Mukherjee) said...

Prothome amar Shubho Bijoyar pronam neben..jani deri hoye gelo..very nice post..will try it soon :)

Shilpi Bose said...

Thanks for visiting my blog. This is a yummy looking biryani and what makes it interesting is it has no onion or garlic.

Indrani said...

dada, bijoyar pranam aar shubhechcha neben..janina, apnar ei post ta ki kare miss kare gelam..apnar mourola macher jhal begun diye recipe ta aaj banabo, bookmark kare rekhechilam...biriyanir recipe ta really different..definitely try korbo next time..dekhte khub bhalo hoyeche

♥Sugar♥Plum♥Fairy♥ said...

Oh what an absolutely delicious biryani!
Very very!!
Loving it!!
And u have some absolutley delicious collection of recipes here!