chicken biryani with raita

How To Make chicken biryani with raita recipe - A biryani consists of curried meat, poultry, fish or vegetables combined with basmati rice to make a hearty meal. Here a chicken curry is layered with the rice, baked and served with a fresh cucumber raita.

SERVES: 4

PREPARATION: 25 MINUTES, COOKING: 11/2 HOURS

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon (15 ml) sunflower oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 pound (500 g) boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1 inch (2.5 cm) pieces
1 tablespoon (15 ml) chopped ginger
1 small red chile, seeded, chopped
seeds of 10 cardamom pods, crushed
1 tablespoon (15 ml) ground cumin
1 tablespoon (15 ml) ground coriander
6 cloves
1 cinnamon stick
2 bay leaves
1/2 teaspoon (2 ml) crushed black peppercorns
141/2 ounce (400 ml) can diced tomatoes
1 cup (250 ml) chicken stock
1/2 cup (60 g) raisins
pinch of salt
1 cup (200 g) basmati rice, rinsed
1/2 teaspoon (2 ml) turmeric
1/3 cup (30 g) slivered almonds, toasted

Cucumber raita:
1/3 cup (90 ml) Greek-style yogurt
1/2 cup (125 ml) low-fat plain yogurt
1/2 cucumber, grated, squeezed dry
2 tablespoons (30 ml) chopped fresh mint

Method:
1 Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat, add the onion and cook for 5 minutes, or until softened. Add the chicken and cook for 5 minutes, or until brown all over. Stir in the ginger, chile, cardamom, cumin, coriander, cloves, cinnamon stick, bay leaves and peppercorns. Cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly so the spices do not burn.

2 Add the tomatoes, stock, 3 tablespoons (45 ml) water, the raisins and salt. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and cook for 45 minutes.

3 Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 325°F (160°C). Put the rice in a saucepan, add 21/2 cups (600 ml) water and the turmeric and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer very gently for about 7 minutes, or until the rice is almost tender. Drain excess water.

4 Layer the chicken curry and rice in a casserole dish. Cover and cook in the oven for 25 minutes, checking after 20 minutes and adding a little more water if needed (there should be enough liquid for the rice to complete cooking).

5 Meanwhile, to make the raita, combine the yogurts, cucumber and mint. When the biryani is ready, stir it well, then scatter the toasted almonds on top. Serve with the raita.

Each serving provides
564 calories, 36 g protein, 19 g fat (4 g saturated fat), 65 g carbohydrate (21 g sugars), 5 g fiber, 428 mg sodium

chicken biryani with raita