Ingredients
Ingredients for the Biryani
1 Large onion
3 Cloves of Garlic
50g Butter
3 tbs Cooking oil
Diced Chicken
800ml chicken stock
300g Basmati rice
1 Bay leaf
1 Cinnamon Stick
3 Cardamom pods
1 tbs Tumeric
4 tbs Curry paste
Ingredients for the Bhaji’s
3 Small onions
1 green chilli
1 tsp tumeric
1 tsp chilli powder
120g flour
100ml cold water
Cooking oil
Steps
1. Soak the rice in warm water for around 30 minutes and then rinse with cold water until the water runs clear.
2. Slice the onions quite thinly and then the garlic into thicker slices. In a high sided frying pan, gently heat the butter and cooking oil until the butter melts and then add in the onion, once the onion begins to brown, add the garlic, Bay leaf, Cinnamon stick & cardamom pods. Adding the garlic too soon will make the dish bitter.
Once the garlic is soft, add the diced chicken, curry paste & tumeric and fry until the chicken is cooked.
3. Pour the rice over the top of the chicken and cover with the chicken stock, flatten the rice over the top evenly. Then put a lid on the pan, bring to the boil and once its bubbling you should reduce the heat and leave to simmer for a further 5 minutes or until the rice has soaked up the water. Once the water has reduced, turn the heat off and leave to stand for 10 minutes before mixing and serving.
4. While you are waiting for the Biryani to cook ou can make the Bhajis. Finely slice the onions and leave them to soak in cold water for a few minutes while you make the batter. De-seed and cut the chilli into small pieces, in a large bowl add the chilli, flour, tumeric, chilli powder and water to form quite a thick batter, then drain and add the onions. mix the onions well into the batter to get a good coating, this is best done by hand rather than with a utensil.
5. Fill a frying pan halfway with cooking oil and heat, check the oil before dropping your first bhaji, to do this take a small bit of batter and place into the pan, you want bubbles around the batter but don’t want it so hot that it spits. The best way to portion the batter is by using two tablespoons to hold the mixture from the bowl and drop into the oil. Once the first side is cooked they are very easy to flip over, they should take approximately 3 minutes on each side.
Tips
The Bhaji’s can be cooked ahead of time and then reheated, they are best reheated in the oven for around 10 minutes to keep them crisp.
