Slow Cooker Hyderabadi Kachi Biryani

INDIA

The apartment block I grew up in, at Mumbai had a wonderful mix of Muslim families. There were Bohris, Khojas and Sunnis.. oooh the variety of delicious food! Every Eid was a smorgasbord of wonderful food. Sheer Khorma, daal gosht, saalans, kebabs, and of course biryani! We just took it for granted that we would be part of the celebrations. Not only did we go over and stuff ourselves, other families also sent special preparations cooked up in their kitchens. Life was wonderful.

photo courtesy- google images

Along the years I have learned a lot about different types of biryani from my own experience and from my mother off course! 

A good biryani must be savory, not spicy; fragrant, not pungent; it should stimulate and titillate your tongue, not set it on fire, make your mouth water, not your nose and eyes!

HOW TO JUDGE  BIRYANI

Try the spread test. Pick a little biryani in your fingers and sprinkle it on an empty plate. The grains of rice must not stick together but remain separate. The pieces of meat must be succulent,clear and moist, not greasy. It must be slightly aromatic, not sharp or piquant. 

  

Asian Slow Cooking

HISTORY
Biryani was brought to India by the Moguls in the early 16th century and so is originally a Persian dish - and indeed there are Persian (Iran/Iraq) variants. Nizams of Hyderabad who split from the Mogul empire in 1707 ruled the Hyderabad state until Indian independence in 1947 were connoisseurs of pretty much everything; literature, art, jewelry and, of course, exquisite food. Among other dishes in the Nizam's kitchen there were biryani experts and prepared about 50 different varieties of biryani. There are two distinct styles of preparation for your lamb biryani, kacchi and pakki. Kacchi means 'raw' and that the meat and rice are cooked together. In the pakki style, the meat is cooked first and then the put together with cooked rice.

Asian Slow Cooking

RECIPE

Ingredients                                            Direction

• 1/2 lb basmati rice
  2 lbs lamb
  
  2 onions - chopped
  
  1/2 tsp saffron
  
  1 cup milk
  
  Juice of 1 lemon
  
  Fresh green coriander - chopped
  
  2 green chilies - chopped
  
  1 Tbsp refined oil
  
  For the Marinade:
  
  2 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
  
  1 tsp turmeric powder
  
  1 1/2 cup curd
  
  1 tsp red chili powder
  
  Salt to taste
  
  
  Spices for the Lamb:
  
  4 cloves
  
  1" cinnamon
  
  1 bay leaf
  
  2 green cardamoms
  
  1 black cardamom
  
  1/2 tsp cumin seeds
  
  
  Whole spices for rice:
  
  2 cloves
  
  1/2 " cinnamon
  
  2 green cardamoms
  
  Salt - to taste
  
  
  For the Dum:
  
  Dough made of wheat flour and water
• 
  

  Soak the basmati rice in water for 20 minutes to half an hour. 

  
  Marinate the lamb with curd, turmeric, salt, chilly powder and ginger-garlic paste. Grind all the spices for the lamb in a mortar and add to the marinade. Leave the lamb to marinate for an hour minimum or up to four hours. 

  
  

  
  
  

  Heat 2 Tbsp of refined oil in a pan. Saute the onions, till they turn golden brown. Keep aside. 

  
  

  
  

  Put the milk into a saucepan and heat till tepid. Add the saffron and stir till the milk takes on the color of saffron. Keep aside.
  

  
  

  In a saucepan put 1 tbsp oil and heat. Add the lamb and cook on high heat till lamb takes on a light brown color and is half cooked.
  
  Make a layer of lamb then layer it with the brown onion. Now layer it with the rice and add another layer of onion. Sprinkle the coriander leaves.
  
  Pour in the saffron infused milk over the rice and add the lemon juice .
  
  
  
  

  
  

  

  Asian Slow Cooking

  
  
  Cover the vessel and make long snake off the dough by rolling in on the counter and use it to seal the top of the slow cooker lid. 
  
  

  

  Asian Slow Cooking

  
  
  
  Cook for 8 hrs on low. It is generally better if you cook in low but if you are in a hurry you can cook in high for 4 hrs. 

Chefs Notes:
Instead of the dough you can also cover it with foil. Just put the foil and cover the lid the foil should be at-least one inch outside the lid and do not make perforations in the foil the idea is to cook in dum. The word "dum" means that the biryani is cooked by baking the rice with the meat and spices in a large pot. Instead of lamb you can also use goat meat or beef if you wish.