Chicken Dum Biryani

Chicken Dum Biryani is the authentic and Very famous dish of Hyderabad. Let us directly jump into making of this hot spicy dhum biryani.

Ingredients: (Serves 3)

1. Chicken (On Bone) - 300 gms
2. Basmati Rice - 3 cups
3. Fried onions - 2
4. Green chillies - 2 to 3
5. Ginger Garlic (GG) Paste - 1 tbsp
6. Mint leaves - 1/4 cup
7. Coriander leaves - 1/4 cup
8. Saffron - few strands soaked in milk/water
9. Red chilli Powder - 1 tbsp
10. Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp
11. Salt - To taste
12. Garam Masala Powder - 2 tsps
13. Thick Curd - 1 n 1/2 cup
14. Lime - 1
15. Whole Garam Masala :
 a. Bay Leaves - 2
 b. Cinnamon Sticks - 1
 c. Cloves - 4
 d. Cardamom - 2
 e. Pepper Corns - 6
 f. Shajeera - 1 tsp
16. Ghee - 2 + 3 tbsps
17. Oil - For deep frying onions
18. Water - 5 to 6 cups

Procedure:

Soaking Rice:

1. First wash and soak the rice for 30 mins

Marinating Chicken:

1. In a heavy bottomed vessel, add washed chicken, GG paste, few mint leaves, few coriander leaves, green chilli pieces, red chilli powder, turmeric powder, salt, 1 tsp of garam masala powder, curd, lime juice, 2 tbsps of ghee and mix well and keep aside

2. Rest the chicken for atleast 30 minutes so that it gets marinated nicely

Cooking Rice:

1. Now cook rice, for this, boil water, pack whole garam masalas in a muslin cloth, put it in boiling water

2. Add salt to the water, check salt taste, water should be salty enough

3. Add rice soaked for 30 mins and cook till 70% done i.e. the rice grain should just break, it should not be soft or mushy

Frying onions:
1. While the rice gets cooked we will proceed with frying onions
2. Slice the onions and deep fry till they turn brown, drain on a tissue paper and keep aside. Take care not to burn them while frying

Keeping for Dum:
1. Now when the rice is 70% done, take away the pack of whole garam masalas from the rice, add half of the rice on top of rested chicken in the heavy bottomed vessel
2. Some water along with rice when placing on top of chicken is mandatory.
3. After putting half of the rice, add half of the fried onions, mint leaves and again put rest of the rice

4. Now again put rest of the fried onions, mint leaves, 1 tsp of garam masala powder, saffron soaked in milk and 3 tbsps of ghee along the sides and in middle of the rice.

5. Seal the vessel with dough, cover with lid tightly, and keep for dum i.e., cook on high flame for 5 mins, then on medium flame for 10 mins and on low flame for 15 mins

6. You can use a tawa after cooking on High flame for 5 mins so that chicken may not get burnt, use it as shown in the pic

7. After 30 mins, you can see pressure coming out of the sealed dough. Now switch off and don't open the lid immediately. If you won't seal the vessel with dough properly then steam comes out in the initial stage only, So seal properly.
8. After 30 mins of dum, Wait for just 5 mins and then open the lid.
9. Nice flavours coming out of the vessel tells that chicken didn't get burnt
10. Put a spatula in the center of the vessel till its bottom and take out the spatula to check or see if any moisture is left
11. Scoop along the sides of the pan and from bottom and take out the scoop of biryani into a plate. 
12. Tasty Chicken biryani is ready, serve with raitha and mirchi ka salan :)