Hyderabadi chicken biryani

This is not the authentic Hyderabadi, but just my interpretation. It was on my to-do list for a long time now.

I followed an elaborate method. I made it dum style, with the dough and all. It’s cooked on a very low flame. The final result was just amazing. It was one of the best chicken biryanis I cooked so far. Ingredients:
1 cup sliced onion (fried in oil till crisp)
1/2 lb chicken
Chicken marination:
3 tbl spn chopped coriander leaves
2 tbl spn chopped mint leaves
1/2 tea spn ginger paste
1/2 tea spn garlic paste
3 green chillies
1/2 tea spn red chilli powder
4 cloves powdered
1″ cinnamon powders
1/2 tea spn cumin powder
1/2 tea spn coriander powder
1/2 cup thick yogurt
Salt
Method:
Add all the marinade ingredients and 1/4 cup fried onion to chicken pieces and leave it aside for about 1hr (in refrigerator).
For rice:
1 and 1/2 cups basmati rice
1/4 cup onion
3 cups water
2 cloves
1″ cinnamon
2 cardamom
2 bay leaves
1/2 tea spn ginger paste
1/2 tea spn garlic paste
1/2 tea spn green chilli paste
1/4 tea spn turmeric
Ghee
Salt
Method:
Heat ghee and add cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, bay leaves, ginger-garlic paste, green chilli paste, turmeric, onion and fry for a few minutes. Now add the rice and fry for 2-3 minutes. Then add salt water and let it cook.
Putting everything together
Heat ghee in a thick bottomed pan and add marinated chicken. Fry for about 2mins. If chicken leaves some water, that is fine.
Spread half the quantity of rice, followed by 1/2 the quantity of fried onion. You can add 1/4 cup water just to make sure the rice is completely cooked.
Spread remaining rice and then onion.
Cover the lid and seal the edges with dough. Cook on a medium low flame for about 30-45mins.
Serves : 2-3
Preparation time: 1 and 1/2 hrs
PS:
- I add very less chicken as we don’t eat a lot of chicken. You can possibly increase the amount to 1 lb(0.45kg).
- Usually saffron is used for the biryani, which gives a beautiful color. I didn’t have it on hand, so I used turmeric for the yellow color. If using saffron, soak it in little warm milk and add it to rice while layering rice and onions.
- The dough is made by mixing 1 cup flour with water (I used wheat flour). I keep the pan on a tava to give it two layers of thickness. I have an old worn out tava which is used for just this.
- I add 1 and 1/2 cup water for 1 cup rice while cooking rice instead of adding more water and draining it as done traditionally. Adding less water and cooking till water is absorbed, avoids overcooking of rice and also, since water is not drained out, all the spices/ghee used remains with the rice.

Sautéed Mixed Greens Recipe

Bags of organic arugula at the store always tempt me. "Buy me!" they say, "Eat salad for a week, it'll be great!" Of course after three or four days the bag is half full and the contents start to look rather wilted and sad. Then comes regret. Why did I buy that bag in the first place? Recently I found the solution to the problem of wilting greens, a problem that I'm guessing may also be yours.

It turns out arugula is quite wonderful when lightly sauteed in olive oil. It's somewhat bitter and earthy but in a good way. It's even better if you mix it with some other greens. I use a bit of frozen spinach which is mild but silky and some fresh escarole which has a lovely spring flavor and juiciness when it's cooked. The mixture of flavors and textures creates a compelling dish that isn't just a terrific side dish, but begs to be layered in a grilled cheese sandwich.

buy arugula a lot. But you could just as easily use fresh but beginning-to-wilt spinach, swiss chard, kale, mustard greens, turnip tops or beet greens. Experiment! The amounts of greens are up to you and what you have on hand. I almost always have some individually quick frozen (IQF) spinach in the freezer but don't use it if you don't have it, this is all about cooking economically and making do with what you have. No garlic on hand? No problem! Want to use red chile flakes in addition to onion and garlic? Go for it! You have nothing to lose but some greens that are probably not ready for a starring role in a salad. The basic technique is just to place the ingredients in the pan in order from most sturdy to most fragile. The sturdy stuff will take a little longer to cook than the fragile stuff, but we're talking only a few minutes.

Sautéed Mixed Greens
Serves about 4 as a side dish

2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic minced
1 cup frozen spinach
8-10 leaves of escarole
1/2 a bag of arugula, about 4 handfuls

Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the olive oil and when hot, add the onion. Cook for three minutes, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon, add the garlic and cook for just 30 seconds then add the spinach and the escarole. Cover and turn the heat down to low. Let it cook for a minute or two, just until the spinach barely defrosts. Remove the lid and stir, then add the arugula and stir. The arugula will wilt very quickly, in just a couple of minutes. Season with salt and you're done!

Enjoy!

Pad Thai noodles

This recipe for Pad Thai noodles is authentic and yummy. Instead of buying Pad Thai sauce already made, see how easy it is to make your own - and how much better-tasting too! Aside from getting the sauce right, the secret to great Pad Thai is all in the noodles. Be sure to soak them in hot water (never boil them) before stir-frying, but not too long - that way you'll have perfectly chewy and slightly sticky Pad Thai that are simply wonderful. ENJOY!

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 12 minutes

Total Time: 32 minutes

Yield: SERVES 2

Ingredients:

• 8 oz. Thai rice noodles (linguini width), or enough for 2 people
• 1-2 cups raw or cooked shrimp, shells removed
• 1 shallot (OR 1/4 cup purple onion), finely chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1-2 fresh red chilies (or as much as you like!), finely sliced
• 1 egg
• 2 cups bean sprouts
• 1/8 tsp. ground white pepper (OR substitute black pepper)
• 3 green onions, sliced finely
• 1/2 cup fresh coriander/cilantro
• 1/4 cup dry roasted peanuts, ground or chopped
• 2-3 Tbsp. oil for stir-frying (coconut, peanut, corn, sunflower, or canola are all good)
• 3 Tbsp. chicken stock
• wedges of lime for serving
• PAD THAI SAUCE:
• 3/4 Tbsp. tamarind paste (available at Asian/Indian food stores)
• 1/4 cup hot water
• 2+1/2 Tbsp. fish sauce (available in tall bottles at Asian food stores)
• 1-3 tsp. chili sauce (to taste), OR 1/2 to 1 tsp. dried crushed chili
• 3 Tbsp. palm sugar OR brown sugar

Preparation:

1. Bring a large pot of water to boil, then remove from heat. Dunk in the rice noodles. Soak the noodles until soft enough to eat, but still firm and a little "crunchy". Drain and rinse the noodles thoroughly with cold water. Set aside. Tip:Avoid over-softening the noodles at this point, as they will be fried later, and you want them to turn out chewy, not soggy.
2. In a small bowl or cup, dissolve the tamarind paste in the hot water. Then add the other Pad Thai Sauce ingredients (fish sauce, chili, and brown sugar). Stir well to dissolve the sugar. Add as much or as little chili sauce as you prefer, but don't skimp on the sugar - it is needed to balance out the sourness of the tamarind. Set aside.
3. Warm a wok or large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add 2 Tbsp. oil and swirl around, then add the shallots, garlic, and chili. Stir-fry 1 minute.
4. Add the shrimp plus 2-3 Tbsp. chicken stock. Stir-fry 2-3 minutes, or until shrimp are pink and plump. (If using cooked shrimp, only stir-fry 1 minute.)
5. Push ingredients aside, making room in the center of your wok/pan. Add another 1 Tbsp. oil, then crack in the egg. Stir-fry to scramble (30 seconds to 1 minute).
6. Add the drained noodles and drizzle over the pad thai sauce. Use 2 utensils and a gentle "tossing" motion to combine everything together (like tossing a salad). Keep the heat between medium and medium-high - you want your pan hot enough to cook the noodles, but not so hot that the noodles burns. Stir-fry 4-5 minutes.
7. Add the bean sprouts and continue stir-frying 1 more minute, or until noodles are chewy-delicious and a little bit sticky.
8. Remove from heat and taste-test, adding more fish sauce until desired taste is achieved (I usually add another 1-2 Tbsp).
9. Sprinkle over the white pepper, onion, coriander, and peanuts, and garnish with lime wedges (these should be squeezed over before eating). Toss one more time and serve. Thai chili sauce can also be served on the side if desired. ENJOY!

Tip: When making more than 8 oz. of noodles, I usually double the Pad Thai Sauce recipe (or triple it for 4+ people). Then I keep drizzling it over the noodles as I stir-fry them until I'm happy with the taste. Any leftover sauce can be stored in a jar in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.