I have never ever ever everrrrrr made Briyani, never attempted to even make it, up until now I was not even sure what went into making a pot of briyani.

My dad normally makes it comes fasting time, he will make a big pot and trust me, he makes it looks so complicated, that when his finished there isn’t a single clean bowl in the house and the stove looks like the rice pot exploded all over it… so you can see more or less why I stayed clear of even learning to make briyani.

The plan for this Sunday lunch was that my dad would make his usual first week of fasting briyani but I was cooking my first catering gig, thanks to my uncle… His friend past away during the week and they having a family lunch on Sunday and he was going to give a pot of chicken curry… which he graciously allowed me to provide…of course it had its difficulties… I couldn’t taste if there was enough salt or not, but I winged it and still came short of the salt lol.

I was finished with the food early than expected and I hinted at my dad that I wanted to try a briyani recipe that I came across on facebook many moons ago… he wasn’t that happy to be over taken by me lol, but he did try to scare me a little with this and that, but I just shrugged it off to family competition.

Let me just say I still can’t get over the fact that I actually made this pot of briyani… I am in SHOCK. It tasted so delicious and like real Indian food, for the first time I am blown away.

Ingredients:

3 x cups rice, soaked over night in normal tap water.

2 x tins of parboiled lentils, water drained off and rinsed.

2 x cups of mix veg ( peas, carrots and sweetcorn).

1 x cup double beans.

1 x cup gadra beans.

1 x tsp jeera seeds.

2 x aniseed.

Salt.

A couple of bay leaves.

2 x elatchi pods.

2 x tsp turmeric powder.

2 x tsp chilli powder.

1 x tbsp. masala.

1 x tsp garam masala.

1 x onion, finely chopped.

2 x onions, sliced and fried to be put ontop of the briyani as a finishing touch.

4 x potatoes, peeled, cubed, sprinkled with a little turmeric powder and fried till crispy.

1 x tomatoe, finely diced.

2 x cinnamon sticks.

Method:

Heat some oil in a pot.

Add the jeera seeds, bay leaves, aniseed and cinnamon sticks and allow to fry for a couple of seconds.

Add the chopped onions, salt and fry till lightly brown, not transparent… important that it must be lightly brown or starting to brown.

Add the mix veg, double and gadra beans, mix so that everything is nicely coated.

Add the lentils, chopped tomatoes and all the spices, mix so that everything is well coated.

Drain the water off the rice and add the rice.

Mix so that everything is nicely mixed.

Add enough boiling water so that the rice is just coverd.

Cover and allow to cook for about 45 minutes or until the rice is cooked and all the water has been absorbed.

If you need to during the cooking add more water than you can.

Line a oven proof dish with foil… I used a baking tray as I did not have a big enough oven proof dish.

Spoon the cooked rice mixture into your dish, add the potatoes and toss so that the potatoes are mixed in.

Add the fried onions on the top, cover with a lid or more foil.

Pop into a preheated oven and leave in the oven at 180 degrees for 45 – 60 mintues.

Serve with buttermilk