Mutton dum biryani

• Ingredients:

• 500 g mutton, pieces
• 600 g basmati rice, washed, drained and soaked for one hour before cooking
• 200 g potatoes
• 300 g onions, thinly sliced and fried crisp
• 200 g tomatoes, peeled and chopped
• 1 1/2 tablespoons garlic paste
• 1 1/2 tablespoons ginger paste
• 1/2 cup fresh yogurt
• salt
• 1/4 cup oil
• or 1/4 cup ghee
• 3 - 4 pieces cinnamon
• 3 - 4 cloves
• 8 - 10 black peppercorns
• 2 green cardamoms
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 green chilies, slit
• 1 tablespoon cumin powder
• 1 tablespoon red chili powder
• 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 3 - 5 saffron strands, dissolved in a little warm milk
• 3 - 5 leaves fresh mint
• 3 - 5 leaves fresh coriander

Method:

•  First of all, cut potatoes into quarters.

•  Apply salt to them.

•  Deep fry.

•  Pour oil/ghee in a skillet.

•  Fry the onions until pink in colour and crisp, remove them and keep aside before adding the cinnamon, cloves and the pastes.

•  Add cinnamon, cloves, peppercorns, bay leaves and green cardamoms.

•  Add ginger-garlic pastes.

•  Fry for 3 minutes.

•  Add in the washed mutton pieces.

•  Saute until the mutton gives out its own juices.

•  Add the slit green chillies.

•  Add turmeric, chilli and cumin powders.

•  Mix well. 14 Saute for 5 minutes, stirring continuously.

•  Mix in fresh yogurt.

•  Simmer until the mutton is cooked.

•  Add salt.

•  Continue to cook until the oil separates from the meat.

•  Add finely chopped corriander and mint leaves.

•  In a separate pot, parboil rice until the grains are half cooked.

•  Strain the rice.

•  Spread out the mutton mixture in a heavy bottom pan.

•  Sprinkle the rice on top.

•  Add fried potatoes.

•  Sprinkle saffron milk over this.

•  Sprinkle crisp fried onions on top.

•  Cover the platter with a tight fitting lid.

•  Cook on low flame for 20 minutes.

•  Serve with plain chilled yogurt or raita (I’d love to have cucumber raita as it’s my favourite)