Bengali style Mutton Biryani

Bengali style Mutton Biryani

Ingredients

750 grams   meat
500 gm. of basmati rice washed and soaked in water for at least 30 minutes
4 tbsp ghee
2 tbsp. ginger paste
1 tbsp. garlic paste
4 potatoes cut into halves
1 large onion finely chopped
1 cup  curd
2 tsp. Kashmiri  chilli powder
Few drops Kewra essence
Few strands of saffron soaked and 1 tsp kesar colour in 2-3 tbsp. of warm milk
Salt  to taste
1 tsp Sugar
2 green cardamom
1 cinnamon stick
2 bay leaves
2 cloves
5 pepper
2 tbsp of chopped coriander leaves
4 boiled eggs

Make a powder from the masala:-
2" cinnamon stick
6 cloves
3 green cardamom
1/4 of a whole nutmeg
1/2" mace
1 tsp. cumin seeds
1tsp of pepper corn

Method

Cook the pre soaked rice in enough water seasoned with salt, green cardamom, cinnamon stick, bay leaves, pepper and few cloves. Cook till the rice is almost done. Drain the rice on a colander and spread on a flat plate.

Take ghee in a heavy bottom pan or in a pressure cooker and heat it. Add chopped onion and fry till they are brown. Add the meat pieces and sear them on high heat. Add ginger, garlic paste and stir the meat pieces. Once the raw smell goes away add the curd and Kashmiri chili powder. Add the potato, salt and sugar and saute the meat and  add the masala powder. Cook till the potatoes are 90% boiled. Remove the potatoes and keep them aside. Rest 10% cooking will be done in Dum.

If required add water as per requirement or else   cook the the meat pieces in a pressure cooker.
Now  assemble the biryani. Take a heavy bottom pan. Add one layer of rice and then the mutton pieces, some potato pieces and some gravy. Repeat the layer. The last layer will be rice.  Add the boil eggs on top. Now add saffron and kesar colour milk on top of the rice, also add a few drops of kewra water. Add some melted ghee . Sprinkle with fresh coriander leaves.   Cover the biryani pot tightly. Now we are ready to put the biryani for Dum.
Put the vessel on a thick tawa or charcoal so that the bottom does not get burnt.  Cook it on a low heat for 30 minutes. Once done  keep it off the fire for at least an hour before serving. Serve it with green salad.