Fouzia's Lamb Biryani

I am very slowly working my way through a long to do list. Posting the recipe for my friend Fouzia's Lamb Biryani has been high on the list and at last here it is.

Fouzia talked down her cooking skills in advance of cooking this, there was no talking them down after. She also said that the more you make the spicey indian dishes the better you get at judging your spice mix and quantities. Apparently she was rusty, however the dish was very tasty and put many of those that are served in indian restaurants to shame. The rice was fluffy, not oily, there was plenty of meat and generous amounts of the sauce.



FOUZIA'S LAMB BIRYANI

1 kilogram of rice makes 10 portions. Expect to make the dish over at couple of days, as staged below, for maximum fluffiness of rice and tastiness of meat.

There were potatoes in this dish too but I don't have that in my recipe as written down.
I think they were cooked off at the start (?with the meat ? separate) then put aside and added back in at the end of the sauce making stage. I shall check this out and correct accordingly.

1. Soak Rice
1KG rice
Soak overnight before use for maximum fluffiness


2. Marinade Lamb
Ingredients:
1 KG lamb portions with bone (adds to flavour)(best ask butcher what is best cut)
1 lemon
Spices (can use a biryani spice mix as basis)
Teaspoon turmeric
Teaspoon cumin seeds
Teaspoon garam masala
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon or more chilli powder
7 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp salt

Give lamb portions a bit of a bash with a rolling pin to help it tender.
Mix lamb with all the ingredients, including both the juice of the lemon and the remaining lemon halves in a bowl.
Marinade for 4 to 6 hours or overnight.

When ready to begin sauce, cover lamb with water, bring to boil and simmer for half an hour. Drain meat, retaining all the meat, pieces of lemon and twiggy bits.


3. Make Lamb Sauce
Ingredients:
6 onions, chopped
1 bulb garlic, chopped
1 ginger root, chopped
5 big tomatoes, chopped
1 tablespoon salt
1 long green chilli chopped
1/2 tsp red chilli powder

Spices:
2 teaspoons cloves
10 bay leaves
3 sticks cinnamon bark (not cinnamon sticks) broken up
1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns
1 tablespoon whole coriander seeds

Fry onions in vegetable oil until golden over a good heat.
Add garlic and ginger, spices, mix well and fry for a couple of minutes.
Add tomatoes, salt, chillies and chilli powder and cook for 30 minutes on high heat. Stir regularly so doesn't stick to bottom of pan. If beginning to add some water.
After 30 minutes taste and add more chilli etc if required.

Add meat to sauce and simmer for 5 to 10 minutes.


4. Cook rice
Boil rice in an excess of water with a bit of salt until a grain of rice squashed with a finger is soft but has a little give, approximately 10 minutes (time will reduce with longer overnight soaking).
Drain rice.


5. Layer rice and sauce
In a large saucepan put alternate layers of rice and lamb sauce until all used up.
Cover the pan with 2 tea towels to make an airtight seal, then put the pan lid on top.
Put the pan on a very low heat, allowing the dish to steam for 10 minutes.


6. Make the chutney
Ingredients:
2 long green chillies
1 onion
4 or 5 spring onions
bunch mint leaves
1 1/2 bunch coriander
6 garlic cloves
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1 teaspoon salt to taste
ground black pepper
1 tomato

Put all the ingredients in a food processor and blitz. Keep in the fridge in an airtight jar till ready to use. The chutney can be stirred though natural yoghurt to taste and served on the side of the biryani.
Chopped cucumber and tomato can also be added.
And the chutney can be mixed with good old tomato sauce for a red chutney.

7. Serve
Making sure that you dish out portions which have both the rice layer and the sauce layer.

I hate to say it, but Autumn is making it's presence felt here. The mornings are growing dark, the minimum daily temperatures are falling and there has been a chill in the air on occasion. On the plus side the cooler temperatures call for hotter and heftier food, and this is just the thing. Just the thing to cook in a camp oven, over a wood fire, by an upstate victorian river at easter time maybe?