Question : I need advice for making authentic Mughlai Biryani. Any tips? The restaurant Biryani I’ve had is generally fair to lousy. What’s the trick or tricks to making this dish?

Kuntal answers : Mughlai food is known for its richness. It is famous for the exotic use of spices, dried fruit and nuts. The Mughals did everything in style and splendour. Since they ate very rich food they reduced the number of intake during the day. Mughlai dishes as they are called have lots of milk and cream with spices to make rich and spicy meal that is the reason why Mughlai recipes are rich in fat, carbohydrates and proteins.

Even though the tips are helpful, they are not quick fix process to substitute the lengthy cooking preparation for biryanis which yields the desired result.

1. Make sure the rice which you use is the premium quality biryani rice which is less starchy than the rest of the rice. Wash your rice a few times and allow it to sit in just enough water for 15-20minutes. Drain the water before final use.

2. Use the papaya to soften/tenderize the Indian mutton to avoid the risk of them being not cooked fully with the rice if you are making “katchi” biryani (a biryani where the main ingredients like the rice and the lamb are both raw and cooked together unlike other biryanis where mutton will be cooked separately and then layered with rice).

3. The flavoring herbs and spices should preferably be used in the later stages, because prolonged use of them in the entire cooking process is just a wastage of their flavour and aroma.

4. The biryani in the last stage after layering should be cooked on a very low heat preferably on a hot plate to allow the steam to form and aroma to develop.

5. If you have pre-boiled the lamb for the biryani, try reserving the liquid/ stock to be used for biryani for extra flavour.

6. The lid for the biryani vessel has to fit snugly otherwise put some weight on top of the lid or stick together the side of the lid and the vessel with flour dough to prevent the steam from escaping.

Most of the restaurant biryanis due to the compulsion of managing cost are made to order; hence lack the complex flavour and aroma of an authentically made biryani. To see more of biryani, please refer to downloadable e-book available with us.

Tags: curries, tandoor, gosht, dhokla, bhatura, dal, bhatura, indian food, tikka masala, roti

Question : When making curry and adding coconut milk, should you heat the milk till it separates?

Kuntal Answers….

While some of the recipes require to cook the coconut milk longer along with the paste which act as a natural emulsifier for the milk and does not allow it to separate easily. It is quite common to see the fat from the coconut milk flowing on top of Thai curries and soups. In the Indian cuisine especially in the South India cuisine, most of the curries are thin; hence thick coconut milk is preferred. Reduce the heat to low after adding the milk and stir for a while to form an emulsion with the rest of the ingredients, allow the curry to simmer only to avoid the distasteful split which develops if one cooks on a high heat after the coconut milk is added.

Seasonal vegetable in coconut milk
Ingredients:

• 2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced into an inch
• 12-15 broad beans stringed, halved and cut into 1 inch pieces
• 1/2 cup green peas, shelled
• 1/4 flower cauliflower cut into medium florets
• 2 medium carrot peeled and diced into an inch
• 100 gm red pumpkin, peeled and diced into an inch
• 1 ½ cup freshly scraped coconut flesh, (white part only)
• 2 tbsp tamarind  pulp
• 3 tbsp groundnut  oil (olive oil optional)
• 4 red chilies whole
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tbsp coriander seeds
• 8-10 garlic cloves,  peeled
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• salt  to taste
• 1 tsp mustard seeds
• 1 tsp black gram split
• 8-10 curry leaves

Method:
1.Add warm water to one cup of scraped coconut and extract the first pressing using a muslin cloth. Next blend the contents of the muslin with half a cup of water until smooth and strain again using the same muslin/ cheesecloth. Keep aside. Dissolve tamarind pulp in half cup of water.

2.Heat a little oil and sauté 2 whole red chillies, cumin, coriander, garlic and the remaining half cup of scraped coconut until aromatic. Grind into a fine paste using little water.

3.Simmer the vegetables in the thin coconut milk adding the hard vegetables first in descending order with turmeric powder, tamarind extract and salt until three-fourth done. Add the ground masala and cook for 10 minutes.

4.Heat a little oil separately and add the remaining red chillies broken into two, mustard seeds and Black gram split. Add curry leaves and add this to the vegetables.

5.Continue cooking the vegetables till done. Then add the thick coconut milk and simmer for two to three minutes. Serve hot with boiled rice.

Bon Appetit !

Tags: handi, dal, bhatura, dosa, tikka masala, gosht, paneer, balti, kulfi, curries