Topic: Cheat's Gosht ki Biryani

[Peripatetic Phil]

Unable to get a remaindered free-range chicken, I settled instead for some remaindered New Zealand lamb (1/2 leg) and British beef (medaillons).  To prevent them from going off before I was ready to use them, I cooked them both (separately), cut into curry-size pieces, in a mixture of carried-forward pre-cook sauce (probably used at least half a dozen times previously), left-over home-made Madras sauce, and the remains of a not-very-impressive Vindaloo sauce left over from a Taj of Kent Chicken Vindaloo.  I cooked the lamb until almost ready to eat, then removed it from the sauce and set it aside to cool while I repeated the exercise with the beef.  I then took some left-over pulao rice and left-over boiled basmati rice and gentle mixed the two together.  I took a spice bag from See Woo and made up a Potli ka Masala with Indian bay, star anise, cinnamon, cassia, green and black cardamom, panch phoran, fennel, aniseed, cumin and caraway (I forgot the cloves), to which I added a little ghee, a little oil, and a little g/g paste.  I then put the Potli ka Masala in the bottom of a pyrex casserole, poured some boiling water over it, and put it in the microwave at 20% to draw the flavours out of the Potli and into the water, at the same time filling the casserole with the aroma of the spices and reducing the water content to the amount I would need for the next stage.  Keeping the lid in place, I poured out the remaining liquid into a jug, and as quickly as possible, put alternate layers of pre-cooked rice, pre-cooked lamb, and dried fried red onions, into the casserole, finishing off with plenty of salt and the liquid I had removed.  I then sealed the casserole with baking paper, foil and its lid, then into a low oven (80C) for an hour while I did other things.  At the end of the hour I removed the casserole, gently lifted the contents to re-mix them, then back in for a further 30 minutes at 90C.  A second lifting over, back at 100C for thirty minutes, stirred in a little chopped coriander stalk and served.  It was absolutely delicious. 

** Phil.

[Ramirez]

Sounds bloomin' lovely, Phil.

Got any pics?

[Peripatetic Phil]

Sounds bloomin' lovely, Phil.

Got any pics?

Herself took the camera with her for her MBA weekend and won't be back until tomorrow evening, but there is a little one lying around somewhere.  If I can find it, I'll have a go : there is still half of the biryani left, so a photograph remains in the realms of possibility !

[Peripatetic Phil]

OK, here we go : apologies for the lack of crispness -- I really can't cope with these modern compact cameras



** Phil.

[Ramirez]

Ah, a picture speaks a thousand words. Looks delicious!  ;D

[Peripatetic Phil]

Ah, a picture speaks a thousand words. Looks delicious!  ;D

I have to say, when I removed the cling film to photograph it, it smelled delicious : so much so that I was forced to eat a small amount for late-breakfast

If I were to repeat the exercise, I would make one change : whilst the Potkli ka Masala is perfect for keeping the rice free from intrusive small spices, I did find that I missed finding some big pieces, so on a future occasion I would leave some of the bigger spices (cassia, some green cardamom, Indian bay) outside of the Potli (i.e., put them directly into the rice ) so as to improve both the taste and the appearance of the biryani.