Chicken in tomato gravy

heat 2 tablespoons of cooking oil in a kadai. add a few sticks of cinnamon bark and whole black pepper to the oil. then add the half a kilogram of chicken and saute on high heat for a few minutes. add half a teaspoon of turmeric powder to this and mix well. (for a spicy gravy, also add a teaspoon of chilli powder)

slice 2-3 tomatoes and add this to the chicken. add salt to taste. cook on medium heat till the chicken is done. garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot.

Mutton Biryani

Marinate half a kilogram of mutton (with bones) for a few hours with:
Salt (to taste)
half a teaspoon of turmeric
one teaspoon of chilli powder
two teaspoons of coriander powder
one teaspoon of garam or biryani or mutton masala
3-5 tablespoons of curd

soak 2 cups of basmati rice in warm water for about an hour and drain.

in a small cooker, heat 2 tablespoons of ghee and add cinnamon bark, bay leaves, cloves, cardamom, and black peppercorns and roast. add the marinated mutton to this and saute on high heat. add 2 medium sized chopped tomatoes and 5-10 slit green chillies, close the cooker and switch off after one whistle.

(note: you can also use a mixture of your regular cooking oil and ghee is required)

in a pan, heat 1 tablespoon of ghee and add cinnamon bark, bay leaves, cloves, cardamom, and black peppercorns and roast. add the soaked and drained basmati rice to this and saute. add half the quantity of water required to cook the rice and cook on medium flame till all the water evaporates.

in a kadai, fry 2 large onions in ghee till they are a deep brown.

mince mint and coriander leaves (to taste)

in a large pan, spread half the rice at the bottom. layer half the browned onions and half the mint over the rice. spread the mutton and gravy over this. spread half the coriander leaves and the remaining rice over the mutton, followed by the remaining browned onions and mint.

(note: at this point adjust salt and water quantities)

place a fitted lid on the large pan and weigh it down. steam the biryani till the bubbling boise stops and all the water is absorbed.

serve garnished with the remaining coriander and the juice of a lemon.

easy chicken biryani in a pressure cooker

marinate half a kilo of chicken with the following for about an hour:

salt - to taste
1 teaspoon of turmeric powder
1 tablespoon of chilli podwer
1 tablespoon of coriander powder
1 tablespoon of chicken or biryani or garam masala

soak a quarter kilo of basmati rice in warm water for an hour.

heat 1 tablespoon of cooking oil and 1 tablespoon of ghee is a thick bottomed pressure cooker. Add cinnamon bark, cloves, bay leaves, and cardamom, stir once, then add 1 large or 2 medium chopped onions to this. Fry till golden brown, then add 1 tablespoon of ginger and 1 tablespoon of garlic paste. Once cooked, add the marinated chicken and 3-5 slit green chillies. Close cooker and steam till one whistle, then switch off. once the cooker can be opened, add 3-4 chopped tomatoes and the soaked rice to the cooker, adjust water, stir well, then close and steam till one whistle again.

garnish with coriander and mint leaves, and lemon juice.

garlicky broccoli

steam 3 cups of broccoli over high heat till almost done. rinse in cold water and drain.

heat 3 tablespoons of oil in a kadai and add 2 teaspoons of mustard seeds. once the mustard starts sputtering, add asafoetida powder and 3 tablespoons of finely chopped garlic and 3 finely chopped green chillies. stir once and add the broccoli with salt to taste. saute on high heat for a minute.

chicken with raw plaintain

1/2 kg of boneless chicken
1 raw plaintain

rough grind the following :

6-10 green chillies
10-15 shallots
3-5 inches of mango ginger
3 cloves
3 cardamons

heat oil in a kadai n add a little oregano and a little black sesame to it. add the ground masala n fry. add the chicken with a pinch of turmeric and fry till light brown.

grind about 1 table spoon of black pepper corns and 1/2 cup of coriander leaves and add it to the above mixture with chopped banana pieces. stir and leave to cook. when almost done add salt and half teaspoon of fish sauce. cook till done.