Chicken biriyani in pressure cooker

Ingredients

1. Basmati rice - 1.25 cup
2. Chicken - 250 gms
3. Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
4. Coriander powder - 1 tbsp
5. Jeera powder - 1 tsp
6. Curd - 0.25 cup
7. Onion - 1 large
8. Tomato - 1 medium
9. Green chilli - 2
10. Ginger - garlic paste - 2 tsp
11. Garam masala powder - 1 tsp
12. Coriander leaves - 0.25 cup
13. Mint leaves - 1 twig
14. Poppy seeds - 1 tsp
15. Fennel seed - 1 tsp
16. Cashew nuts - 4
17. Coconut - 2 tbsp
18. Salt
19. Ghee - 3 tbsp
20. Water - 2 cups

Spice ingredients

1. Cardamom - 3
2. Black cardamom - 1
3. Fennel seeds - 1 tsp
4. Cinnamon stick - 1 inch
5. Cloves - 2

Marination ingredients

1. Curd - 2 tbsp
2. Green chilli - 1
3. Ginger - 1 inch piece
4. Garlic - 3
5. Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
6. Salt

Procedure

1. Clean the chicken well.
2. Pulse the ingredients for marination.
3. Apply it on the chicken.
4. Keep it refrigerated for 1 hour or more.
5. Cut onion into thin slices.
6. Cut green chillies lengthwise.
7. Cut tomato into small pieces.
8. Soak poppy seeds, cashew nuts and fennel seed in water for 10 minutes.
9. Grind this with coconut into a smooth paste using a mixie. Keep this aside.
10. Rinse basmathi rice well with clean water.
11. Keep it soaked for 20 minutes.
12. In a pan, add 2 tbsp of ghee and heat it.
13. Add the rice after filtering off all the water.
14. Gently keep mixing the rice with ghee so that the rice is completely coated with ghee
15. Keep the rice aside.
16. In a pressure cooker, heat the remaining ghee.
17. Add the spices listed under spice ingredients and stir well till it becomes fragrant.
18. Add Onion and fry till it becomes transparent
19. Add green chillies and ginger garlic paste to this
20. Add red chilli powder, coriander powder, jeera powder and garam masala to this and mix for a minute.
21. Add tomato and curd. Stir till tomato becomes mushy.
22. Add half of coriander and mint leaves and stir for a minute.
23. Add the coconut paste to this and mix well.
24. Add chicken to this and wait till the entire chicken pieces change its colour to white.
25. Add hot water to this and allow it to boil.
26. Drop the ghee coated rice to this mixture.
27. Add enough salt.
28. Close the lid of the pressure cooker and switch off after one whistle.
29. When the steam is completely released, open the cooker and add lemon juice.
30. Fluff the rice with a fork.
31. We can garnish this with ghee roasted cashews, raisins and thinly sliced and fried onion
32. This yummy and easy chicken biriyani can be served with raitha and chicken curry!