Lucknowi Biryani

Ingredients

• •Meat
• •Rice
• •Saffron
• •Whole spices

Steps

1. 1Marinate the meat in yogurt, ginger-garlic paste, red chili powder, and a portion of the whole spice blend for at least two hours, or overnight in the refrigerator for best results.
2. 2Cook the marinated meat in a heavy pot with sliced fried onions over medium heat until it is about eighty percent done and the gravy has thickened slightly, then set aside.
3. 3Rinse and soak basmati rice for 30 minutes, then boil it in salted water with whole spices until it is about seventy percent cooked, still firm at the core, and drain immediately.
4. 4Spread half of the meat mixture in the base of a heavy-bottomed pot, then layer the par-boiled rice evenly on top.
5. 5Repeat with the remaining meat and rice, then scatter fried onions, saffron soaked in warm milk, and a drizzle of ghee over the top layer.
6. 6Seal the pot tightly with a lid, using a ring of dough around the rim if needed to trap the steam completely.
7. 7Cook on very low heat, or dum, for 25 to 30 minutes, allowing the residual steam to finish cooking the rice and let the flavors of the meat infuse upward through the grains.
8. 8Rest the biryani for five to ten minutes before opening the lid, then gently fold the layers together from bottom to top and serve hot.