It’s amazing how many wonderful dishes are made with chicken and rice. From fragrant, beguiling Chicken Biryani to the more austere Arroz con Pollo, you can’t go wrong. These are like braised dishes in their technique, but the results are moist rather than stewy; with a salad or vegetable, they make a complete meal.
The prince of chicken-and-rice dishes, simply magnificent but easy enough for a weeknight. The chicken is not browned, which actually makes it easier than many similar preparations. You must use butter, and a fair amount of it, and preferably good spices: cardamom in the pod, which is delicious to eat, whole cloves, a cinnamon stick and real saffron.
Ingredients:
- 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter
- 1 large or 2 medium onions, sliced
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 large pinch saffron threads
- 10 cardamom pods
- 5 cloves
- One 3-inch cinnamon sticks
- 1 tablespoon minced or grated fresh ginger
- 11/2 cups basmati rice
- 3 cups chicken stock, preferably homemade
- 1 whole chicken, 5 to 6 pounds, cut into 8 pieces, or any combination of parts
- 1/4 cup slivered blanched almonds
Instructions:
- Put 2 tablespoons of the butter in a deep skillet with a lid or a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When melted, add the onions, salt and pepper and cook, stir them occasionally, until the onions soften but are not browned, for about 5 to 10 minutes. Add the spices and stir for another minute.
- Add the rice and cook, stir them occasionally, until it is glossy and all the ingredients are well combined, 2 or 3 minutes. Add the stock, chicken, and some more salt and pepper and bring to a boil; adjust the heat so that the mixture bubbles gently but steadily.
- Cover and cook, undisturbed, until the chicken and rice are both tender and the liquid is absorbed, about 25 minutes. The bird is done when a thermometer placed into the thickest part of the thigh reads 155–165°F.
- If either chicken or rice is not quite done, add a little, no more than 1/2 cup, boiling water, re-cover, and cook for another 5 minutes before checking again.
- When the chicken and rice are done, turn the heat off and re-cover. Meanwhile, melt the remaining butter in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the almonds if you’re using them (if you’re not, simply melt the butter) and brown them very lightly, for just 3 minutes or so.
- Pour this mixture over the biryani, sprinkle with a bit more salt, and re-cover; let rest for another 2 or 3 minutes. You can keep the dish hot at this point in a 200°F oven for up to 30 minutes without sacrificing its quality.
Related Content:
Don’t take this too personal. What you’re making is not Biryani.
Easiest way to make Biryani is buying good curry add about 1 cup in a pot reheat.
Par-boil basmati rice in salted water with a bit of turmeric for 5 mins, rinse and add the rice and add 1/2 cup hot milk to the curry.
Cook covered at very low heat for 16 mins. Turn off the heat and leave it for another 15 minutes