Prawn Biryani

Servings : Serves 4

One of my absolute favourite biryanis!! Even my darling hubby who is not normally a fan of prawns relished this meal and had seconds!! Spicy and tangy and utterly delicious, a truly awesome meal for all prawn-lovers!!

Ingredients

  • prawn masala (recipe link in instructions below)
  • 3 cups basmati rice
  • 1 tsp saffron
  • 4 cardamom pods
  • 2-3 cinnamon sticks
  • 2-3 cloves
  • 4 tbsp oil
  • salt to taste
  • 4 tbsp chopped coriander leaves
  • 1-2 chopped green chillies
  • juice of half a lemon
  • orange food colouring
  • fried onions for garnishing

Instructions

First, prepare the Biryani’s masala using THIS recipe.

Next, make the Biryani Rice.

Wash and soak the rice for about 20-30 minutes.

In the meantime, soak the saffron strands in some warm water and set aside.

Bring a big pot of water to boil, add salt, cardamom pods, cinnamon sticks and cloves plus about 2 tbsp. of oil.

Drain the soaked rice and add it to this water when it is boiling. Cook until the rice is about 3/4 done (takes about 8 minutes), then strain out all the water. Put half the rice back into the pan, drizzle another 2 tbsp. of oil and the saffron water. Add a bit of orange food colour on one side and mix it up a bit with a spoon then add the remaining rice. Cover the pot with a tight lid. Steam this on low heat for 15 minutes or put in a 180 C pre-heated oven for about the same time. Serve the rice with the Biryani Masala on top.

Alternatively, you can layer the biryani in the pot by placing the cooked masala between the layers of rice in the pot, then steam as directed, for about 15 minutes on low heat. This tends to infuse the lovely biryani flavor into the rice as it steams.

When ready to serve, sprinkle some extra chopped coriander, some chopped chilli for a spicier result and squeeze a little more lemon juice. If you have extra fried onions you can use them for garnishing. Mix everything gently together gently and serve!

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