Paneer Biryani 2.0 (With Green Masala)

We both love Paneer Biryani. I had tried lot of variations earlier but liked this one of all. The richness and spices of Green Masala mesh well with the bland flavour of Paneer. Good for large get together and feeding a big crowd. I am glad that I can make fairly good and consistently tasty Biryani now after many trails and experimentation with different procedures and cooking mediums. The Biryani tastes better the next day when the spices are well absorbed.

Cooking time: 3o minutes
Preparation tim: 20 minutes

Ingredients:
Rice (Basmati) - 1 and 1/2 cup
Cottage Cheese ~ Pre-fried Paneer - 2 cups
Onions (sliced) - 4 cups
Tomatoes (chopped) - 2 cups
Cinnamon stick - 2"
Cardamom - 2-3
Cloves - 3-5
Garam Masala powder - 2 tablespoon
Nutmeg Powder - 1 teaspoon
Saffron strands crushed soaked in 3-4 tablespoon of Milk
Ghee
Salt

Green Masala -
Coriander leaves - 1/2 cup
Ginger paste - 1 tablespoon
Garlic paste - 1 tablespoon
Green Chillies - 3-4
Mint Leaves - 1/2 cup
Khus-Khus - 1 teaspoon

Biryani Masala - Around 1 & 1/2 tablespoon
For the Biryani Masala -
Fennel seeds (optional) - 1/2 teaspoon
Cumin seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
Mace - 2
Cinnamon - 1
Cardamom - 2
Caraway seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
Cloves - 3-4
Nutmeg (grated) - 1 whole - 1/2 for rice assembly + 1/2 for spice powder

Method:
1. Wash and soak Rice in water for 1/2 half an hour before preparation. Under cook the rice with 1:1 1/2 proportion of rice and water respectively. For 1 and 1/2 cup Rice, I used 2 and 1/2 cups of water. Cook with salt and few spoons of oil. Once done, spread on a tray and allow to cool.
2. Grind all the ingredients of Biryani Masala to a fine smooth dry powder and keep aside.
3. Grind all the ingredients of Green Masala with little water and keep aside.
4. In a deep dish pan, heat few spoons of ghee, add the spices - Cloves, Cinnamon sticks and Cardamom. Once they proliferate in size, add Onions and saute till they turn translucent. Add chopped Tomatoes as well. Once they are completely cooked, add the Green Masala and cook till its no longer raw and changes its color from bright green to mossy green. Once done, add the spice powder and cook to a collective consistency. Adjust salt and add 1/2 teaspoon on grated nutmeg powder. Add pre-fried Paneer at this stage and cook for 2-3 minutes with the lid covered. Turn off the flame.
5. Assembly: Take a deep dish Pasta pot or stock pot, heat few spoons of ghee to coat the bottom of the pot. This entire procedure needs the gas on low flame. Add a layer of cooked rice. Sprinkle Nutmeg powder and Garam Masala powder. Add a layer of cooked curry. Again top it with Rice-Nutmeg powder-Garam Masala powder and curry. Once you reach the final layer up and above, add few spoons of ghee on top of the Biryani. Sprinkle Nutmeg powder and Garam Masala powder. Pour the Saffron milk and cover the lid. Seal off the lid on the sides with a dough. Cook for 3-5 minutes maximum since the Rice and Curry is already cooked. Serve hot with a side scoop of Biryani. Supplement with Raita of Choice or Mirchi Ka Saalan.

Paneer Dum Biryani 1.0 (With Yogurt)

After having learnt the basic approach to cooking Biryani; I know love to experiment with different mediums and vegetables, meat, condiments to take the flavour to the next level. I chose a one-pot--dish to satisfy the hunger within stipulated time. I prefer Biryani over weekends, makes cooking easier and a wholesome home cooked dish full of flavour, vegetables or meat with few hours of labor.

I thought of Paneer Biryani which is easy and convenient. I clubbed it with Shan Pilaf-Biryani masala and cooked Paneer in Yogurt which offered good texture. I twisted the flavour at few places to create Hyderabadi style Dum Biryani with spices, condiments which complement Paneer. So I placed weight on the Biryani stock-pot and sealed the sides with foil to prevent the steam from escaping. The Biryani was just perfect.

Preparation time: 60 minutes including cooking time for Rice
Cooking time: 10-15 minutes
Yield: 6-10 servings

Ingredients:
Cooking Rice:
Basmati Rice - 1 and 1/2 cups
Oil - a teaspoon
Salt - As per taste

Paneer Gravy:
Paneer (pre-fried) - 200 gms
Ginger-Garlic paste - 1+1 = 2 tablespoon
Tomato (chopped) - 1 cup
Red Onions (thinly sliced) - 3 cups
Yogurt - 2 tablespoon
Cloves - 3-4
Cardamom - 1

Black Cardamon (Badi Elaichi) - 1
Cinnamon stick (Flat Indian variety) - 1 stick (browen into bits)
Ghee - 3 tablespoon
Salt - as per taste
Shan Pilaf-Biryani Masala - 2 tablespoon or Home made Biryani masala recipe

Biryani Masala: Grind to powder - Yields 2 tablespoon
Fennel seeds - 1/2 teaspoon

Cumin seeds - 1/2 teaspoon

Black Cumin seeds or Shahjeera - 1/2 teaspoon

Mace (Javitri) - 2

Poppy seeds - 1/2 teaspoon

Cinnamon stick (Flat Indian variety) - 1

Cardamom - 2

Black Cardamon (Badi Elaichi) - 1

Caraway seeds - 1/2 teaspoon

Cloves - 3-4

Nutmeg (grated) - 1/3rd of a Nutmeg

Red Food color (optional) - 1/2 teaspoon
Saffron (crushed in milk) - few strands

Milk - 3-5 tablespoon
Garam Masala powder - 2 teaspoon
Nutmeg (grated) - 1

Method:
1. Cooking Rice - Wash Basmati rice multiple times till the water is clear. Soak rice in water for 1/2 hour if possible. Cook rice in water with 1:1 1/2 proportion, with one teaspoon oil and salt. Once rice is done, spread on a long tray and separate with a fork if the need be. The drier the freshly cooked rice, the better.

Also, soak Saffron strands in some warm milk and set aside. Crush them lightly with pestle and mortar to get the heavenly color in milk.
2. Paneer Gravy - Heat a tablespoon of Ghee in a deep dish pan; saute cloves, cardamon and cinnamon sticks in them till the ghee turns fragrant. Saute onions till they wilt and are soft. Add Tomatoes, mash them to get a good dry consistency. Add in the ginger-garlic paste and saute well. Once the gravy is well fried, and oil oozes out, add the Biryani masala, Paneer pieces and saute to get an even consistency (I had pre-fried Paneer in little ghee and set it aside after thawing to room temperature). Turn off the flame, mix in the yogurt well and set aside.
3. Assembly - Take a deep dish stock pot. Transfer on low flame (this is key, do not turn flame to medium or high) and add a spoon of ghee, allow to melt. Add a layer of 1/3rd of cooked rice and paneer gravy. Mix the rice and Paneer well. Sprinkle Garam masala powder and some grated nutmeg on top of the layer. Add another layer of 2nd portion of cooked rice, sprinkle nutmeg powder and garam masala powder again. Add the last portion of cooked rice, sprinkle red food color on top of it. Slather few spoons of ghee, add crushed saffron milk. Cover the lid tightly and place some weight, much better if you can seal the sides for 5-7 minutes with a wheat flour dough or foil. Turn off flame after 5-7 minutes. Take a side scoop of Biryani and enjoy with Mirchi Ka Saalan or Raita of choice.

Verdict: The taste of Biryani was awesome and restaurant style. More often than not Biryani has a dry texture, to combat that I ensured the Paneer pieces get coated with Yogurt. Also the Saffron Milk hydrates the Rice while getting cooked on Dum thereby keeping the rice moist. Since I layered rice in different colors of white rice, yellow rice and red rice, it came out visually rich and appealing. This is a high-calorie recipe. For better taste and flavour, do not compromise on ghee.