Mutton Biriyani (Kannur style)

Biriyani is an integral part of Indian cuisine and is savored in almost all parts of India . According to Wikipedia, there are about 49 varieties of biriyanis seen in India, of which those made from fish,quail,hare & deer are also included apart from the common mutton & chicken varieties. The method of preparation &  tastes of these are different depending upon the region and they (most of them) are named based on their regions too. Of them Hyderabadi Biriyani, Lucknowi Biriyani, Sindhi Biriyani and Kozhikode Biriyani are a few famous ones.

Talassery/Kannur biriyani has also found a prominent place among these. What differentiate a Talassery biriyani from others is that this is made using a small variety of rice named Kayama rice/Jeerakasala rice instead of Basmati rice. Before it was not available in the other parts of Kerala than Kannur. I still remember we used to take a whole big sack of this rice while visiting our friends in Tvm. We used to pack this to this part of the world (UAE) too. But nowadays this rice is easily available in supermarkets & thus made our part easier. Need not ve to get it all the way from India now. 

Fresh corianders are the one essential thing tha we can't avoid here. Years ago when huge amounts were not available at hand, they used to plant coriander seeds all over on wedding occasions and all..

Now, the recipe.. this is the basic one which is followed in our place in Kannur (Taliparamba). My mom makes it this way & so do I. 

 Ingredients: (for the masala)

Ghee 1 Tbsp

Oil 2 Tbsp

Onion 3 cups

Ginger Garlic paste 3 Tbsp

Tomatoes 1 and1/2 large

Green Chillies 10

Mutton 300-400gms

Salt

Pepper 1 tsp

Garama Masala 1 tsp

Curd 3 Tbsp

Preparation:

1.Marinate mutton in curd, ginger-garlic paste and salt for atleast an hour . Keep this marination in freezer for better & quicker results.

2.Heat oil & Ghee in a pan. Add onions and saute for a while  till the onions turn translucent. Add crushed green chillies to it. You can add chillies according to your spice level. I used bird chilli here and was enough spicy for me.

3.Now add the marinated mutton pieces into it along with the marinated gravy. Add tomatoes at this stage and some garam masala to it. Cook till it is done. Add 1 tsp of pepper to this.You can pressure cook the masala too.

4.Take care that not too much gravy is t left behind. If masala is too watery reduce it in high flame & if mutton is already cooked well, you can remove the mutton & then reduce the gravy. Check the picture how the masala looks just after opening the pressure cooker and then reduced to a thick gravy.

5.. You can add 1 tsp of Garam Masala, 1 Tbsp each coriander & mint leaves. The masala is done now.

Ingredients : (for the rice)

Ghee 1 1/2 Tbsp

Oil 3-5 Tbsp

Onion 1

Cashew a few (about 10 or more)

Raisins a few

Cardamom 3

Cloves 3

Cinnamon stick 1"

Rice 3 cups (preferably Jeearakasala/Kayama rice); u can use Basmati rice too

Lemon juice 3 Tbsp

Salt

Boiling water 4 1/2 cups

B.)Preparation:

1.Heat oil & ghee in a  deep bottomed non-stick pan & fry onions in it. These are the onions we use for garnishing at the end. So it should be dark browned just as in the picture. Always while deep frying onions, we should take them off  from the oil a little earlier as about 30% of frying is done after we took them off. This is applicable in case of snacks and definitely the onions. 

2.Once onion is fried, take them into a tissue paper. Now fry the cashews & then the raisins in the same oil. Remove them also once they are done.

3.Now add the whole spices (cloves,cardamom & cumin). Let them fry till you get a nice aroma from it (just for a few seconds)

4.The next step is to add rice into it & fry/roast them  until they are slightly browned; about 5-6 minutes in medium-low flame. You have to saute in between, but take care that the rice is not further broken into pieces. This is usually done so that the rice remains separated even after cooking. I think this is done only when using Jeerakasala/Kayama rice. Now add required amount of boiling water to it.  During the whole process, take care the oil is not left unattended in between frying onions or cashews or spices . Keep all these things ready by the side & do it all one by one. 

5.Add lemon juice & salt to it.

6.When the water & rice reaches the same level, close the lid and allow the rice to cook. Just turn the rice over once in between and then simmer in low heat till it is done.

For Dum (Layering):

Coriander leaves 1/4 cup

Mint Leaves 2 Tbsp

Garam Masala

Method:

Take a non-stick or deep bottomed pan for Dum process. This process is usually layering the rice & masala alternatively so that the flavor of masala is infused n the rice.The aroma is locked inside.  You can line the pan if it is not non-stick with Ghee. Now put some rice on the bottom and then the masala, a little garam masala and half of both the coriander & mint leaves metioned. Now again layer the rice and the remaining masala,garam masala and the leaves. Top with half of the fried onions,nuts and raisins.

Now prepare a dough with atta and lock the mouth of the pan with this dough and lid. Now this is the authentic technique used. Otherwise you can just keep a weight  or a big vessel filled with water over the lid. This is then kept on dum on very low flame. I used to keep a lid between the flame and the vessel so that the bottom of the rice is not burnt. Some use oven for the dum process. You have to keep it on dum for 15-20 mts . You can use rose water or saffron if you like the flavor while layering. Saffron is to be soaked in warm milk atleast 1/2 an hour before.

Garnish with fried onions ,nuts & raisins & serve hot with kachumber,raitas, achars,,,,,,.... 

*** Some like more masala & some others prefer less. While attempting for the first time, reserve some masala by the side and then put the remaining on Dum. You can later on mix with the rice or serve separately on the table if you feel that the masala is not enough.


***Remove cardamom,cloves and cinnamon from the rice while layering in Dum. Otherwise many won't like to bite them while having their rice.