This aromatic one pot rice dish from Chettinad Cuisine is made with chicken, rice, spices and coconut milk.

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 30 minutes
  • Cook time: 25 minutes
  • Total time: 55 minutes
  • Yield: 3 · 3 to 4
  • Category: Main Course
  • Cuisine: South Indian

Ingredients

  • 1 teaspoon fennel seeds (/ sombu)
  • 2 inch cinnamon stick
  • 6 cloves
  • 3 green cardamoms
  • 2 to 2 ½ teaspoons ginger garlic paste (or 1 inch ginger 4 to 5 garlic cloves)
  • Ground paste from above
  • ½ kg chicken ((1.1 lbs, bone-in or boneless whole cut chicken or thighs or drumsticks))
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons curd (/ plain yogurt)
  • ¼ teaspoon turmeric
  • ¼ to ½ teaspoon red chilli powder ((adjust to taste))
  • 2 to 3 tablespoons oil ((adjust as needed))
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 cloves
  • 1 inch cinnamon stick (small)
  • 2 cups seeraga samba rice (or basmati rice)
  • 3½ cups thin coconut milk (or 1½ cups thick coconut milk + 2 cups water)
  • ½ teaspoon salt ((adjust to taste))
  • 1 onion (large, sliced thinly about ¾ cup)
  • 2 to 3 green chillies ((use as needed))
  • 1 tomato (large, deseeded chopped or about ½ cup or pureed)
  • ¼ cup mint leaves (fine chopped)
  • ¼ cup coriander leaves (fine chopped)
  • 3 to 4 boiled eggs ((to garnish, optional))

Method

Preparation

  1. Grind fennel, cinnamon, cloves and cardamoms to a fine powder in a grinder. Add ginger garlic. Make a fine paste of all. If your blender doesn't do it fine, add curd mentioned for marination and blend. You can also use a hand pestle to do this.
  2. Add the paste, salt, curd, turmeric, chili powder and chicken to a mixing bowl. Marinate and set aside.
  3. Wash and soak rice for at least 20 to 30 mins. Drain the water. Keep your coconut milk and water ready.

How to Make Chettinad Biryani

  1. Add oil to a hot pot or pressure cooker and add bay leaf, cloves and cinnamon..
  2. Stir in the onions and green chilies. Saute until they turn golden. Add chicken and saute on a medium heat until the it turns pale and whitish.
  3. Add tomatoes, mint and coriander leaves. Cook covered on a low heat untl the tomatoes turn mushy. Chicken is almost half cooked at this stage. Do not cook on high heat as it will make the chicken chewy. Cook without lid until the moisture from tomatoes and curd evaporates completely.
  4. Heat water and coconut milk in a separate pot, until really hot. Pour to the pan and add rice.
  5. If making in pressure cooker. cover and cook on a medium heat for 1 whistle.
  6. If making in pot, Cook in open pot until almost the water is absorbed. Then cover and cook on a low heat until soft cooked. If the rice remains undercooked, you may need to sprinkle some water and cook until done.
  7. Allow the cooked chicken biryani to rest for atleast 15 mins. Open the lid and fluff up gently.
  8. Garnish Chettinad biryani with eggs or coriander leaves.

Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note

Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.