Egg Biryani

          

Hello, my foodie friends..........I hope you all are enjoying the holiday season and preparing and relishing the cakes, cookies, and a variety of desserts. What are your plans for the new year party? Do share them with me. If you ask me then ma and family like to enjoy the holiday season in a bit traditional way. Apart from indulging ourselves in cakes and desserts we also make some traditional Indian dishes. 

If you and your family are like us then we have got you sorted. If you have some guests coming your way then you can go completely traditional and some delectable Indian dishes. There are a number of such dishes up on the blog. You can check them here (click here).

Today in this blog post I'm sharing a Biryani recipe. This is I have prepared Biryani with Eggs. Biryani is a very popular Indian dish that is made or served on special occasions. Usually, Biryani is made from Chicken or Mutton but there are veg variations of Biryani too like Paneer Biryani, Veg Biryani, Soya Biryani. Today we're going to make Egg Biryani which is loved by the people who don't eat Chicken or Mutton.

So, let's begin with the recipe:

Mango Phirni

             

As we all know Eid is just around the corner so something special dedicated to Eid has to be there on the blog. What's better than celebrating a special occasion with a dessert. I have already shared many dessert recipes on the blog. You may check them out here (click here).

Phirni or Firni is a kind of rice pudding which is very popular in North Indian and Mughlai cuisine. This pudding is also prepared during the holy month of Ramzan and to celebrate festivals like Holi, Diwali etc.....

It's a very easy and quick dessert which needs very few ingredients. It's very similar to Rice Kheer but the difference lies in the kind of rice being used. Phirni is prepared from ground rice while the later is prepared from whole rice. 

So, let's celebrate this Eid with your friends, family members and Mango Phirni. 

Chicken Malai Tikka Kabab

            

Mughlai Cuisine is one of our family favorite. Whether it's a Biryani, Korma or Kabab we love them all. Whenever we go to a restaurant or any guest visits our home one of our all time favorite appetizer/starter is Tandoori Chicken. I have already shared the recipe of Tandoori Chicken on my blog. You may check it out here (click here)

Today in this blog post I'm going to share another delicacy of Mughlai Cuisine and i.e. Chicken Malai Tikka. Chicken Malai Tikka is one of those exotic dishes that you can make when you want to have a fancy dinner or want to impress your family members. These succulent and fragrant chicken pieces just melts in your mouth and taste heavenly.

These Kababs serve as a great appetizer and a complete party pleaser too. If some guests are visiting your place you can do the prep work beforehand and pop them into the oven before serving.

So without much further rambling let's begin with the recipe.

Shahi Tukda/ Bread Pudding

We all know Rakhi or Raksha Bandhan is just around the corner. It's an Indian festival which celebrates the loving relationship between every brother-sister. This festival has many historical stories related to it; Rajput queens used to send raksha (safety) threads to the neighbouring rulers with a promise to protect her in each and every circumstances.

Rakhi is a sacred thread tied on the wrist of brothers by their sisters which is embellished with love and affection. It is observed on Rakhi Poornima (full moon day) in the month of Shravana. This thread is considered very strong as it binds the inseparable love between a brother and a sister. 

This year I decided to make Shahi Tukda for my family to celebrate this festival. It's a royal treat for you and your family anytime. It's origin can be found in the Mughal era. Mughlai dishes are bit on the laborious side but this dish is very easy to make and you can do the preparations earlier and assemble it when you want to serve. 

I'm a big foodie for sure and I love to have something sweet after I finish my lunch but at the same time I'm calorie conscious too. So, I love to make such kind of rich desserts on special occasions and gobble it down. I have just toasted the bread slices in little bit of butter but if you want you can deep fry them in butter or ghee (clarified butter).

So, make this dessert this Raksha Bandhan and enjoy it with your family.

Malai Kofta

Malai Kofta....whenever I hear this name soft, tender cheese dumplings dunked in rich, creamy Makhani gravy comes to my mind which is enough to make anyone drool. After Paneer Butter Masala this is the recipe which is I usually prefer to order if I want to eat anything Vegetarian in a restaurant and believe me these two recipes can never go wrong.

Malai means cream and Kofta means fried dumplings. If I talk about only Kofta then there are many variations of making them either veg or non-veg. I have already posted a recipe of Nargisi Kofta Curry. You can have a look here (Click Here).

This particular recipe of Kofta demands for Paneer (Cottage Cheese) and Potatoes. Some people like to add chopped veggies too but I prefer them this way. There are many ways in which you can prepare the Malai Kofta Curry: 

• cashew nut + onion + tomato based gravy 
• onion+tomato based gravy
• tomato based gravy

Here, I'm showing you the first version as this is the one which gives the gravy rich, perfect and creamy texture. This kind of gravy is also known as Makhni gravy. You can prepare number of dishes with this gravy some of them are: Paneer Butter Masala, Murg Makhani etc. Here I have used very less butter but if you want you can make the gravy completely in butter.

So let's start with the recipe:

Paneer Korma

I know it has been quite a while since I posted last. The reason behind my long absence is: We moved to our new home. I was waiting for this moment for a long time and finally we did it...Yipppieeeee!!!!!

I was very much busy in every nooks and corners of my home. Starting from designing the interior, choosing right colors for the rooms to selecting the furnitures and electronic stuff etc. I could find myself passionately decorating each and every corner of my home, putting things around and again moving them to different places.

Now-a-days I'm shuffling things around my home and I'm really loving it. It means a lot to have your own home and gives immense pleasure to decorate your home. I believe my home is my reflection and it shows what I'm inside out. Yet, there are plenty of things to do which we had planned and yes believe me it's a never ending process. Last but not the least I would like to thank my husband who have shown full confidence in me and let me do whatever I wanted. My home is my canvas and I painted it with the colors of love, affection, trust and respect.

Enough of rambling, coming on to today's post: As we're little bit stable at our home, I can concentrate on my blog now. Few days back I made "Paneer Korma" for dinner and served it with white rice.

Korma recipes has its roots from the Mughlai Cuisine where meat or vegetables are braised in water, stock and then cream and cashew paste is added. Many of the Korma recipes include yogurt and coconut-poppy seeds paste but I substituted it with cashew-onion paste as I love it's flavors.

Let's start with the recipe:

Nargisi Kofta Curry

Mughlai Cuisine is one of the most popular cuisines in the Indian subcontinent. It's origin can be found back in Mughal empire where exotic dishes were prepared in the royal kitchens. Many of the dishes in Indian cuisine are influenced by their imperial cooking style.

Mughlai food is known for its richness. It is famous for the generous use of ground spices, nuts and dry fruits which make the dish quite spicy and give it a very unique aroma. The rich flavors and the exotic aroma are so tempting that can make any food loving person carve for more. 

The name of the dishes in this cuisine are so alluring that they invite you to try them out at least once. Whether its Biryani, Kofta, Korma, Shorba, Nihari, Haleem or Kebabs we love them all and usually end up licking our fingers. A huge thanks to the Mughal dynasty who introduced us to the special ingredients and techniques used in this form of cooking. 

We both are huge fans of Mughlai Cuisine and that's the reason our Sunday's are incomplete without Biryani and Shorba. I have already posted few recipes from this cuisine; you may check them out:

• Chicken BIryani
• Chicken Shami Kebab
• Kashmili Pulao (A fusion of Kashmiri and Bengali cuisine)

Today I'm again posting a delicacy from this cuisine which is Nargisi Kofta Curry. The term "Nargisi" is derived from the word "Nargis" which refers to "Narcissus"; a winter flower which has a yellow center with white petals around it just like a boiled egg. These koftas are hard boiled eggs coated with minced meat and then cooked in a gravy. When you cut the kofta it resembles the Nargis flower. There are two parts in making this recipe firstly making the koftas and then the sauce. The sauce can be a simple tomato based gravy or a Makhni sauce which enhances the flavors of these koftas. I prefer tomato based gravy over Makhni gravy to keep flavors intact yet adding a subtle richness to the gravy.

So let's start preparing this exotic dish:

Chicken Shami Kebab

             

Mughlai Cuisine - It's a cuisine which all Indians are die hard fans. Whether its Biryani, Kebab, Kofta or Rezala we all enjoy them equally. Thanks to the royal Mughal kitchens who taught us to cook these palatable dishes.

                 

The taste of Mughlai dishes varies from mild to spicy and flavored with whole or ground spices. My home gets aromatic whenever I cook something from this cuisine. Last Sunday it was Thanksgiving weekend and I made Chicken Biryani and Shami Kebab for our lunch. Yes, as I mentioned in my Chicken Biryani post that I cook Biryani on every Sunday but this time I wanted it to be accompanied with Shami Kebab.

Shami Kebab are small paties made from minced meat, chana dal (lentil), flavored with spices and served with chutney. The process of making these kebabs is little lengthy but trust me it's worth the effort. The hypnotic aroma of these kebabs and clean licked plates gives you a sense of contentment. 

So let's get started:

B for Biryani......Kolkata Style Chicken Dum Biryani

Biryani.......Naam toh suna hi hoga :) 

The name is enough to make anybody drool and especially the Indians. The origin of Biryani is still debatable. Few says that it was originated in Persia and then brought to India by the Mughal Emperors. However, some also say that the dish was known in South Asia even before Babur came to India.

Biryani is a medley of basmati rice, meat(chicken, mutton or lamb), potatoes, various spices and condiments. In India every house hold have their own version of Biryani. It is generally made in two ways:

1. Kachhi (Raw) Biryani: where marinated raw meat and partially cooked rice are layered and cooked on dum (steam) over low heat.

2. Pakki(Cooked) Biryani: where cooked meat and partially cooked rice are layered and cooked on dum (steam) over low heat.

For us, Sundays are always special not only because its a holiday but also because its on Sundays that our home is filled with rich, aromatic fragrance of Chicken Biryani. Yes, I love making Biryani on Sundays without it our Sunday is just incomplete. 

I learnt making this royal dish from my then colleague and friend Farina Sheikh. She's one of the finest cooks I have ever met. I still have the recipe in my diary that she had shared with me but I made slight changes to it to adjust our taste buds. 

Making Biryani is a lengthy process it needs lot of TLC (Tender, Love and Care) and the exact spices, you can't skip any step nor you can replace any spice with the other. But at the end when you serve it on your plate its a pleasure seeing the beautiful Chicken Biryani cooked with the aromatic spices and condiments. Your home even your neighborhood gets filled with its fragrance.

I firmly believe a person first eats with his eyes and then tastes with his tongue. So the look of the Biryani (or any thing you cook) is very important. There's no meaning of cooking a Biryani which doesn't even look like one. So few things to keep in mind while cooking it:

1. Use the best quality long grain Basmati Rice

2. Marinate the Chicken for at least 2-3 hours. Overnight is preferable.

3. Be cautious not to overcook the rice. So always keep an eye while boiling the rice.

Let me take you through the beautiful journey of preparing this royal dish.