Hyderabadi Dum Biryani & Khubani Ka meetha

This is my contribution for Indira’s Independence Day Food Parade .I choose 2 dishes from my hometown Hyderabad. Hyderabad the capital of a south Indian state Andhra Pradesh. It is known for its rich history and culture with monuments, mosques, temples, presently for IT industry& off course the Hyderabadi cuisine. When Indira announced about the Independence Day Food Parade ,I was not sure where to start because there is so much to talk about Hyderabadi cusine.It’s a paradise for food lovers. Hyderabadi cuisine is a blend of heavy mughal influences, traditional Andhra and Telangana cuisine. some of the famous dishes include Hyderabadi Biryani,double ka meetha,khubani ka meetha mirchi ka salan, sheer korma as well as hyderabadi-haleem a combination wheat,meat,mixture of some spices, traditionally eaten by the Muslims during the holy month of Ramadan. No meal in Hyderabad is complete without Paan (betel leaf wrapped around a mixture of betel nut, aniseed, cloves, cardamom, and gulkand). There are Paan shops, almost one every few meters. Umm! staying here in the US I really miss all of this a lot. Here in the US every special dinner parties in my house has dum biryani & dessert khubani ka meetha, for which I’ll be sharing the recipe. There is more than one method of preparing a biryani, hyderabadi biryani is most known. Its preparation is a long, time consuming one, though the end result can make the time spent well worth the taste. Khubani is a sweet dish made out of apricots.khubani is an Urdu word for apricots. Khubani ka meetha is a famous dessert of Hyderabad. It is a popular & common dessert in Hyderabad wedding dinners.

Hyderabadi Dum Biryani:
Ingredients: Chicken/mutton-1lb Basmati rice-1ld (washed & soaked in water) Onions-2medium thinly sliced Cardamoms-5small Cinnamon-2sticks Cloves-6 StarAnise-2
Mace-4
Pepper-10approx
Fennel-1tsp
Bay leaf-2-3no
Thick curd-1cup
Chilli powder-2tsp
Turmeric powder-1/4tsp
Ginger garlic paste-2tsp
A bunch cilantro mint leaves chopped
Lemon juice-3tbsp
Ghee/oil-1/4cup
Saffron strands dissolved in warm milk

Method: Dry roast 3cardamoms, 1cinnamon stick, 3cloves, 1staranise, mace, pepper, fennel & bay leaf &powder them. Marinate the meat with curd, turmeric powder, ginger garlic paste, red chilli powder, Ground masala powder, lemon juice, half of the chopped mint&cilabtro & salt. Fry the sliced onions, till brown & crisp, crush & add half of it to the meat mixture & let marinate for 2-3 hrs.

In boiling water add the remaining spices &cook the rice until 3/4done.drain & set aside. Heat ghee in a thick-bottomed dish &add the meat mixture fry for a minute. Then add rice over it drizzle little ghee saffron milk. Remaining onions cilantro mint leaves. Cover the dish with foil& cover with heavy lid & cook on dum for 30-40mts on medium heat.

Serve with raita & Mirchi Ka Salan

Khubani ka meetha:
Ingredients-
Dried apricots-1cup (1packet in local grocery stores)
Sugar-1/4cup approximately
Water-to soak apricots
Method: Wash & soak the apricots in water for 5-6hrs or overnight. De-seed the apricots & crush them with fingers or hand blender in the water. Put it in a pan & add sugar according to taste, as apricots are already sweet. Cook over medium heat till the apricots r fully cooked .the color changes from light brown to bark brown. (When u break the seeds u get a small nut that can be chopped & garnished over the dessert before serving.)

Serve cold or hot with ice cream or custard.