Paneer Biryani

There is a very common everyday question in mostly every home - "kya banaye?".  Same is the case in my house too. As it was Meatless Monday, so no egg/chicken. Had my home made Paneer in the fridge, so just grabbed it and thought to prepare Paneer Biryani. This is my mother's recipe, being a vegetarian she used to prepare this frequently. She used to follow the entire process of dum. But morning = time constraint. Hence I just modified a bit of the recipe and here is your quick version ready. This biryani is quite easy and simple to cook, though it has a long list of ingredients. But I am pretty sure that nothing can beat the taste. So lets quickly have a look on the ingredients following with the method.

Ingredients

• Basmati rice : 2 cups 
• Paneer/Cottage cheese : 300 gms (click here for homemade paneer recipe)
• Yoghurt/Curd : 2 tbsps
• Garlic paste : 1 tbsp 
• Ginger paste : 1 tbsp 
• Onion : 2 medium 
• Tomatoes : 2 large 
• Tomato puree : 2 tbsps 
• Turmeric powder : 1 tsp 
• Coriander powder : 2 1/2 tsps
• Red chili powder : 1 1/2 tsps (adjust as per the hotness)
• Garam masala powder : 1 1/4 tsp
• Kasoori Methi (dried fenugreek leaves) : 1 tbsp
• 1 inch Cinnamon stick
• Cumin seeds : 1 tsp
• Star Anise : 1
• Bay leaves : 2-3
• Cloves : 4-5
• Small flower of Mace : 1
• Black Cardamom : 2 
• Oil/ghee : 2-3 tbsps (1 tbsp of oil is required while boiling rice) 
• Lemon juice : 1/2 tsp 
• Some mint & coriander leaves finely chopped 
• Salt (as per the taste)

Method

• Marinate Paneer : Add yoghurt, 1/4 tbsp of ginger and garlic paste, 1/4 tsp of red chili powder, 1/4 tsp of garam masala, lemon juice and a generous pich of salt. Keep it for 1/2 - 1 hour in the refrigerator.
• Wash basmati rice and soak it for 30 minutes.
• Boil plenty of water in a big pan, atleast 6 cups. Add salt and 1 tbsp of oil. As soon as boil starts add soaked rice and wait till they are 90% cooked (not completely). Once done let them cool completely. (I made the rice last night, so it was quite easy and less time taking for me in the morning to prepare the biryani)
• In other pan or wok heat oil/ghee, add all the whole species and sauté till they change their color and you can feel the aroma.
• Now add the finely sliced onions and fry them till they become golden brown.
• Add the ginger-garlic paste, once their raw flavor is gone, add ¼ th cup of water and cover with a lid. After 2-3 minutes u will see that your onions are well cooked and have become a paste kind of consistency.
• Now add finely chopped tomatoes and all the dry spice powder including kasoori methi and cook. After a minute or 2 add tomato puree, salt and fry for 2-3 minutes or unless the tomatoes are well cooked. Then add marinated Paneer & coriander-mint, mix gently and let it cook
• When masala is done and you can see the separated oil on the sides, add rice and mix gently.
• Cover and cook on the lowest flame for a minute and your Paneer Biryani is ready.

Serve hot with mint raita/pickled onions.

Note : You can prepare the boiled rice & marinate the Paneer in the night. This makes your task super quick and saves your time.

Thanks & Happy Cooking 

Priyanka :)