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Kacchi biryani
Kacchi biryani (কাচ্চি বিরিয়ানি): Old Dhaka's raw-marinated mutton biryani
Kacchi biryani is the wedding dish of Old Dhaka: at every Bangladeshi biye the huge copper pots come out, and the lanes around Nazira Bazar are famous for it. 'Kacchi' means raw: the mutton goes into the pot uncooked, marinated in yogurt and spices, under a layer of half-cooked aromatic rice and fried potatoes, and everything steams together for over an hour so the meat juices cook the rice. Serve it with borhani, the spiced yogurt drink, and a salad of sliced cucumber and onion. The common mistake is under-marinating or using lean meat cut too large; small pieces of shoulder with some fat, marinated overnight in the fridge, cook through in time. Chef's tip: seal the lid with a rope of dough; if no steam escapes, the meat at the bottom becomes tender without you ever opening the pot.
- Total time
- 150 min
- Difficulty
- hard
- Serves
- 8
Ingredients
For the marinade
For the fried onion and potatoes
For the rice
Method
0/10 doneStep 1: Fry 4 onions in ½ cup vegetable oil and half of 2 ⅝ oz ghee over a medium heat, stirring, until deep golden and crisp, about 20 minutes. Lift out with a slotted spoon onto kitchen paper. Keep the flavoured oil.
20 minStep 2: Mix 2 ⅝ lb mutton or goat on the bone with 10 ½ oz plain yogurt, 3 tbsp ginger-garlic paste, 1 tsp chilli powder, 2 tsp garam masala, ¼ tsp ground nutmeg, 1 ¾ tsp salt, 1 tbsp sugar, 6 green chillies, half the fried onions (crushed) and 4 tbsp of the onion oil. Cover and marinate in the fridge overnight, or at least 6 hours.
Step 3: Rub 4 potatoes with a pinch of salt and fry them in the remaining onion oil over a medium heat until golden all over but still firm, about 8 minutes.
8 minStep 4: Bring 16 ¾ cups water to the boil with 6 green cardamom pods, 1 cinnamon stick, 2 bay leaves and the rest of 1 ¼ tsp salt; it should taste salty like the sea. Add the drained 1 ¾ lb aged basmati rice (or kalijeera) and boil for 4–5 minutes, until about 70% cooked: the grains break between your fingers with a hard core. Drain well.
10 minStep 5: Take the mutton out of the fridge 30 minutes before cooking. Spread it with all its marinade in an even layer in a large heavy pot (at least 6 litres). Press the potatoes into the meat.
30 minStep 6: Spoon the rice over in a loose, even layer. Drizzle with ½ tsp saffron threads soaked in 4 tbsp milk, 1 tsp kewra water, the rest of 2 ⅝ oz ghee (melted) and scatter over the remaining fried onions.
Step 7: Roll 7 oz plain flour into a rope, press it round the rim of the pot and push the lid down onto it to seal. Cook over a medium-high heat for 10 minutes, until you can hear the base sizzling.
10 minStep 8: Put a heavy flat griddle (tawa) under the pot to spread the heat, turn the heat to very low and cook for 1 hour 15 minutes without opening.
75 minStep 9: Turn off the heat and leave the pot sealed for 15 minutes. Break the seal and check a large piece of meat from the bottom: it must be tender enough to pull from the bone and steaming hot, with no pink juices. If not, reseal and cook 15 minutes more on a very low heat.
15 minStep 10: Serve by digging a large spoon straight down to the bottom so each plate gets rice, meat and a potato. Cool leftovers quickly and refrigerate within 2 hours; reheat until piping hot.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 820 kcal
- Protein
- 40 g
- Carbs
- 92 g
- Fat
- 32 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does kacchi biryani take?
- About 150 minutes in total: 40 minutes to prepare and 110 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 8 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- What can I use instead of plain yogurt?
- Sour cream or buttermilk, same amount.
- What can I use instead of chilli powder?
- Cayenne, half the amount (hotter).
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