South Indian style fried chicken biryani…
Finger-licking delicious & aromatic chicken biryani with fried chicken in it. This is a South Indian style biryani & one of my favorite biryani recipes.
Making this biryani involves 5 steps: fry the marinated chicken, cook the basmati rice, make the chicken masala, layer the chicken masala-rice & dum cook the biryani. Though it’s a bit time-consuming, it’s absolutely worth the effort, as soon as you open the dum cooked biryani the mesmerizing aroma of the biryani will spread the entire house & everyone will be seen indulging in this biryani & raving about the amazing taste & flavor of this biryani.
Follow this recipe & make scrumptious fried chicken biryani.
Cooking Video
Fried Chicken Biryani- South Indian Style- Best Tasting Recipe
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
Author: Thasneen
Recipe type: Main
Cuisine: Indian
Serves: 5 people
Ingredients
For Marinating chicken
- Chicken legs or bone-in pieces- 8 to 10
- Ginger-Garlic paste- 1 tbsp
- Kashmiri Chili powder- 2 tsp (mild version)
- Regular chili powder- 1 tsp (hot version)
- Turmeric powder- ¼ tsp
- Coriander powder- 1 tbsp
- Garam Masala- 1 tsp
- Fennel powder- 1 tsp
- Water or lemon juice- 2 tbsp
- Salt- 1½ tsp
Cooking Basmati Rice
- Basmati Rice- 2 cups (soaked & rinsed)
- Ghee- 3 tbsp
- Whole cardamom- 3
- Whole cloves- 2
- Whole cinnamon- 2-inch slice
- Whole Mace- 1
- Warm water- 3½ cups
- Salt- 1 tsp
For Frying chicken
- Marinated chicken
- Coconut oil or Vegetable oil- 1 cup or enough for frying
- Curry leaves- 10 leaves (optional)
For Making Chicken Masala
- Oil left after frying chicken- 2 tbsp
- Coconut oil or ghee- 2 tbsp
- Onion, sliced thin- 3 large yellow onions
- Ginger-Garlic paste- 1 tbsp (use freshly ground ginger-garlic paste)
- Green chili, cut half- 3 or depending upon your spice level
- Tomatoes, chopped- 2
- Kashmiri Chili powder- 1 tsp (based on your spice level)
- Garam Masala- ½ tsp
- Coriander powder- 2 tsp
- Salt- 1 tsp
- Yogurt- 3 tbsp
- Fried Chicken
- Mint leaves, chopped- 3 tbsp
- Cilantro, chopped- 3 tbsp
For Layering
- Fried onions- 1 onion sliced thin and fried in the oil
- Raisins, roasted in ghee- 1 tbsp
- Cashew nuts, roasted in ghee- ¼ cup
- Saffron- 15 strands soaked in 2 tbsp water or milk for 5 minutes.
- Ghee- 1 tbsp
- Cilantro, chopped- ¼ cup
- Mint leaves, chopped- 10 leaves (use fresh mint leaves)
Instructions
Step 1: Marinating chicken
- I've taken 8 chicken legs, any kind of bone-in pieces can be used.
- Remove the skin & score the chicken or put a couple of lines over the meat on each side.
- Add all the above-mentioned ingredients for marinating the chicken over the chicken and combine well.
- Cover the chicken and keep it in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes or longer.
- You could even marinate the chicken overnight.
Step 2: Frying the Chicken
- Place a non-stick pan over medium heat, add oil.
- Let the oil turn hot.
- Place the marinated chicken and curry leaves.
- You can either deep fry or shallow fry the chicken, flip it over & fry until both the sides turn golden brown.
- Transfer the fried chicken to a plate lined with a paper towel and keep it aside.
- Save the fried curry leaves & the particles that are stuck to the pan.
Step 3: Cooking Rice
- Soak 2 cups white basmati rice in water for 15 minutes.
- Drain the rice in a strainer & rinse the rice under running water.
- Place a saucepan over medium heat, add ghee.
- Add the whole cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, mace & bay leaves, saute for a few seconds till aromatic.
- Add the soaked & rinsed rice, roast for 3 minutes.
- Add 3½ cups of warm water.
- For 2 cups rice, only 3½ cups of water is required. 4 cups of water will make the rice mushy.
- Close with the lid & cook for 10 minutes.
- After 10 minutes, open the lid most of the water must have dried off, there will be some moisture in the rice.
- Lower the heat & cook covered for 2 minutes.
- Remove the saucepan from the heat & keep it covered, the rice will set well.
Step 4: Making the Chicken Masala
- Place a wide non-stick pan over medium heat, add the oil left after frying chicken around 2 tbsp & add 2 tbsp coconut oil or ghee.
- Add onions & season with ½ tsp salt, saute until translucent for 5 minutes.
- When the onions turn translucent, add ginger-garlic paste, green chilies and fried curry leaves, saute till onions turn golden in color.
- Add tomatoes, cook until tomatoes get mashed up.
- Keep sautéing till the onions start to turn light brown in color.
- Add the chili powder, garam masala, coriander powder and ½ tsp salt. Combine well & cook for a minute.
- Taste and add salt according to your needs.
- Add yogurt and combine well, cook for a minute.
- Add the fried chicken, combine well.
- Add chopped cilantro & mint leaves.
- If the masala is too dry add 2 to 3 tbsp water.
- Cover the pan with its lid and cook the chicken along with the onion masala for 5 minutes.
- Remove the pan from the heat & keep it covered.
Step 5: Layering Rice and Chicken
- Prep work before layering.
- Fry 1 thinly sliced onion in oil till golden brown. Transfer to a paper towel & keep it aside.
- Roast ¼ cup cashew nuts in 2 tbsp ghee, keep it aside.
- Fry 1 tbsp raisins in ghee & keep it aside.
- Soak saffron in 2 tbsp water or milk for 5 minutes. Keep it aside.
- I've used the same large saucepan used for making the chicken masala.
- Spread half of the chicken masala as the bottom layer on the pan.
- Add half of the cooked rice, spread evenly on top of the chicken masala.
- If you have saved the fried particles left in the pan after frying the chicken, add that over the rice.
- Drizzle ½ tbsp ghee, drizzle half of the soaked saffron water, spread half of the fried onions, half of the chopped cilantro, half of the chopped mint leaves.
- Repeat these layers: again spread the remaining chicken masala & top with the remaining rice
- On the top garnish with fried onions, cilantro, mint, roasted cashews, roasted raisins and saffron water.
- Drizzle ½ tbsp ghee.
Step 6: Dum Cook The Biryani Over Stove Top
- Cover the biryani pan tightly with aluminum foil & close with the lid.
- Place the saucepan over stove top, keep the heat to low.
- Ensure the heat is low, if the heat is medium or high the chicken masala layer at the bottom of the pan will turn brown.
- Dum cook for 15 minutes.
- Take the pan off the stove and keep the biryani covered for at least 30 minutes.
Step 7: Serving
- While serving gently combine the rice and the chicken masala; serve along with raita, pickle, Pappadum, etc.
- Incredibly aromatic & delicious fried chicken biryani, enjoy!
