Recipes

Lamb Biryani

Dinner  Indian  Lamb/Sheep  Main Dish 

• Servings: 4
• Ingredient set 1:
• 1/2 c plain yogurt
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/8 tsp cayenne
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 lb boneless lamb, cubed
• Ingredient set 2:
• 3 T butter
• 1 onion, thinly slice
• 1/4 tsp cardamom (ground coriander may be substituted)
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• 1 1/4 tsp salt
• couple dashes ground cloves (or up to 5 whole cloves; I don�t like cloves so I cut it down)
• 1 cinnamon stick, broken in half or thirds
• 1 1/2 c long grain rice (basmati works well)
• 2 3/4 c water
• optional: 1/3 c raisins & 1/3 c cashews or slivered almonds.

Brown cubed lamb. Combine all other ingredients in set #1. Add browned lamb to yogurt mixture. Set aside.

Melt butter in saucepan. Add onions & cook until soft, about 3-5 minutes.

Add spices from set #2. Cook & stir for one minute.

Add dry rice, yogurt mixture and water, in that order.

Cover and simmer until water is almost completely absorbed, at least 20 minutes (it usually takes mine well over half an hour; I think it's my rice). Remove from heat and let stand five minutes.

Remove cinnamon sticks and, if used, cloves. Stir in raisins and nuts, if desired. Serve with bread.

Note: The turmeric can stain so keep that in mind for your stirring utensil, clothing and countertop.

I've made this a few times. It smells heavenly and has an exotic yet simple flavor. You'll want to check out the ingredient list before trying it since some of the spices aren't terribly common. It's good & it's simple and if you and those you cook for like variety & adventure, try it. It doesn't require a lot of supervision so it's good if you need to be able to walk away from your stove. It's easy to portion & freezes well.