Chicken seekh kebab biryani – so well balanced, so aromatic and topped with fried onions!
Biryani is an emotion, much like butter chicken. Everyone has their favourites and always favour one over the other. I am more of a classic, no masala lover, sweet caramelized onions, lots of aromats and topped with crunchy fried onions.
This is a cheat recipe with ready to eat seekh kebabs which actually turn out pretty awesome. Love a good slow cook, but for lazy days, this is a perfect hot of aroma and flavour with the chicken kebabs.
Try some of my other biryani favourites –
Mushroom biryani
Jackfruit biryani
Mutton biryani with coconut milk
Ingredients for chicken seekh kebab biryani – serves 2
- Ghee – 2 tbsp
- Bay leaves – 2, small leaves
- Cinnamon – 1/2 inch piece
- Green cardamom – 3
- Black cardamom – 1
- Star anise – 1/4 inch piece
- Coriander powder – 1 tsp
- Salt – 1/2 tsp
- Onions – 2 cups, sliced, divided
- Ginger and garlic paste – 2 tbsp
- Rice – 1 cup
- Chicken seekh kebab – 18 bite-sized pieces (I used ready to cook ones from Meatzza)
- Orange and yellow food colour – 1 pinch each
Method
- Cook the rice with salt till about 80% done.
- Soak the seekh kebabs in warm water.
- Heat ghee in a kadhai. Add the bay leaves, green and black cardamom, star anise, and cinnamon stick. Stir and cook for 1 minute.
- Add 1 cup of onion, coriander powder, salt and ginger-garlic paste. Cook on medium heat for about 8 to 10 minutes. Splash with some water and lightly caramelize the onions.
- Add the kebabs to the pan and lightly toss on medium heat for 5 minutes. Remove from the pan.
- Divide the rice and kebab mix into two. Layer the biryani by adding one half of the rice mix to the same kadhai. Top with the kebab mix, layer with leftover rice and kebab.
- Dissolve both the colours in about 2 tbsp water each and drizzle on different sides of the kadhai.
- Add 1/4 cup water, cover and cook for 10 minutes on low heat.
- In the meantime fry your onions to top the biryani with. In another kadhai heat oil. Add the remaining 1 cup of sliced onions and cook on medium-low heat. Keep turning them over to avoid burning. It will take about 10 minutes to get them crispy and caramelized. Drain extra oil on a kitchen towel.
- Serve your biryani with fresh coriander, fried onions and raita.