Farm chicken, especially broiler, is popular for its low price, easy availability and short cooking time. As a good source of high-quality protein it is also in great demand in everyday diets. Broiler chicken is made into many dishes around the world, and in Bangladesh it is cooked as bhuna, roast, curry and biryani, among others. Of these, farm chicken biryani is many people's first choice because it can be made quickly, and this tasty dish is easy to cook at home with few ingredients.

First wash the chicken well and drain it. Then mix it thoroughly with yoghurt, ginger paste, garlic paste, ground cumin, ground coriander, chilli powder, salt and half the biryani masala. Leave to marinate for at least an hour to make the meat more tender and tasty.

Heat the oil and half the ghee in a heavy-bottomed pot. Fry half the sliced onions until brown to make beresta (crisp fried onions) and set aside. In the same pot, add the marinated chicken and fry it well over medium heat. When the oil rises to the top, add a little hot water if needed. When the meat is fully cooked and the gravy has thickened, take it off the heat.

Wash basmati or polao rice well and soak it for 20 minutes, then drain. Bring plenty of water to the boil in a large pot with salt and whole spices (cinnamon, cardamom, cloves and bay leaves). When the water boils, add the rice and cook it. When the rice is 70 to 80 per cent done, drain it. Take care that the rice does not become fully soft.

Spread the cooked chicken and its gravy over the bottom of a large pot. Lay half the par-boiled rice on top and scatter some beresta and a few green chillies over it. Cover with the rest of the rice. Mix saffron and kewra water into liquid milk and sprinkle it over the rice. Finally, scatter over the remaining ghee and some more beresta.

Close the pot tightly with a lid. If you like, seal the rim with dough or aluminium foil. Set the pot on a flat griddle and leave it on dum over the lowest heat for 20 to 25 minutes.

When the dum is done, open the lid and very gently mix the rice and meat so the grains do not break. Serve the farm chicken biryani hot, with raita, salad or borhani.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.