The comforting nature of food becomes really apparent when we are faced with cultural differences. As I wrote in these essays here, the differences between Indian food in North America and the UK can cause confusion and upset if it's important to you. A close friend from Ireland's family were visiting last week and a small group of friends were invited to an Indian restaurant to join them all for dinner. The entire visiting UK entourage ordered a biryani and I knew immediately there would be disappointment.
Instead of tucking into the fragrant dish of rice and spices proffered, they all sat patiently with their dinners untouched before them and I knew why. "Are you waiting for the curry sauce?" I enquired. They all nodded to which I told them that it probably wouldn't appear and the reason why I never order biryani in Vancouver. The cultural dilemma is this: in the UK, biryani is a rich, luxurious dish of layered curry and rice served with an omelet on top and a curry sauce by it's side. It's moist, flavourful and fit for royalty. In Vancouver (mostly) it's dry and sometimes quite boring, all mixed up together, no sauce and more like a side dish than a main course. The Brits complained and received a curry sauce which was not really fitting, an afterthought rather than designed for the dish. The whole incident had me thinking; despite realising that there are many regional variations, just what exactly is an authentic biryani?
Googling simply seemed to complicate matters, highlighting those pesky regional variations I mentioned to the point that it seems almost impossible to pin an authentic biryani down. (You can read for yourself what Wikipedia says about it here). A dish of rice flavoured with spices and some sort of meat seems to be the common denominator, (I once mistakenly ordered Biryani in a British pub and was asked if I wanted rice with it), flecked with saffron and a few other garnishes, such as sultanas, nuts and eggs. The concept of layering alternative rice and rich curry seems to be popular in authentic Biryani lands also, which leads me to believe the biryani served to my friend's family should maybe have been labelled pilau instead to avoid confusion.
I've made a few biryanis in my time and this one was not exactly authentic, the recipe labelled as a one pot baked chicken with fragrant saffron rice. There was no curry involved, (either sauce or integrated), but it was flavoured with spices and baked, the rice first being thoroughly washed and soaked for one hour, producing a slightly stickier, moist dish. The spices were delicate, just a whisper of a nod to it's original roots, but the plump, juicy sultanas and toasted almonds provided some texture, plus, fried chicken is always good...
Recipe : Baked chicken with saffron rice
Adapted from Under the walnut tree by Anna and Fanny Bergenstrom
I adapted the recipe to include chicken stock instead of water for the cooking of the rice as I felt it needed a little extra flavour.
1 cup basmati rice
2 tbsp olive oil, separated
3 cups chicken stock
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp saffron strands
2 tbsp hot water
4 chicken thighs
1 tbsp butter
4 whole cloves
4 whole green cardamoms
1 one inch piece of cinnamon stick
1 red onion, finely chopped
1/2 tsp ground cumin
2 tbsp almonds
2 tbsp sultanas
2 bay leaves
salt and pepper
First, toast the almonds in a dry pan over medium heat, shaking quite frequently until they are golden brown and smell wonderful. Set aside.
Place the rice in a colander and rinse several times with cold water, then place in a bowl with lots of water to soak for 1 hour.
Bring the drained rice, chicken stock, 1 tbsp oil and 1 tsp salt to boil in a pan over medium heat, cover and simmer for 5 minutes. Drain away the excess liquid and set aside.
Place the saffron in a bowl with the 2 tbsp hot water and let infuse for about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat the other 1 tbsp oil and 1 tbsp butter in a frying pan over medium heat and fry the chicken thighs until golden and cooked through. Place on top of the rice in the pan with any juices accumulated.
Add the cloves, cardamoms, cinnamon, onion, cumin, almonds and sultanas to the pan and drizzle with the saffron water. Tuck in the bay leaves, season with salt and pepper, cover, bring to the boil, then simmer, very gently for about 35 minutes until fragrant and fluffy. You can fleck the whole thing with some butter or maybe even ghee before serving if you like..
You may also like:
Easy biryani
Rice with nuts
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