Egg Biryani : Egg-Mint-o!!!

Jiggi Jikka Jikka : Recently i saw an advertisement of a mouth freshner candy "Mint-O" that is available in mint, eucalyptus and green mango flavours. The commercial is quite funny and claims you will be "Jiggi Jikka" ( LOVED this phrase!! :)) fresh after you pop in the mint!! Mint-o's tag line is "Jab laila ko karna ho impress, khao Mint-o fresh" which means " Eat Mint-o fresh if u want to impress Laila- the girl"....
The ad shows how a village boy after popping Mint-O is able to impress the village girl over a village brat who does everything possible to lure her earlier.
Here is the ad :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PgLqutMZW7s

And yes, Mint-O is good :) Not to lure a girl, but just to get that fresh feeling in the mouth after you eat :) Food such as onions, garlic, eggs, meat always leave a foul smell in your mouth... Mouth freshners always work to the rescue... So, pop in a Mint-O after you eat Egg-Mint-O !!!! :))

Egg Biryani : Just the name makes me drool... Yes, am an eggetarian and i love eggs in any form...May it be boiled, scrambled, bhurji, omlette, half fry, egg curry...the list goes on....
I had made Veg biryani earlier, but never tried my hand at egg biryani...I was always under the impression that you only add eggs to the vegetable biryani and your egg biryani is ready!!! But i decided to make egg-biryani giving it a "hint of mint"... so this is mint rice with the egg biryani masala...It was the first time i cooked this and it turns out super delicious... i recommend everyone to try this recipe ( if you love mint )... If you don't like mint, you can make corriander rice or else leave the rice plain. The addition of mint also gives a nice green colour to the biryani. Make the Biryani only when you have time at hand because it does take a little time to cook, but trust me the patience is all worth it ...You can also make this in pressure cooker if you are in a hurry... but i always feel Biryani shouldn't be cooked in a pressure cooker, it should be cooked at its own pace and time. A mud-vessel is the best, but you can even cook it in non stick or any cooking vessel.

Ingredients :

Eggs - 3 ( Hard boiled, peeled and halved )

Basmati rice - 1 cup 

Cloves - 3

Cinnamon - 2 small sticks

Black peppercorns - 6-7

Cardamom - 3

Bay leaf - 1

Fresh corriander leaves - Around 1/2 cup

Fresh Mint leaves - Around 1/2 cup

Desi ghee - 3 tbsp + 1 tbsp

Green chillies - 2

Ginger - 1/2 inch piece

Garlic - 3-4 cloves

Ginger Garlic paste - 1 tsp

Onions - 2 medium ( sliced lengthwise )

Tomato - 1 big ( cubed )

Red chilli powder - 1 tsp

Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

Cumin seeds - 1 tsp

Fennel seeds - 1 tsp

Corriander powder - 1 tsp

Curd - 1/2-3/4 cup ( thick )

Garam masala - 1 tsp ( you can even use readymade biryani masala available in market )

Saffron - a few strands soaked in milk

cashews - 7-8

Salt - to taste

Recipe :

Wash the Basmati rice and soak it in water for half an hour. Drain the water after half an hour.

In a mixer, grind together Garlic ( 1/2 inch piece ), Ginger ( 3-4 cloves ), Green chillies ( 2 chopped ), Mint leaves ( 1/2 cup ) and corriander leaves ( 1/2 cup ). Add little black salt to taste. Grind to a smooth paste( Add only 1 tbsp water if required )

Heat 2 tbsp ghee in a pan... fry the cashews till golden brown. Drain and remove on a kitchen tissue.

In the same pan, add half of the sliced onions and fry until they are dark brown...Drain and remove on a kitchen tissue.

In the same pan, ( add more ghee if required ), add the whole spices ( Cardamom, cinnamon, black peppercorns and cloves ). Fry them for 10 seconds and then add the mint-paste and fry for another 30 seconds. Remove from flame and keep aside.

Add this mixture to rice and cook the rice uncovered ( on low flame ) along with 1.5-2 cups of water. Cook till the rice is done. The rice should be fluffy and not sticky. So fluff it with a fork after its done.

Heat 1 tbsp ghee in the same pan and add cumin seeds, bay leaf and ginger garlic paste ( 1 tsp ).

Saute for 30 secs and then add the remaining sliced onions.

Saute for a minute more and then add the corriander powder, red chilli powder, turmeric powder and fennel seeds. Saute for a while till everything is mixed together well. 

Now add the chopped tomatoes and cook on low flame till the mixture starts to leave oil ( here ghee )...the tomatoes would turn soft and the mixture will leave aroma..Add little water ( spoon by spoon ) if required... Let it cook for about 10 minutes.

Now add the curd and little water ( 1/4 cup ). Let it cook on low flame till the masala becomes thick.

Now add the salt and garam masala. Mix well and cook till done.

Now, in a vessel( Mud or non stick ), make a layer of rice at the bottom, spread the masala on top of it, place the halved eggs on the masala and then again spread the remaining rice on top. Its like a sandwich. 3 layers - top and bottom of rice and in between the masala and eggs. Add a spoonful of ghee on top ( optional). Cover and keep it covered for about an hour ( not on flame ). This helps the Biryani to set and the flavours to blend.

Just before serving, add the saffron milk and fried onions on top and mix in the cashews.

Yummyliscious Egg biryani is ready :)))

Happy Cooking :)