Hey fellow foodies, this wonderful chicken biryani dish is one of my all time favourites which I have been making for many years. It is an aromatic rice dish which requires preparation but then, the magic happens when it’s completely cooked.
If you like rice and chicken, you will absolutely fall in love with this aromatic chicken biryani dish and you will not stop eating even after you are full, how do I know this? Because I am still doing it even after all the years I have been cooking it, well, it’s delicious and very tempting.
This is also a dish, that you will find yourself (sampling) every time you go back to the kitchen, assuming you have some biryani left in the pan.
The chicken soup is made naturally from the chicken skin which is then used to cook the rice instead of just normal water and this ads another layer of aroma and flavour which you can’t get from chicken broth or any ready-made ingredients
The spices used are all mild which makes this dish aromatic rather than spicy and this is what separates this dish from the many different spicy chicken dishes.
I only use the chicken breasts, thighs and wings, but the original recipe that MAMA used to make uses the whole chicken. I find it easier to do it my way and you’re welcome to try different variations to arrive at what you prefer.
Watch the video to learn how to cook the aromatic chicken biryani step by step which shows you how easy it is to make this dish.
Watch how to make the Delicious Aromatic Chicken Biryani
You can also check out the recipe card for the list of ingredients and print it to your computer or copy it to your mobile phone for future use.
Another variation that I use with this dish is to brown the vermicelli with the onions before adding the rice which adds colour to the vermicelli, you can try both methods and decide which one you like better.
The preparation includes cutting the chicken to get it into small pieces for easier cooking. The potatoes are cut into small bite size cubes, the onion is cut into two halves, one half is diced for frying and the other half is sliced for the chicken soup. The garlic and root ginger are finely chopped to fry with the diced onions. The final requirement is to shred the chicken and have it ready to add to the rice.
If you buy the chicken from a local butcher, you can ask them to cut it for you which will save you a few minutes in the preparation.
Start by boiling the chicken, because it will take approximately 45 minutes to cook and then you need to let it cool down for at least 10 minutes before you can start to shred the chicken.
While the chicken is cooling down, you can start boiling the potatoes and you can shred the chicken halfway through, so that the chicken is completely shredded when the potatoes are ready.
You can start to fry the onions and get the rice ready after you add the garden peas to the potatoes, then you can add the shredded chicken, potatoes and peas in a timely fashion.
The rice needs to simmer on low heat for 20 minutes and for best results, the rice should only be covered by the chicken soup, this ensures the rice will cook beautifully with just the correct amount of liquid it needs.
This recipe makes enough chicken biryani for four people and I have always made enough for four people even when there were only 2 of us, that meant we had 2 meals each which has never been left for the next day, always finish all the chicken biryani on the same day it’s cooked because it is delicious.
And because it’s so tasty, I have often cooked this aromatic chicken biryani during Easter and Christmas holidays as a special treat.
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Easy Aromatic Chicken Biryani & Tasty Soup
- Total Time: 1 hr 40 mins
- Yield: 4 1x
Description
Hey fellow foodies, this wonderful chicken biryani dish is one of my all time favourites which I have been making for many years. It is an aromatic rice dish which requires preparation but then, the magic happens when it’s completely cooked.
Ingredients
- 1 Medium Chicken
- 500g Basmati Rice
- 2 Large Potatoes
- 1 Cup Garden Peas
- 1 Medium Onion
- 3 Medium Garlic Cloves
- 100g Vermicelli
- 1 tbsp Root Ginger
- 3 tbsp Coriander Powder
- 1 tsp Cinnamon Powder
- 1 tsp Nutmeg Powder
- 1/2 Cup Olive Oil
- 4 tsp Salt
- 1 tsp pepper
Instructions
- Cut the chicken into easy to manage pieces and place them in a large saucepan. Rinse the chicken, fill the pan with cold water and bring it to the boil. Use a slotted spoon to skim the rising foam until the soup water becomes clear. Add 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, 1 tsp nutmeg and 1/2 sliced onion. Cover the pan and cook on medium heat for 45 minutes.
- Remove the chicken and let it cool down for 10 minutes. Cover the chicken soup and turn the heat down to very low. Cut the potatoes into small cubes and place them in a medium pan. Cover the potato cubes with cold water and add 1 tsp salt. Cover the pan and cook on medium heat for 15 minutes until the potatoes are almost soft. Add garden peas, cover the pan and cook for 5 minutes.
- Debone, skin and shred the chicken. Use a colander to drain the water from the potatoes and garden peas. Add 1/2 cup olive oil to a large pan on medium/high heat. Add 1/2 diced onion and stir until they become translucent, add the chopped root ginger and stir for 30 seconds, add the chopped garlic and stir for 30 seconds or before they start to brown. Add 500g basmati rice and stir until the rice has been touched by the oil. Cover the rice with chicken soup and stir.
- Add the shredded chicken, potatoes and peas. Add 2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, 50g crushed vermicelli, coriander and cinnamon, cover the rice with chicken soup and mix well.
- Cover the pan and cook on low heat for 20 minutes, after 15 minutes, add 50g crushed vermicelli to the chicken soup. Cover the soup pan and cook on low for 5 minutes. Check your biryani rice is cooked before serving. Enjoy.
Notes
To save time, prep the potatoes, onion, root ginger and garlic while the chicken is boiling
You Can fry the vermicelli for 30 seconds before adding the rice to give them a brown colour
For a richer chicken soup, you can boil the whole chicken.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 1 hr 30 mins
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: Middle Eastern
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 820
- Sugar: 10.5 g
- Sodium: 2417.5 mg
- Fat: 29.4 g
- Carbohydrates: 128.6 g
- Protein: 16.8 g
- Cholesterol: 5.2 mg
Keywords: Aromatic, Chicken Biryani, Basmati Rice
