Chicken, peanut and lentil breyani

The classic breyani is one of India�s major contributions to the culinary culture of the universe.
Issue date: 04 April 2008

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Chicken, peanut and lentil breyani

The classic breyani is one of India’s major contributions to the culinary culture of the universe. The combination of tastes and textures delights all palates, while the hint of fire in the spices adds its own dynamic to the eating experience. Breyani is among the most hospitable of dishes. This recipe, while sufficient to feed four, maybe five hungry diners, can be extended to feed multitudes merely by multiplying the quantities of the ingredients. So, if you’re planning to make this breyani for 100 guests, you’ll start with nothing less than 12,5kg chicken breasts plus 1,25m of ginger root. And as for the chillies

• 500g chicken breasts • 100g lentils • 100g raw peanuts • 4 cups of white rice • 3 chillies • 3 onions • 3 cloves of garlic • 50mm of fresh ginger rhizome • 4 sticks of cinnamon • 2 bay leaves • 4 sprigs of curry leaf • 4 sprigs of dhania (coriander leaf) • 4 white cardamoms • 2 tomatoes • 1 teaspoon of cumin seeds • 1 teaspoon of coriander seeds • 1 teaspoon of mustard seeds • 1 teaspoon of green cardamom • 1 teaspoon ground turmeric


Spicing up the plate and palate

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OK, let’s get this show on the road! Pour the cumin, coriander and mustard seeds into a food processor or electric spice grinder and add the teaspoon of green cardamom. Rev this to the red line, reducing the spices to fragrant dust. Pour into a vessel, add the teaspoon of ground turmeric and you’ve got the start of the basic marsala or spice mix. Next, boil the rice for the time suggested on the packet. Drain and reserve. Do the same for the lentils, or to speed things up a bit, use canned lentils instead. Crush and mince the garlic, peel and chop the ginger, peel and thinly slice the onions, chop the chillies. Add the curry leaves, whole white cardamoms, bay leaves and whole cinnamon sticks. Sweat the mixture in a couple of tablespoons of sunflower or canola oil in a frying pan, until the onions are soft and translucent. Remove and reserve. Fillet the breasts and cut them into stir-fry-sized pieces. Add these to the lightly oiled empty frying pan, add the marsala and sauté until done to your liking. Return the onion and spice mix to the frying pan and, over low heat, stir well to ensure an even distribution of the ingredients. If needed, add another tablespoon of oil. Add the cooked lentils and the raw peanuts and stir well. N ow for the final assembly! Choose a suitable serving vessel, big enough to contain all the rice as well as the chicken, onion, lentil, peanut and spices mixture. Stir well. Garnish the final breyani with fresh dhania leaves. A s side dishes, prepare some sliced cucumber in plain yoghurt with a pinch of marsala added as a garnish. Green mango atchar adds its own special piquancy to the meal, while a bowl of coarsely chopped tomato and raw onion revved up with chopped green chillies will give diners that great mouth explosion every chilli lover wants. – David Basckin