Did I mention that I gained a couple of pounds since January 2015? I am a bit of a psycho about weight gain. One pound, I freak out, so a couple of pounds is a big deal for me. I always eat in moderation but I added a couple of new healthy habits. I go on short walks throughout my long, boring work day and wear up jawbone to track my physical activity. I try to walk at least 10,000 steps each day. Also, I am eating more fruits, and fresh, organic foods, moderated my chocolate consumption and buying less junk food.
Many people do Zumba exercises or yoga. My husband runs. If I do any of those activities I gain more weight. Only walking and eating in moderation only work for me. What do you do to lose weight?
I always eat mindfully but love to indulge myself once in a while.
Last week I had Bengali fish fry and Rasgulla. This week I am back to my “eat in moderation” diet. I love making a low-calorie baked recipe because it allows me to eat guilt free. When I eat high-calorie fried foods my subconscious torments me with guilt.
Does biryani need an introduction? I don’t think so. It lives in the heart of every Indian. Some prefer it with potatoes while others like it with eggs. Despite being a dish found only in Indian cuisine there are so many varieties: Mughlai Biryani, Lucknow Biryani, Hyderabadi Biryani, Sindhi Biryani, Bengali Biryani, Ambur Biryani, Kachi Biryani, Konkani Biryani just to name a few. North Indian biryani recipes are very different from South Indian ones. In South India, adding curry leaves and mustard seed is extremely common.
I am not the kind of person who never gains weight no matter what she eats. That kind of metabolism is not in my genes. My mom still eats in moderation to stay slim and trim. People always want to know her trick for staying slender. When I was a kid I had a tendency of gaining weight super fast. This is why my mom always altered the high-calorie Indian delicacies to match our taste buds and diet requirements. This light chicken biryani recipe is her. She made this whenever I asked for a light and healthy chicken biryani.
I was in a mood for some restaurant style food but I am avoiding restaurants until our vacation in Italy. So I decided to make my mom’s light briyani recipe for date night.
Biryani is a perfect one pot date night meal. In my 1200-calories-a-day budget, I try to eat 300 calories for breakfast, 300 for lunch, 100 for snacks and 500 for dinner. One serving of my mom’s light chicken biryani is 411 calories and raita is 49 calories. The entire meal is under 500 calories. That’s not bad, right? It has 14.8 g of protein, 71.7 g of carbohydrates and, more importantly, it is not a bland diet food.
You can replace garam masala, mace powder and nutmeg powder with homemade biryani masala. I added 1 whole mace, 1/4 of whole nutmeg, 5 green cardamoms, 5 black cloves, 1 piece (1/2 inches) cinnamon bark, 1/2 teaspoon shahi-jeera, 1 bay leaf, 1/2 teaspoon white pepper powder to a spice or coffee grinder and made a dry grind of it. You can find the biryani masala recipe here.
Yield : 4
Ingredients
- Chicken
- 1 piece (1 1/2 inches) fresh ginger, thinly sliced
- 5 cloves garlic
- 1 red onion, half cubed and half thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup plain greek yogurt
- 1 pound bone-in chicken breast, cut into 3-inches pieces
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 piece (1/2 inches) cinnamon bark
- 4 whole black cloves
- 3 whole green cardamom pods, lightly smashed but whole
- 1 Bayleaf
- 1 dried red chile
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ground mace
- 1 teaspoon red chile powder
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- Salt to taste
- 1 tablespoon kewra water
- Rice
- 3 cups white basmati rice, washed and drained
- 6 cups water
- 1 Bayleaf
- Salt to taste
- 1/4 cup whole milk
- 1 teaspoon ground saffron
- Potato
- 4 small potatoes(1 ½” to 2 ¼” diameter), peeled and cubed
- 2 cups water
- 1 tablespoon kewra water
- Salt to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
- Layering
- 1 teaspoon ghee
Instructions
Chicken
1.In a food processor, combine 1/2 cubed onion, ginger and garlic. Work the mixture until it becomes a paste. Transfer it to a bowl. Add yogurt and chicken pieces. Cover bowl with cling wrap and set it aside for 1 hour in room temperature or overnight in a refrigerator.
2. In a non-stick pan, over medium-high heat, heat vegetable oil. Add cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, bayleaf and dried red chile. Cook it for 1 to 2 minutes, or until it starts to sizzle. Add 1/2 thinly sliced onion and cook for 6 to 7 minutes stirring continuously, or until its golden brown. Lower the temperature to medium-low and add chicken pieces with marinade. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes stirring often. Add ground nutmeg, ground mace, chile powder, and salt. Cover and cook for 20 to 22 minutes. Sprinkle in kewra water and set it aside.
Rice
1. Meanwhile, in a soup pot, add rice, water, Bayleaf, and salt. Cook uncovered for 15 to 17 minutes, or until it is halfway done. Strain it over a colander and spread it around two plates.
2. In a saucepan, over medium heat, heat milk for 4 to 5 minutes. Set it aside and add saffron. Stir to mix it well. Add saffron milk mixture to one plate of rice. Mix well until coated with saffron milk.
Potatoes
1. In a saucepan, add potatoes, water, kewra water, salt and turmeric. Boil it for 6 to 7 minutes covered, or until they are fork tender. Set it aside.
Layering
1. Pre-heat the oven to 400F. Have on hand a lasagna pan or 4-quart baking dish.
2. Layering:
- Add 1 teaspoon ghee and brush the bottom very well.
- Add white rice from one plate.
- Spoon some cooked chicken and spread it for another layer.
- Add potatoes and make another layer.
- Add saffron milk infused rice and spread it around.
- Add remaining chicken pieces and curry on top.
- Add remaining rice on top of the last layer.
- Cover it well with an aluminium foil and bake for 20 minutes.
I love biryani. That biryani looks so perfect. Beautiful clicks too. Your visual story amazes me.
Thanks a lot dear! <3
This looks brilliant! The photography brings the food alive. You are so talented 🙂
Thank you so much!
Dolphia , can’t wait to try your version of chicken biryani , and that too low calorie , Bring it On ! !
Oh , on a side note , I came across your blog post in Framed recipes and I couldn’t help but notice that in your advice to upcoming blogger- you hit the nail rite on the head, rather than sugar coating and saying follow your dream .
Enjoyed reading your article !