Pakistani Lamb Biryani

Total Time: 1 hr Preparation Time: 1 hr

Ingredients

• Servings: 6
• 1 cup canola oil
• 3 large yellow onions, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons garam masala
• 1 teaspoon crushed red chili pepper flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• 18 black peppercorns
• 9 green cardamom pods
• 3 pods black cardamom pods
• 4 inches cinnamon sticks
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 6 tomatoes, cored and minced
• 5 serrano chilies, stemmed and minced
• 1 1/2 inches piece ginger, peeled and minced
• 2 lbs trimmed lamb shoulder, cut into 2/3-inch pieces
• kosher salt, to taste
• 1/2 cup plain yogurt
• 3/4 cup roughly chopped mint leaf
• 1/4 cup roughly chopped cilantro
• 40 saffron strands, crushed (heaping 1ãƒæ’ 2 tsp.)
• 2 1/2 cups basmati rice, soaked in cold
• water, for 30 minutes drained
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin seed
• 4 whole cloves
• 2 dried bay leaves
• rose water (optional) or kewra essence (optional)
• red food coloring (optional) or orange food coloring (optional)

Recipe

• 1 1. heat 1⁄4 cup oil in a 5-qt. skillet over high heat. add onions; cook, stirring occasionally, until dark brown, 20–25 minutes. transfer to a bowl; set aside.
• 2 2. heat remaining oil in a 5-qt. pot over high heat. add garam masala, chile flakes, turmeric, 10 peppercorns, 5 green cardamom pods, 2 black cardamom pods, and 1 cinnamon stick; cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. add garlic, tomatoes, chiles, and ginger; cook, stirring, 2–3 minutes. add lamb, season with salt, and cook until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. cover, reduce heat to medium; cook until lamb is tender, about 1 hour. add fried onions, yogurt, 1⁄2 cup mint, and 2 tablespoons cilantro; cook, uncovered, for 15 minutes more. set aside.
• 3 3. put saffron into a bowl and cover with 1⁄2 cup hot water; set aside. bring 4 cups of water to a boil in a 5-qt. saucepan. add remaining peppercorns, green and black cardamom, and cinnamon, along with the rice, cumin, cloves, and bay leaves, and season with salt. cook rice until al dente, 5–10 minutes; drain rice and set aside.
• 4 4. transfer half the lamb curry to a 5-qt. pot. top lamb with half the rice. pour half the saffron mixture onto rice along with a few drops of rose water and food coloring (if using); mix into rice with your fingers. top with remaining lamb curry and remaining rice; drizzle with remaining saffron; mix. steam, covered, on low heat until rice is tender, about 10 minutes. garnish with remaining mint and cilantro.