Instructions

• You will require; two cups fine basmati rice, five hundred grams mutton (the sides from the leg are better for biryani), one fourth teaspoon saffron, two cups chopped onion, four green chillies, 2 inch piece of ginger, few garlic flakes, two bay leaf, one cup curd, one teaspoon red chilli powder, three teaspoon coriander powder, four pods of cardamom, four peppercorns, five to six cloves one inch cinnamon stick, half teaspoon shah jeera, one and half teaspoon of poppy seeds, seven to eight tablespoons ghee, eight cups water, salt to taste.
• For the mutton: Cut the mutton into medium sized pieces and clean them. Take the curd and mutton in a bowl and mix them. Do not add all the curd. Let the meat get marinated. During that time prepare the spices. Heat a pan and dry roast the peppercorns, cinnamon, cardamom, and shah jeera. Be careful not to burn them. Make a fine powder. Make paste of ginger, garlic and the chiilies (green and red both). Heat five tablespoons of ghee in a pan. Add half of the chopped onion (the remaining will be used for rice and garnishing) and the paste. Sauté it until the onion is soft and golden brown. After this add the mutton. Stir it well. Add the poppy seeds. Now add the salt to taste and the remaining curd. Mix it and let it cook until the mutton becomes soft. Now add the freshly powdered spices to the meat. Mix it and then turn off the heat. Make sure that a good amount of gravy remains.
• For the rice: Wash the rice and keep it in a strainer to drain the excess water. Soak the saffron in one tablespoon water. Heat the remaining ghee. Add the remaining chopped onions. Fry it for a few minutes and then add the bay leaf and cloves. Fry for a couple of minutes more. Add salt and then the rice. Mix it and then add hot water (not cold water). Add the saffron. Boil the rice, keep it slightly undercooked. Remove from the heat. Pick the whole spices to discard them.
• Now is the time to assemble the dish for final step. Take a handi or a pan. Make the first layer with the rice. Then spread the mutton over it. Again place another layer of rice and then mutton. Repeat the process until it is done. Cover it with a lid and seal the side with dough. Cook it in the oven for 15 minutes and at 150 degree centigrade. The rice of the biryani should never stick to each other. Garnish with fried onions. Serve hot with raita and chanp.

Photo Credit: Indo-curry.com/blog/hyderabadimuttonbiryanirecipe.htm