Recipe: Biriani

Another dish that originated from the Kenya Coast. Make biriani with this recipe:

• 2 pounds Meat (a lean cut of beef, goat or chicken)
• 2 pounds Rice
• 2 pounds Onions
• 2 pounds Potatoes
• 1 medium size unripe pawpaw
• 1.5 cups sour milk or yogurt
• 2 limes
• 1/2 pound Tomatoes
• 1 small bulb of garlic
• Small piece of fresh green ginger
• 4 cardamom pods
• 4 cloves
• 2 small sticks cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon each of cumin seeds, coriander seeds, and whole black peppercorns
• Oil for frying
• 1 smallest size can tomato paste
  

Peel pawpaw, remove seeds, and grate coarsely. Pound the garlic and ginger to a paste. Cut the meat into biggish pieces and put into a heavy saucepan with the pawpaw and garlic and ginger. Add the sour milk or yogurt, and the juice of the two limes. Set over a low heat and stir at intervals. While this is cooking, grind all the spices together and set aside. Slice the onions and fry in oil until brown and crisp. Remove from the fat. Peel and slice the potatoes and fry in the same oil until golden brown. Remove and keep on one side - apart from the onions. Check the meat to see if it is nearly ready, then add the spices and the skinned tomatoes together with 4-5 tablespoons of the fat used to fry the onions and potatoes. Mix together well, then add the tomato paste. Continue cooking over low heat until the meat is really tender and the sauce thick and creamy. It is almost certain you will have to add a little warm water before the meat is cooked. Cook for a final 15 - 20 minutes to make sure all the flavors have blended together.

Prepare and cook the rice. Put a good layer of the rice at the bottom of a fireproof dish or casserole. Pour over the meat mixture, and cover completely with another layer of rice. Now put in the fried onions, reserving a few for decoration, and cover them with the rest of the rice. Boil up the remaining oil and pour over. Take the sliced potatoes and tuck them at the edge of the dish, and across the top, pushing them into the rice. Sprinkle with the reserved onions about 30 minutes. Do not let it become dry. Biriani can be served at table in the casserole if it is decorative one, or else you will have to remove the meat and the vegetables keeping the layers as cooked and serve on a big platter.