Jonnyboy
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biryaniI'm making a lamb biryani with a packet of 'shan' special bombay biryani mix that has been lurking in the cupboard for ages.
Well, I'm the fool for not trying it sooner, it's flipping lovely, rich, hot and very, very nice, and I haven't even got to layering it with the rice yet.
Only downside is that the recommended amounts of oil and salt are obscene! 250g ghee or oil and 3 tablespoons of salt in the rice water! had to dumb that down a bit.
Don't think that the spice pack was much when I got it,less than a quid i thuink
Going to try and get a bit of spinach into the curry mix as well methinks.
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woodsprite
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MMMMMmm I love biriyani, sounds wonderful!
I made a tasty stir fry tonight, albeit that the ingredients were a little unconventional 
I used romaine type lettuce, courgettes, over grown radish, tomatoes from the garden together with soya beans, sweetcorn and prawns from the freezer. I didn't have any noodles so I used spaghetti in it too. It actually tasted quite good made with my usual stir fry sauce combo.
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Snowball
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That does sound like a lot of salt.
Sounds yummy though.
I am just knocking up a risotto with some of Alisons' wonderful chicken left overs.
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Louisdog
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Stop posting about curry when I am still stuck at work, and me cupboards are bare!
Seriously that sounds nice but I never heard of that brand, where did you buy it? I love biryani!
Edited to fix apostrophe before MJ appears and chastises me!
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Jonnyboy
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Tesco.
It's bringing back memories of the 70's with my dad cooking curries made with veeraswamy's vindaloo sauce, mullagatawney soup, turmeric flavoured rice and boiled egg on top. A real mouth burner! Gawd, wish i could recreate that
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Louisdog
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Boiled egg on top of curry, a 70s classic! But did it have the obligatory sultanas and apple?! 
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Jonnyboy
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Nope, it was all meat and lava.
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dragonnefyre
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I always put sultanas in my curries, whether they be vindaloo, madras, or opther hot ones, they help to tame the heat a little and add a bit of flavour.
I usually put a huge chunk of ginger and a lot of cashew nuts in. Remember Vesta curries? haven't made my own biryani yet. That is one I should do. But I will be using turkey. Less fat, healthier for me. Any recommendations for a recipe?
I'm at work as well, but I will have bangers and spuds to look forward to when I get home at 10:30pm, courtesy of the missus. Followed by popping off to my allotments to water my tomatoes. Might use my pushbike tonight. I haven't used it for a few weeks. I should use it more often, it is only 1 mile to my allotments.
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tahir
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Not really much of a one for biryani meself so no top tips
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Minamoo
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Oooh Biryani........ We always have it at weddings back home. There is nothing quite like mass produced biryina. I am convinced it's the only reason my sis goes to weddings! It's made in pots so big that it would take two people to circle it and they're half a man high! My mum makes a mean biryani. She says that the secret to making an excellent biryani is in the onions. She says that the flavour comes from them so you should always use plenty of red onions and cook them down till they are a deep dark brown. That and using fresh spices. She also always puts some raw ginger and garlic in and a whole, uncut green chilli. The also says that the longer you leave it simmering on the hob the better and at the very least you should leave it to simmer for 45 minutes before eating. It should also always be served with plain rice with a few drops of food colouring put in. The way we do it is cook the rice by the absobtion method and after all the water is gone and you cover it to let it finish off you put two or three drops of food colouring on top of the rice. That way some of the rice is died yellowy orange and the rest stays white. When you serve you fluff it all together and get a mixture of coulours of rice. When we have guests she will put raisins or sultanas on top of the rice topped with curry before serving. She will also fry some sliced onions till crispy and top them with it too. She makes an alternative one for the vegetarians that's made with sweetcorn instead of meat and then layered with white rice that is just undercooked in a see through pyrex bowl and topped with rice, cashews, sultanas and crispy onions and then covered with foil and baked in the oven. When you serve it people get slices of the layered loveliness. Oh God I miss mum's cooking!! 
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judith
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| Minamoo wrote: | | Oooh Biryani........ We always have it at weddings back home. There is nothing quite like mass produced biryina. I am convinced it's the only reason my sis goes to weddings! It's made in pots so big that it would take two people to circle it and they're half a man high! My mum makes a mean biryani. She says that the secret to making an excellent biryani is in the onions. She says that the flavour comes from them so you should always use plenty of red onions and cook them down till they are a deep dark brown. That and using fresh spices. She also always puts some raw ginger and garlic in and a whole, uncut green chilli. The also says that the longer you leave it simmering on the hob the better and at the very least you should leave it to simmer for 45 minutes before eating. It should also always be served with plain rice with a few drops of food colouring put in. The way we do it is cook the rice by the absobtion method and after all the water is gone and you cover it to let it finish off you put two or three drops of food colouring on top of the rice. That way some of the rice is died yellowy orange and the rest stays white. When you serve you fluff it all together and get a mixture of coulours of rice. When we have guests she will put raisins or sultanas on top of the rice topped with curry before serving. She will also fry some sliced onions till crispy and top them with it too. She makes an alternative one for the vegetarians that's made with sweetcorn instead of meat and then layered with white rice that is just undercooked in a see through pyrex bowl and topped with rice, cashews, sultanas and crispy onions and then covered with foil and baked in the oven. When you serve it people get slices of the layered loveliness. Oh God I miss mum's cooking!! |
That description is making me hungry - and I've just eaten!
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tahir
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WHere are you from Minamoo?
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Minamoo
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I am from Kenya actually. I'm an Arabish. "ish" cos there's some Indian and Somali thrown in for good measure! We have a very strong Indian and Arab influence on the Kenyan Coast so our food is full of all sorts of combinations of Arab, Indian and African. We use lots and lots of coconut in our food but also spices, eat loads of rice and chappatis (although what we call chapatis seems to be called parathas by the Indians!), Samosas, that kind of thing. But we also have loads of foods that I don't think you find anywhere but amongst the Swahili People. Things like mkate wa hafushi which is this triangular shaped bread made out of coconut milk, onions and ground rice and is cooked wrapped up in coconut leaves and baked. Or vibibi which is this deep fried bread-type thing. Made with a batter of coconut milk and finely ground rice with yeast and cardamom that is deep fried in a teeny tiny wok and comes out with a round top, flat bottom and a crunchy crispy sweet brown ring on the outside. Or my all time favourite..... mahamri which is a triangular shaped light, fluffy, puffy bread thing made with flour, yeast, cardamom and coconut milk (noticing a theme yet with the coconut milk and cardamom?  ) and when deep fried it puffs up and is all golden. We eat it for breakfast every day traditionally. With eggs it's heavenly. I like to stuff them with the scrambled eggs. Or Bhajias. We also eat it with chicken curry though. And some things like vermicelli which is eaten by Indians we have cooked in coconut milk with raisins and cardamom. If you ever get the chance to try Swahili food I greatly recommend it!
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gil
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| Minamoo wrote: | | But we also have loads of foods that I don't think you find anywhere but amongst the Swahili People. Things like mkate wa hafushi which is this triangular shaped bread made out of coconut milk, onions and ground rice and is cooked wrapped up in coconut leaves and baked. Or vibibi which is this deep fried bread-type thing. Made with a batter of coconut milk and finely ground rice with yeast and cardamom that is deep fried in a teeny tiny wok and comes out with a round top, flat bottom and a crunchy crispy sweet brown ring on the outside. Or my all time favourite..... mahamri which is a triangular shaped light, fluffy, puffy bread thing made with flour, yeast, cardamom and coconut milk (noticing a theme yet with the coconut milk and cardamom? ) and when deep fried it puffs up and is all golden. ....... If you ever get the chance to try Swahili food I greatly recommend it! |
Aaaah ! Sounds great. Feeling peckish now just reading this, and I've not long had my lunch.
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tahir
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Excellent. Glad to have you on board, now give us recipes
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tahir
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| Minamoo wrote: | | If you ever get the chance to try Swahili food I greatly recommend it! |
I can't recall ever seeing a swahili restaurant in the UK....
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judith
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And samples
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tahir
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| judith wrote: | | And samples |
Or an invitation to dinner....
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tahir
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| tahir wrote: | | judith wrote: | | And samples |
Or an invitation to dinner.... |
Or maybe both (are we sad to be so excited?)
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jocorless
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That has all just reminded me of the way my Dad makes Biriyani - He was taught how to make it whilst serving in Kenya in the Scots Guards in the 1960's I've always loved his version - It had to be served with loads of sultanas, cashew nuts, banana, finely chopped onion, shredded lettuce and chopped tomatoes - I'm hungry now  - Shall have to get him to make it
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tahir
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Banana? Real banana or plantain?
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jocorless
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Well he uses real banana, just chopped up but I suspect it may have come from using fried plantain but its not something that you could get over here in Lancashire in the 1970's and even early 80's but it tastes great anyway
Oh and I also remember having chopped apple and pineapple with it as well - all on a big plate as side dishes which you just helped yourself to
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tahir
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Certainly sounds interesting
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Minamoo
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Ooh we always have normal bananas with biryani! We don't chop it up before serving though. We tend to have a big bowl of them and have a piece of banana chopped off with your spoon/fingers with every/every other mouthful. I also like it with very ripe mangoes. It's the contrast between the sweet and salty that does it methinks. And it's always served with salad made of grated carrots, chopped tomatoes and iceberg lettuce.
As far as recipes go......I'll have a flick through my cookbook when I go home and post one up later. I can't remember quantities. I think mahamris are an excellent place to start and I have a foolproof recipe for them from my aunt. Ooh! There's one thing that my mum makes that I do remember the thingies for!
Mum's egg thingies:
4 boiled eggs
1/4 kilo of mince
2 medium onions - chopped
1 raw chilli - seeded (or not) and chopped finely
2 tsp garam masala
1 beef cube
4 curry leaves if you have them
2 cloves garlic - minced
small piece pinger - minced/grated very finely
Chopped coriander
salt and pepper to taste
juice of 1/2 a lime
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper/ 1tsp paprika
Fry off half of the onion till nearly brown, add garlic and ginger, fry till brown. Add mince meat, beef cube, curry leaves, 1tsp garam masala, cayenne/paprika and chilli. Cook till mince is cooked through. Stir in the other half of the onions, lime juice and coriander and take off the heat. Add salt and pepper to taste. This is the mince mum makes for samosas but uses for these things too.
Chop eggs in half, remove yolks. Mash yolks with enough of the mince to fill the eggs (will make sense soon). Add a little milk till it will form a ball. Press the mince mixture onto the eggs to form the other half of the egg. Make up a thickish flour + water batter as you would for bhajis or fish and chips but add to it some turmeric and cayenne. coat the eggs with the batter and deep fry till golden. Serve with wedges of lime (my fave) or a chutney of your choice.
These are unbelievably moreish and I always make at least two per person.
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jocorless
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Fantastic - So that is where he got the idea from He said it was but being in the Army I didn't know whether it was an Anglo-Indian thing or a more Kenyan way of doing things
Those egg things sound fantastic - I'm definitely going to try them
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Minamoo
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| jocorless wrote: | | Fantastic - So that is where he got the idea from He said it was but being in the Army I didn't know whether it was an Anglo-Indian thing or a more Kenyan way of doing things |
It's definitely not an Indian thing. That is 100% Swahili.
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tahir
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Bu Swahili is a fusion thing isn't it? A bit arab, a bit african
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Minamoo
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Swahili is a people who are the descendants of the children of Arab traders/settlers and local Bantu women when the Arabs first came to Kenya in the 7th to 8th Century. As such, the food is a "fusion" of Arab and African in the same way that English is a "fusion" of Roman, Viking, etc etc. While a lot of their food has borrowed from the other groups who they lived alongside, some of their food and eating habits are unique to them. So for example Biryani is an Indian thing that has been adapted but the bananas are a Swahili touch. Do you see what I mean or have I just gone and typed gibberish again? Just cos it makes sense inside my head doesn't mean it'll necessarily make sense outside it! 
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tahir
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Makes sense to me
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dpack
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yum
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vegplot
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We have banana with curries. Just slice it up put it on top. It sounds odd but it really is a very good mix. I wouldn't have done it if EV hadn't introduced me to it.
Minamoo! If you don't come to the next DS meet it there will be a revolt.
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Minamoo
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| vegplot wrote: | | Minamoo! If you don't come to the next DS meet it there will be a revolt. |
Lol! You have no idea how much I had wanted to come to it the last time but unfortunately I had other plans (that in the end fell through ) Is it a once-a-year thing or more frequent?
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vegplot
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| Minamoo wrote: | | vegplot wrote: | | Minamoo! If you don't come to the next DS meet it there will be a revolt. |
Lol! You have no idea how much I had wanted to come to it the last time but unfortunately I had other plans (that in the end fell through ) Is it a once-a-year thing or more frequent? |
Whenever it gets organised. There are some magic people here who are willing to put in the time and energy and to whom we are eternally grateful.
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