Chana  Dal

Ingredients:

  • Chana dal
  • Carrot
  • pachforan or jeera seeds
  • bay leaf
  • dry red chilli
  • ginger paste
  • turmeric powder
  • coconut milk powder or very small pieces of coconut
  • salt
  • sugar free sweetener or little sugar
  • oil.  

Method:

Heat a little oil in pressure cooker, add little pachforan or jeera seeds, bay leaf, small piece of dry red chilli, little ginger paste and saute. Cut carrot in big pieces and add to the pressure cooker.  Add required quantity of chana dal, little turmeric powder,  little coconut powder or very small pieces of some coconut,  pinch of sugar or half a pill of sugar free, salt.  Mix well. Add 1 cup water.  

Close  the lid and heat in high flame.  When the pressure reaches maximum , as indicated by the sound, reduce the flame and keep in low for 20 minutes.   Switch off the burner.  Let the pressure subside by itself, then open the lid. 

Add water if required. It need not be too dilute.  Heat and serve with roti or rice.

Unroasted Mug Dal

Ingredients:

  • Yellow mug dal
  • few small pieces of bitter gourd (optional)
  • small piece of dry red chilli
  • radhuni  or mustard seeds
  • bay leaf
  • ginger paste
  • turmeric powder
  • ghee
  • oil
  • salt
  • little sugar or half a pill of sugar free

Method:

Heat a little oil in pressure cooker.  Add little radhuni or mustard seeds,  bay leaf, small piece of dry red chilli and little ginger paste and saute.  

Add the washed appropriate quantity of mug dal, turmeric powder, salt and little sugar or sugar free.  

Mix well.  Add about 1 cup water.  

In another vessel,  lightly  fry a few pieces of fiinely cut bitter gourd. with a little salt. 

Add this to the pressure cooker.  Close the lid and heat in high flame till the pressure reaches maximum. Then switch off the burner.  When the pressure subsides by itself,  open the lid, add a little ghee.  Add water if required, to have the dal  of your required consistency.  

Serve  it hot with plain rice.

Chicken Biryani (using Pressure Cooker) 

Biryani Ingredients:

  • Chicken boneless or with bones
  • Basmati rice, 1 heaped cup
  • onion grated
  • ginger paste
  • garlic paste
  • bay leaf – 2 big ones
  • plain curd 
  • 4 green cardamom
  • 4 cloves
  • a piece of cinnamon
  • a piece of star anise
  • a piece of mace
  • dry fried onion
  • Sunrise biryani masala
  • half packet
  • little  Kashmiri mirch powder
  • little turmeric powder
  • oil
  • ghee
  • salt 

Raita Ingredients:

  • Curd
  • finely cut cucumber
  • tomato
  • onion
  • salt
  • chat masala ( optional )

Biryani Method:

Marinate the chicken pieces with salt, turmeric, biryani masala , Kashmiri mirch powder, ginger, garlic paste and curd for at least half an hour. 

Heat a little oil in the pressure cooker. Add bay leaf, 1 piece and grated onion and fry the onion till light brown.  Add the marinated chicken. No need to add water, as a semi dry prep is required and water will be generated from the chicken. 

Stir the marinated chicken for some time. Close the lid and heat the pressure cooker in maximum heat. When the pressure reaches maximum, reduce the flame at low and cook for 20 minutes. Switch off the burner and  let the pressure subside by itself.  Open the lid, heat and make a semi dry preparation.  Keep aside.  

Cooking of rice:

Wash the Basmati rice and drain off the water. 

To a vessel,  add some ghee and oil, add  the cardamom, cinnamon, clove, star anise,  mace pieces and bay leaf and saute in low flame.  

Add the rice and mix.  Add 1 and three quarter cup water, appropriate amount of salt.  Mix  well and heat till boiling point. 

Cover and cook in low flame, until the water in the vessel  dries up. Check by opening the lid and inserting a spoon. Check regularly and be very careful that rice at the bottom of the vessel does not burn.

Now cool the rice and  keep aside. The rice this way will be partially cooked.  Try to remove  the garam masala and bay leaf pieces as they are visible in the white rice.

Now in a large vessel, layering of chicken and rice is done. 

Add some rice at the bottom of the vessel, then layer some semi dry chicken pieces on it.  Sprinkle  a little dry fried onion.  Repeat the process until layering of chicken, rice is complete. 

Add half cup water  over the mixture. Heat  and when the water gets heated up in a few seconds, cover and cook in low flame, until the water  in the vessel dries up.  Again be very careful that rice at the bottom does not burn by checking water level regularly. If rice is still not cooked, add some more water and cook rice until it is just cooked and free flowing.

Serve gently so that the rice gets a mixed colour which looks nice.  

Raita Method:

Take required amount of normal curd, beat it with a spoon to a smooth consistency. Add washed pieces of the above vegetables. Add some salt and chat masala (optional ). Mix well and keep in fridge before serving with biryani.