Any Ismaili gathering is never complete without a Briyani dish. Growing up in Nairobi, the Aga Khan is known to be partial to the Ismaili version of the Chicken Briyani. Vancouver restauranteur Nash Mawani and his executive chef Nitish Saluja of Jambo Grill on Kingsway, Vancouver share their recipe for one of the Aga Khan’s favourite dishes – Ismaili Chicken Briyani

Ingredients

3 cups Basmati rice

One chicken (1Kg)

Three large onions sliced lengthwise

One onion chopped

6 to 7 small potatoes, peeled and quartered

One tin peeled tomatoes chopped

3 tablespoons tomato purée

One and a half teaspoon garlic paste

2 teaspoons ginger paste

Green chilies to taste

¾ cup oil

½ teaspoon saffron

2 cups yoghurt

2 teaspoons Garam Masala powder

3 tablespoons lemon juice

Salt to taste

Pinch of yellow food coloring

Whole Garam Masala

8 sticks cinnamon

8 cloves

8 pods cardamom

Marinating time minimum three hours

Preparation and cooking time approximately 2 1/2 hours

Method

Cut chicken into large chunks wash and drain.

Mix yoghurt, garlic, ginger, some Saffron, a little yellow colouring, salt, green chillies, chopped onions, tomatoes, tomato purée and half the quantity of whole garam masala.

Marinate the chicken in this mixture for 3-4 hours.

Transferred to saucepan and cook until chicken is tender.

Fry the 3 large onions until they are crisp and attain a rich brown in color, leave aside

In the same oil fry the potatoes and leave aside

Add fried onions (leaving some aside) and potatoes to the chicken mixture

Add garam masala powder and lemon juice mix well

Rice

Wash Par boil rice in salt water and drain

Heat two tablespoon oils with the remaining half of the whole masala until they splutter

Pour this over the rice

Mix the remaining food coloring and saffron over the rice; simmer over very low heat for about 15 minutes

Serve the chicken masala on a bed of the rice