Chicken Briani (Briani Poulet)

    Déjeuner & Dîner · Poulet · Riz · Main Meal · Plat Principal

    Of Indian origin, briani is very popular in Mauritius, with an authentic and very special flavour of its own. Made with chicken, beef, or lamb, seasoned with spices, it's a pure delight.

    Ingredients

    • For the marinade
    • 3 tablespoons Briani spices
    • 6 cardamom pods
    • 5 cloves
    • 1 cinnamon stick
    • 1 crumbled chicken stock cube
    • Saffron pistils (Jaffran)
    • Salt
    • Pepper
    • Some sprigs of fresh chopped coriander
    • Some sprigs of fresh chopped mint
    • 1/2 lemon juice
    • 2 tablespoons garlic and ginger paste (if you don't have any ready-made, you can make your own mixture by putting equal amounts of blended or grated garlic and ginger together)
    • 1 plain unsweetened yogurt
    • Two tablespoons vegetable oil
    • One whole chicken cut into pieces, about 1.5 kg
    • For the rice
    • 500g to 600g pre-cooked Basmati rice (it must have been well washed to remove all starch and be granular)
    • For the rest of the dish
    • 2 large onions cut into half-slices
    • 4 medium pre-cooked potatoes cut into quarters or halves lengthwise
    • 11g fresh coriander
    • 11g fresh mint
    • Saffron pistils
    • 1 and a half tablespoons Briani spices
    • Spice mixture (the same as for the marinade)
    • Oil and Ghee (Indian clarified butter) or normal butter (otherwise, prepare your own ghee by heating butter in a small saucepan and removing the cream that rises to the top)
    • Salt & pepper

    Method

    1. Cut the chicken into pieces. In a salad bowl, mix all the marinade ingredients and add the chicken. Let marinate overnight.
    2. Fry the onions in a little oil and ghee until they are well browned.
    3. Add the chicken to the fried onions and sauté well, add a little water. At the same time, cook the seasoned rice until it is half-cooked.
    4. Then add the rice on top of the sautéed chicken and do not mix.
    5. On top of the rice, sprinkle with saffron, fried onions (from a packet), Briani spices and cover. Let it cook on low heat for at least 30 minutes.
    6. Once cooked, add a knob of butter, sprinkle with fresh herbs.

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