Ingredients

1. Lamb – 600 gms
2. Oil/ghee – 1/2 to 3/4 cup
3. Onion (sliced) – 300 gms
4. Bay leaves (big) – 2

Roasted spices (Garam masala)

5. Cloves – 6 to 7
6. Cinnamon stick (2 inch pieces) – 2
7. Green cardamom – 5 to 6
8. Mace - 1

Curry

9. Black cumin seeds – 1 tsp
10. Onion (chopped) – 150 gms
11. Chilli powder – 2 tsp
12. Turmeric powder – 1 tsp
13. Water – 3/4 cup
14. Curd – 1/2 cup
15. Cream – 1/2 cup
16. Rose water – 1 tbsp

Rice

17. Basmati rice – 500 gms
18. Water - as required
19. Salt - as required

Additional ingredients

20. Almonds – 40 to 45 gms
21. Raisins – 30 gms
22. Cashew nuts – 30 gms
23. Mint (chopped) – 20 gms
24. Coriander leaves (chopped) – 20 gms
25. Rose water – 3 tbsp
26. Ghee (for layering) – 4 tbsp
27. Kesar colour or biryani colour
28. Milk (optional) – 1/3 cup

Method

1. Slice the onion for frying and keep it aside.
2. Chop the onions, mint and coriander leaves, keep it aside.
3. Soak almonds in hot water, keep it aside.
4. Remove the skin of almond and slice or chop, keep it aside. You can split the cashew nuts or chop roughly, keep it aside.

Roasting spices (Garam masala)

5. Pre-heat the pan and add all the spices. Roast on a low flame until you get a good aroma and a light change in colour.
6. Grind this to a powder and keep it aside.

Frying the onions for garnishing

7. Preheat the vessel with oil or ghee, when hot add sliced onion and cook until it is crisp, golden caramel colour. Remove and keep it aside.
8. In the same remaining oil or ghee, add bay leaf, black cumin seeds and chopped onions, fry till light golden colour comes. Remove the bay leaf and throw it. (If the oil or ghee is more for curry, you can remove some and keep it aside).
9. Add ginger and garlic paste roast for 3 min.
10. Add lamb pieces and roast for 3 mins. Add chilli powder and turmeric powder sauté for 2 mins. Add 3/4 cup water and cook for 10 mins on a medium flame.
11. Add yoghurt, ground garam masala and 1/2 the amount of almond pieces (chop or slice), mix well and cook till the mutton is cooked.
12. When the mutton is cooked and curry consistency is formed, add single cream and mix well, cook on simmer flame by closing the lid for 8 to 10min. The  lamb curry should be enough to coat the rice, switch off. In the last minute add rose water, mix well, and check the salt.

Rice

13. Boil the water, add rice, salt and cook till its grains are long and cooked 70% to 80 % & only, as when pressed the rice will break into 2 to 3pieces.
14. Strain the water and keep it aside.
15. Mix few mint and coriander leaves, few fried onions , few cashew nuts and raisins,  a pinch colour, rose water, mix all in the rice, but mix colour partly only in the rice, as  white rice should be seen.Keep it aside.

Layering

16. In the same vessel, in which lamb curry is cooked, take some curry and meat pieces in a bowl and keep it aside.
17. Add the 1/2the rice on the lamb curry, spread evenly, and add remaining few cashew nuts and raisins, few mint and coriander leaves, and fried onions spread evenly(keeping the few layering ingredients, for the next layer).
18. Add remaining curry and rice, spread the remaining almonds, raisins, cashew nuts, mint and coriander leaves and fried onions (keep some fried onions and nuts for garnishing in the end on the plate).
19. Add or sprinkle, some ghee, some milk and lemon juice evenly all sides.
20. Its ready for the dum.

Giving Dum

21. Close it with aluminium foil, then with the lid.
22. When you are layering the lamb curry and rice, keep the flame in simmer, so that the meat and rice gets warm, starts steaming. When you keep your hand on the top of rice you will see the warmness and steam is coming out. It will be easy for you to determine the cooking time for rice. Close it with aluminium foil, then with the lid.
23. Close the lid and simmer for 25 to 30 min as per the rice. Switch off and let it rest.
24. Serve hot biryani with any Raitha.

Notes

1. If the whole biryani is made with ghee (clarified butter), add ghee as per your requirement.
2. If the onions are fried in oil and the oil is more still for the curry, you can reduce it or instead of oil, ghee can be used or curry can be made with partly with oil and ghee.
3. The lamb curry should be enough to coat the rice and the curry should not be too thin or too thick.
4. Instead of biryani kesar colour, you can add real saffron (kesar) thread, put in aluminium foil few or a pinch of kesar threads and close the aluminium foil or make like a small pocket and heat it on a pan for few minutes , to release its colour or to bring out its more colour and then soak in hot water or hot milk, for the layering of the rice.
5. When the rice is cooked it should be partly done as the grains will be long but still raw when pressed in your thumb, it will break into 2 or 3 pieces. (refer my previous biryanis for dum and cooking rice processes).
6. You can use raisins and nuts as per your taste and the requirement.
7. Instead of rose water, you can use kewra water also.
8. While adding the single cream, simmer the flame and add the cream.
9. There is no rule for the ingredients added during layering of the rice; you can layer the rice and other ingredients as per your choice and taste.