Ingredients

• 1 kg. chicken
• ½ kg. Basmati rice, washed and soaked
• 2 cups yogurt beaten
• ½ kg. onions, sliced
• 250 gms. Tomatoes, sliced
• 7 to 8 boiled eggs
• ½ kg. potatoes, peeled and halved horizontally
• ½ cup cashewnuts
• 6 to 8 green chillies (to taste)
• 8 to 10 garlic cloves
• 2” piece ginger
• 10 cardamoms
• 10 cloves
• 6 black cardamoms
• 5 cm. cinnamon
• 1 tsp. cumin seeds
• 1 bunch coriander leaves
• 1 small bunch mint leaves
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tsp. turmeric powder
• 1 tsp. garam masala
• Juice of 2 lemons (reserve the skins)
• 1 tsp. shahjeera
• 3 to 4 peppercorns
•  Few strands saffron
• ½ cup milk
• Salt to taste
• Oil or Ghee as required

1. Remove skin and cut chicken into large pieces.
2. Wash the potatoes and put a drop of yellow color and mix well.
3. Heat oil or ghee and fry the cashewnuts till light brown.  Drain and remove.
4. Then add the sliced onions and fry till golden brown.  Remove  and crush roughly.
5. Add the potatoes and fry lightly.
6. Peel the boiled eggs and make a half slit on one side of the egg.
7. Grind ginger, garlic and green chillies to a paste.
8. Marinate the chicken in yogurt alongwith the fried onion (reserve some for garnish), ginger, garlic and green chilli paste, tomatoes, salt, a little chopped mint and coriander leaves, a few whole spices ad half the lemon juice for an hour.
9. Heat the saffron and soak in the milk.
10. Cook the rice in plenty of salted water adding the remaining whole spices and the lemon skins (tie the spices and lemon skins in a muslin cloth like a potli if you wish). Cook till rice is just underdone.  Drain and keep aside. Reserve  ½ a cup of the rice water. Discard the potli.
11. Take a broad heavy vessel for making the biryani and heat oil/ghee and add the shahjeera, chilli powder, turmeric powder and chicken alongwith the marinade.  Stir well.
12. Cover with a lid and simmer till done and oil separates and gravy is thick.
13. Switch off the heat and begin layering the biryani.
14. Sprinkle the remaining lemon juice over the chicken, spread the garam masala powder and the remaining chopped mint and coriander leaves.
15. Then place the potatoes and the boiled eggs evenly over the chicken layer and sprinkle all over with half the saffron flavored milk.
16. Cover with the cooked rice. Spread the reserved rice water over the rice.
17. Dot with saffron flavored milk and spread the fried onions and cashewnuts.
18. Cover the vessel with a lid.  Make a rough dough with wheat flour and line the rim with the dough   Alternately, seal the vessel with silver foil before covering tightly with the lid.
19. Keep on high flame for 10 minutes.  Reduce heat and cook for  30 minutes or transfer to a pre-heated oven for 30 minutes.
20. Remove from heat and leave closed for 15 minutes.  Serve with Pineapple Raita   or Tomato Onion Raita or any raita of your choice.