Pacha pachai palak kheerai biryani.

Pacha pachai palak kheerai biryani.

It started, with the journey, along the beautiful sea coast road between Chennai and Pondicherry our first leg of journey, final destination being velankiniA drive along the ECR road, is stimulating to say the least. Not bogged down by heavy traffic and signals, one can meander down at one’s own pace .The stimulating fresh breeze near the sea, with smell of fish wafting across, makes one feel hungry. A lot of eateries, new and old ones serving all kinds of food are available, yet it is best if one, waits, till one hits Pondicherry. Pondicherry to velankini is an entirely different journey, passing through towns like Karaikkal and Nagapatinam   , it is like a spiritual quest.

 My brother from Canada and sister from Chennai, were there and we siblings were bonding after a long time. When siblings bond, memories of the past and all shared incidents and events, springs forth, like a reminder of the best times with loved ones. It was on this journey that we discovered this small lovely house, in the outskirts of Pondicherry, which was serving exclusive home food. It was not a typical restaurant, but the home of a retired Air force officer, who had a great passion for our heritage food. Along with his talented and hard working wife Nirmala, he opened the doors of their home, to people who enjoyed home food. Thus it was here that we got to taste the very flavorful and tasty Palak Biryani.  The dish was so good that it left us asking for more and after our gluttony was satiated, we decided to just rest near the sea, before heading further.  

 Kheerai or palak is said to have originated in ancient Persia (Iran). This later on made its way to India in the 8th century when the king of Nepal sent it as a gift to this country. Spinach was known as "the Spanish vegetable" first and became popular in many countries like India. It was during Raja raja cholan’s time, that all green leafy vegetables found a pride of place on the royal dining table. It is said and mentioned in some literature that before any battle, greens were served to their soldiers as it was said to have miraculous properties for increasing resistance against diseases and ensure they remain healthy.

 The Chola dynasty began declining by the 13th century and ended in 1279.By then kheerai which included palak kheerai was an established part of the cuisine

In recent times, a popular comic character was created to spread the popularity of these amazing greens. His name was Popeye and he was shown with rippling muscles, every time he ate spinach or palak. The vitamin and anti oxidants ,rich palak, became popular amongst kids after seeing Popeye cartoons or reading stories based on him. This was in the urban cities, in the villages, it is grown in most farms and many consume it mixed with lentils or made into a vegetable. The palak biryani dish was first introduced in Hyderabad by the Nizams khansama who came from Persia,. Biryani was growing in popularity in the Nizams kingdom and every guest who ate there took back the recipe of palak biryani. Thus palak biryani got introduced, all over south India and became very popular.

Try out this healthy dish and let it capture your family and friends palate.

  PACHA PACHAI PALAK KHEERAI BIRYANI.   

PREP TIME -------20 MINS.

COOKING TIME ----35 MINS.

SERVES -------5—6 PAX.

CALORIES PER SERVE ---340CL PER SERVE.

Ingredients.

•  Basmati rice---3 cups.
• Garlic paste---1/4 cup.
•  Ghee----1/2 cup.
• cinnamon stick---2
•  black cardamom---2
•  bay leaf---2
•  Red chilly powder—1 tsp.
•  Powdered turmeric---1 tsp.
•  Fennel seeds----1 tsp.
•  Asafetida-----one pinch.
• Mint leaves ---1/4 cup.
• Coconut milk ---2 cups.
• Khus khus ----1/4 cup
• Cashew nut/almond paste ---1/4 cup.
• Grated coconut ----1/4 cup.
• Coconut oil ---1 tbsp.

•  Ginger paste---1 tsp.
• water as required
• salt as required
•  green cardamom---5
•   Garlic cloves---6
•  Mace----1/4 tsp.
• Gram macula powder---1 tsp.
• Cumin powder ----1 tsp.
• Coriander powder ---1 tsp.
• palak kheerai ------1 bunch
• Methi kheerai ----1 bunch.
• Coriander leaves----1/2 cup.
• Red chilies ---3
• Kewra essence ----1/2 tsp.
• Jaggery ---- 1 tsp.

Method.

·         Soak rice for 15 min.

·         Soak khus khus, cashew nut and almonds in milk. Soak each separately.

·         Wash and cook rice in cardamom water in an open vessel. , till 3/4^th cooked. Make sure rice is separate from each other.

·         Spread on a tray and keep the rice.

·         Clean all the greens, palak, methi, coriander, mint. , wash and keep aside.

·         Chop each one very fine.

·         . Now, in a blender, add the chopped spinach leaves along with mint and coriander leaves. Add coconut oil and  blend it to a smooth paste.

·         Next grind the coconut, chilies and khus khus. to a smooth paste.

·         Now grind the soaked cashew nut and almonds [without skin].

·         Heat ghee in a large pan over medium flame.

·         Once hot, add ginger and garlic paste along with cinnamon sticks, green and black cardamoms, cloves, bay leaves, mace

·         Now add red chili powder, garam masala powder, turmeric powder, cumin powder and coriander powder. Sauté it by continuously stirring the ingredients in the pan.

·         Next add  in the same pan  the  coconut and khus khus paste

·         Sauté well, once done add the cashew nut and almond paste. Sauté

·         Now add the paste of the greens sauté.

·         Add 3/4^th of the coconut milk and sauté, till masalas cooked and gravy thick.

·         Add salt and the pinch of asafetida.

·         Now add the rice and rest of the coconut milk.

·         Add the jaggery powdered and kewra essence.

·         Add the ghee and seal the lid on top. Could be just an airtight lid.  

·         Cook on low flame, after placing the pan/vessel on a tava.

·         After 15 min, when aroma floats up, open and see the biryani is ready and cooked.

·         Serve biryani with vendaikai/ ladies finger curd raita.

·         . 2 jaggery is added to offset the slight bitterness of methi leaves. 3this dish is not available commercially, as it is an original heritage dish from the nadir community.

Kitchen tips ----green leafy vegetables must be fresh or the biryani will not be flavorful or tasty.2 use a tava while dum cooking, to avoid the biryani getting burnt at the bottom. 3any greens can be added, as long s they complement each other.  

Chef ramaa shanker

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