Most simple recipe for Chicken Biryani (Hyderabadi)

This is a very easy and a no fail recipe for a yummy hyderabadi chicken biryani which each of you must try out in your kitchen.
I am sure everyone might feel lazy to cook biryani as many of the recipes call for long duration and are a many step process.
However i have always loved making this biryani as its so simple to make and yet tastes so delicious

All it takes is to marinate chicken with lots of aromatic spices ,cook rice,layer them and recook .
Lets see what are the steps to cook this recipe.Ingredients follow.

Ingredients

- 3.5 cups basmati rice (I found India Gate Basmati rice as the best for biryanis)
- water to cook rice(atleast 8 cups)
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- whole garam masala(2 cardamom,2 cinnamon sticks,3 bay leaves,2-3 cloves,4-5 whole black peppercons)
- 1/2 cup mint leaves finely chopped
- 1/2 cup coriander leaves finely chopped
- 1/2 cup fried onions(if you dont have this,cut 1 onion lengthwise and fry them in some oil till they turn completely brown)

Marinade
- 1 whole chicken cut into small pieces(go for bone in verses boneless)
- salt to tase
- 3 Tbsp biryani masala(i use shan bombay biryani masala)
- 1/4 cup yogurt
- 3 tsp chilli powder(as per your taste)
- 1 Tbsp ginger garlic paste
- 4 green chillies
- 2 Tbsp oil
- juice of one lemon
- 1/2 cup mint leaves finely chopped
- 1/2 cup coriander leaves finely chopped


Recipe

Step 1 :
Wash the chicken pieces thoroughly and drain all the water.Mix all the ingredients under "Marinade" and marinate it in an airtight/closed container for atleast 2 hours or overnight in a refregirator

Step 2:
Soak the basmati rice in lots of water for atleast 30 minutes.

Step 3:
Drain the water from the rice,cook the rice in a large pan with lots of water.Add salt,cumin seeds,whole garam masala to the boiling water.Make sure the rice is half cooked,it should be slightly hard when you feel it.Drain all the water and it aside.

Step 4: Take a wide nonstick pan.Place the marinated chicken on to the pan and spread evenly.
Now spread the half cooked rice over the chicken and layer it evenly.
Sprinkle some biryani masala/whole garam masala , fried onions,mint leaves,coriander leaves and lemon juice over the rice.

Tip : To get some yellowish color,warm 2 Tbsp milk and add saffron to it.If you dont have saffron ,add a pinch of turmeric to the milk.sprinkle this milk over the rice.

Step 5: Place the pan on the stove,cover it with an airtight lid and cook on medium flame for 25 minutes,now reduce the flame to low and cook for another 10 minutes .Increase the flame to high and cook for another 5 mins.Put of the flame and let it rest for 5-10 minutes.
Mix the biryani before serving from bottom to top.