Shah Jeera Chicken Pulao

Back in Pune the weather is right now in a transitional phase - neither hot nor cold. A couple of days last week we even got Kalboishakhi during afternoon hours which brought down the temperature considerably. But the morning hours especially around noon time is pretty hot. This kind of weather makes you feel lazy and I am no exception. I just want to have a good plate of wholesome meal and lay back with my books or indulge in writing. One pot meals are my usual go to thing when I am especially in the lazy zone but still want to have something delicious. Shah Jeera chicken pulao is one such recipe which I made by chance one day.

During my last summer visit to Kashmir I had got some really good quality Shah Jeera from the Gurez hotel chef. Shah Jeera is something which usually is very rarely used in Bengalis cuisine. So it never was a pantry staple for me. But post my Kashmir visit, since the chef had advocated about the aroma these tiny little things impart to any dish I was curious to try it out in some of my rice preparations to start with. The first thing I had made was a simple Jeera rice substituting the regular jeera with shah jeera and oh boy what a taste transformation it was! I was hooked after that. Usually during weekends I would prepare quick and dirty veg pulaos to go with some non veg dish. I started using Shah jeera in some of my veg pulaos and definitely it was a game changer for me. Without too many masalas the pulao would still turn out yummy. 

This gave me the thought to try making a very simple chicken pulao in which shah jeera dominated the flavor profile. That's how this recipe was born. Folks who like a really masaledar biryani type pulao would find this one a tad too simple. But if you are one of those people like me who doesn't like too many spices in their pulao then you might give this one a try. A new recipe with a hint of Arabic flavor profile. It also reminded me of some of the dishes  I had tasted in Gurez.

Interesting to note is you can skip the complete chicken part to just make a yummy shah jeera veg pulao.

Marination Time : 30 minutes

Preparation Time : 10 minutes

Cooking Time : 30 minutes

Serves - 1 adult

Ingredients :

• Ambemohar / Gobindobhog / Fragrant Rice - 150 gm
• Chicken Thigh - 1
• Shah Jeera - 1/4 tsp
• Ginger Paste (fresh) - 1/4 tsp
• Clove - 1
• Cardamom - 1
• Cinnamon - 1/2 inch
• Red Carrots (diagonal half moon / matchstick)  - 20 gm
• French Beans (diagonally chopped) - 15 gm
• Turmeric - 1/4 tsp
• Refined Oil + Ghee - 2 tsp
• Salt - as per taste
• Sugar - as per taste
• Warm water - as needed

Ingredients for marination:

• Shah Jeera - 1/4 tsp
• Black peppercorn - 10
• Bay Leaf - 1/2
• Lemon - 1/4th
• Red Chilli Powder - 1/4 tsp
• Turmeric - 1/4 tsp
• Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp
• Refined Oil - 1/2 tsp
• Salt - as per taste

Procedure:

1. Start by toasting the Shah Jeera and bay leaf on medium flame on a tawa, continuously using the spatula so that it does not get burnt. When you get a nice aroma take it off and let it cool down. Then grind it using a mortar pestle or a masala grinder.

2. Coarsely grind the peppercorn

3. Now marinate the clean chicken with the ground shah jeera, bayleaf and black pepper along with the other ingredients mentioned under marination. Rest it for about 30 minutes to 1 hour.

4. Now take any steamer ( as per the size of the chicken). I had used a steel perforated steaming bowl. Oil it nicely to prevent chicken from steaming. I kept the steamer on a stand inside a pressure pan filled with 2 cups of water. Then placed the marinated chicken on the steamer. Post that close the lid of the cooker but don't put the vent weight. Keep the gas flame in the lowest (sim) and steam for 10-15 minutes. Open the lid and take out the chicken. The chicken should be around 80-90% done. Preserve the water which is there in the bottom to cook the pulao.

5. Wash the pressure cooker and let it heat. Add any neutral oil when hot. Let the oil heat up then fry the steamed chicken for a couple of minutes by turning side. Keep it aside.

6. Now for prepping the rice. You can take any fragrant rice, wash it and let it dry for an hour before cooking

7. In the same oil in the pressure cooker where you shallow fried the chicken, add your spices for tempering - one cardamom, two cloves, 1 inch cinnamon stick and 1/4 tsp shah jeera. 

8.  When the spices are fragrant, add grated ginger and toss it for a minute. Now add the chopped vegetables. Stir fry for a couple of minutes. At this stage if you want you can add cashew nuts and raisins as well.

9. Now add the washed and dried rice. Fold in and fry for a couple of minutes.

10. Add turmeric, salt and sugar. 

11. Now you need to use the reserve stock water from Step No 4. Add double the amount of water to rice ( 2:1). Fold in everything.

12. Now place the chicken thigh in the middle. And add a slitted green chili. Pressure cook it for 2 whistles or till rice is cooked. Let the pressure die out.

13. Open the lid and using a fork fluff the pulao. The simple and easy pulao is done. Serve this with your choice of accompaniments. 

Do let me know how you liked the simple and easy pulao recipe. You can make a good raita or serve this with some fresh salad. The flavors of this chicken are somewhat like Mandi chicken (Get the recipe HERE) but its much simpler to make.