1.Cut the Chicken into big pieces and wash. Make small gashes on the pieces. Marinate it with turmeric powder, chilli powder(optional) and salt and keep it aside.(You may fry the chicken pieces marinated with just salt too) Slice the onion very thin.
2.Heat a little ghee in a wok. Roast the cashews and raisins to a golden brown tinge and keep it aside. Now add half the onions and fry them to brownish texture strain off the ghee and keep it separate. In the same ghee shallow fry the marinated chicken pieces slightly.(This enhances the taste of the chicken, and moreover keeps the chicken pieces intact during the cooking process, especially when cooking large quantities).
3.Grind together green chillies, garlic, ginger and poppy seeds( poppy seeds should be soaked in water for 10 minutes) into a coarse paste.
4 Heat a heavy-bottomed vessel. Add half of the ghee. Add half of the sliced onions and fry till they become translucent. Add chopped tomatoes and then add garlic- ginger- chillies- poppy seed paste and fry for 2-3 minutes. Add the curd, salt and lemon juice. Now add the fried chicken pieces. When the chicken is half cooked, add chopped coriander leaves, mint leaves, curry leaves and the Eastern Garam masala. Cook till the chicken is tender and the water, absorbed and the whole masala coats the pieces. Remove from the fire and keep it aside.
5.Clean the rice and drain it in a colander. Leave it for 10 minutes.
6.Heat the remaining ghee in a vessel. Add the rice and sauté it for 4-5 minutes ,till the grain becomes slightly soft on biting. Add double the quantity of hot water with salt added and cook till the rice is soft and the water is absorbed. Remove from the fire.
7.Now take a big mouthed vessel which has a proper lid. Layer the chicken pieces and masala. Put one layer of cooked rice on top of the chicken. Sprinkle a little garam masala powder, fried onions, cashew nuts, raisins and a little saffron mixed in rose water.(When saffron is not available, use food colour mixed in rose water, or if you don't like saffron and rosewater smell in the biriyani, don't add do it 'in your own style'!) Finish it off with two more layers of rice, garam masala, fried onions, cashew nuts and raisins. Cover with a heavy lid. Seal the lid with Maida. Place some embers of coconut husk on top and some below as well, and leave it for 15 minutes. This is the traditional 'Dum'. just place the dish in a hot oven(150 degree celsius) for about 15 minutes.
Finally mix the biriyani carefully and serve it hot with boiled egg in the middle, and Onion Raita,Onion in Vinegar Salad (UlliSurka),Biriyani Chammanthi,Dates pickle and a Suleimani (Black)Tea as accompaniments, in the Malabari style!
