Tofu Biriyani (Hyderabad Style Layer Biriyani)

Well, its bit hard to admit, but its the fact…it will be the last decision for me to vote for an vegan/vegetarian meals. Its nothing against the vegetables but I just happen to love animals more:) There should be a really sneaky business to treat me with mock meat on festival days. Its just unthinkable for me to go ‘green’ to celebrate a happy occasion.

Seriously, I find it very difficult to interact or to cope up with my buddies when they have certain dietary restrictions (I know, it sounds crazy)…I urge them to jump into the wagon with me to try the world’s best treats! Its important for me that my loved ones should dine with me without any friction. And I supposedly believe that hostility begins with choice of food or other issues tend to fire up at the dinner time!

Well, now-a-days I adapted to appreciate occasional flip and flop in my menu, deliberately. Yeah, I mean I prepare some vegan meals for others…isn’t that something, I loathe such food, yet I get to cook it! And something that can’t even happen in my dreams is coming true, today…take a wild guess…Strangely, I started to develop a teeny-weeny ‘liking’ for this kind of dishes!! Do you wanna know what was the recipe? Its Hyderabadi Style – Mock Meat: Tofu Layer Biriyani. How does that sound to you?…edible enough, right! It was a such a big hit…that I couldn’t hardly wait to share it with you all:)

Ingredients:

Marinate Meat (am Sorry the Tofu):

Tofu 250 gms
1 chili mined
Ginger-garlic paste 1 spoon
Onion 1 grated
Curd 1 spoon
Lemon juice 1 spoon
Salt
Saffron 1 pinch
Chili powder 1/2 spoon
Red color 1 pinch (optional)
Crushed mint leaves few.

To Garnish:

Fried Onions – 1 cup
Fried green chilies – few
Almonds 1/4 cup (whole)
Cashewnuts 1/4 cup (whole)
Raisin 1/4 cup
Salt
Cracked black pepper 1/2 spoon
Nutmeg powder 1/4 spoon.

For Biriyani:

Long grain rice 1 cup
Black cardamon 3 pods
Green cardamon 3 pods
Cloves 3
Cinnamon 3 sticks
Bay leaves 3
Onion 1 thinly sliced
Green chilies 6 slitted
Ginger-garlic paste 1 spoon
Mint leaves 1 cup
Lemon juice from 2 fruit
Salt
Ghee 1 cup.

Method

Stir-fry the tofu till tender on the inside and crisp on the outside, set aside. In a large wok, heat ghee. Add the spices one by one. Cloves, cinnamon, semi-crushed green and black cardamon, bay leaves. When they are fragrant, add chilies and onions. Let them turn to reddish brown.Followed by mint and ginger-garlic paste. Fry them real good over medium heat. Further add rice till it coats  well with ghee and turns into golden color. Then add enough salt and lemon juice. Add 1:2 water, cover and cook over medium heat. When the rice is 3/4 done remove from heat.

Now, pre-heat your oven, in a wide tray, spread first layer with fried onion, followed by rice, then tofu and then by nuts. Repeat the same order…until you used up all your reserve. Cover and set in lowest possible temperature for another 10-12 minutes. Mix them just before serving. Serve steaming hot as main course.