I love biryani- love, love, love. But sadly, I have never been able to find good biryani anywhere outside of a home kitchen- until today. Biryani Pot spoilt me silly today, by sending over an elaborate lunch for two, all the way down to the mango lassi and Ras Malai for dessert.
I ALWAYS get disappointed whenever I’m offered biryani in a restaurant, as I always find it to be dry, bland, and clearly produced in too large a batch. The only time I enjoyed biryani outside of home, was at the Al Forsan Friday brunch, and I think that was also just a fluke, because when I went back to Masala, I was once again met with the kind of biryani that disappoints.
The chicken biryani I tried today was fantastic. It was moist, juicy, had depth of flavors and aromatic with all spice; and I enjoyed it as much as I would enjoy a home-cooked version. You know how biryani has those awesome moist bits that have all the masala, which are like the marshmallow bits in a box of lucky charms? Well, this biryani was ALL moist bits/ALL marshmallows. Paired with the cumin yogurt, mint chutney, some sliced red onions and the mango lassi, this was a dream weekday lunch! The best part was that the biryani didn’t come in a plastic container, but in fact in a claypot. Day made.
I didn’t pay much attention to the pot that was labeled “veg”, because who really cares for a veg biryani when there’s chicken in the house, right? Wrong. This wasn’t your average veg biryani, it was QUINOA biryani! As much of a Groot I am, I’m still not a fan of quinoa, BUT, this was really good. For quinoa.
They also sent some Daal Makhni and Butter Chicken (which I initially thought I’d need to moisten the biryani I expected for to be dry and bland), but since the biryani was so moist and flavorful itself, I decided to just keep these aside to have for dinner.
Instead, we (M was working from home today), had the plate of mixed grills that had mutton seekh kebab, chicken seekh kebab, Tikka boti and Malai boti. Yum.
Dessert was some of the best Ras Malai possible, as well as aromatic Gulab Jamun.
Can’t all weekdays be like this?
