Cape Malay Fish Biryani

Name: Cape Malay Fish Biryani
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 1 h 10 min
Yield: 6-8 serving(s)
Ingredients: 3 tablespoons olive oil; 1 large onion, sliced; 4 cardamom seeds; 4 whole cloves; 2 pieces cinnamon sticks; 1 teaspoon fresh gingerroot, minced (or 1/2 tsp ground, dried); 4 garlic cloves, crushed; 1 teaspoon fennel seed; 1 teaspoon ground cumin; 1 teaspoon ground coriander; 1 1/2 teaspoons garam masala; 2 lbs fresh hake, diced (or any firm, white-fleshed fish, like tilapia); salt; 1 teaspoon garam masala; 6 small potatoes, peeled; 1 cup long grain rice (uncooked); 1 teaspoon turmeric; 1/2 cup red lentil (uncooked); 4 hard-boiled eggs (optional)

Submitted by evelynathens

"A very popular Indian dish that has been adapted by the Cape Muslims and is usually served at religious festivals. Ideal for entertaining large numbers of guests--the dish can be prepared in advance and the flavour actually improves with time."

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Ready In:: 1hr 10mins
Ingredients:: 19
Serves:: 6-8

ingredients

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, sliced
4 cardamom seeds
4 whole cloves
2 pieces cinnamon sticks
1 teaspoon fresh gingerroot, minced (or 1/2 tsp ground, dried)
4 garlic cloves, crushed
1 teaspoon fennel seed
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 ¹⁄₂ teaspoons garam masala
2 lbs fresh hake, diced (or any firm, white-fleshed fish, like tilapia)
salt
1 teaspoon garam masala
6 small potatoes, peeled
1 cup long grain rice (uncooked)
1 teaspoon turmeric
¹⁄₂ cup red lentil (uncooked)
4 hard-boiled eggs (optional)

directions

Heat the oil in a pan and sauté the onion, cardamom seeds, cloves, cinnamon, ginger and garlic until the onion is tender and all the flavours have blended. Add the fennel seeds, cumin, coriander, garam masala and a little water. Simmer until an aromatic paste has formed.
Season the fish with salt with the 1 tsp garam masala and add to the paste, along with the potatoes. Fry until the mixture is a nice yellow colour. Cover and braise until cooked. The potatoes Should be tender but still whole (about 15-20 minutes). Add extra water if necessary.
Put the lentils in plenty of boiling, salted water and cook 5 minutes. Add rice and turmeric to water and continue boiling until done (about more 20 minutes). Drain and set aside.
Arrange layers of the fish mixture and rice in a saucepan. Add a little water, cover, and steam for about half an hour. Garnish with quartered hard-boiled eggs.
Variation: Layer the biryani in an ovenproof dish, cover, and bake for half an hour at 180°C (350°F) until heated through.

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Reviews

We made this for dinner last night using hake. We used the optional hard boiled eggs, which I really enjoyed and would not skip, and the oven method for cooking. We actually preferred the flavor of the dish today when we had leftovers and I enjoyed mine drizzled with olive oil. While this recipe has a long list of ingredients, there is little chopping and prep and it is quite easy to make. We added a generous amount of salt and pepper to our individual servings.

Dr. Jenny
My kids loved this. I used tilapia.

ummrabiah
Great spices, wonderful balancing flavours. Top stuff with the salmon we had tonight.

Tankie 10
I used a nice piece of red snapper and enjoyed this immensely. The spicing is complex abut does not overwhelm the flavors of the fish and the rice and lentils. The potatoes are a great textural element. I did garnish with some fresh herbs and a few cherry tomatoes, just to give the dish some color. Thanks, Ev!

Chef Kate
Very tasty, am on a low GI diet and this recipe is just ideal for that.I only had fresh salmon so used that and it was just right, thank you for this lovely recipe from a real non-fish lover!!

lindseylcw