Description

Biryani masala has a different job to garam masala. It has to season meat, rice and potato at once, through steam, under a sealed lid. That means more of the aromatic whole spices — green cardamom, bay, mace, cinnamon — and enough chilli to survive the dilution.

Use roughly two tablespoons per kilogram of meat in the marinade, with yoghurt and ginger-garlic, and rest it for at least two hours. Add a further teaspoon to the par-boiled rice before layering.

It is not only for breyani. The same blend works in a pilau, in a chicken and rice one-pot, and rubbed onto lamb before roasting.