Recipe#11803

Title: Biryani 07

From: "Helen Watson" helen@hwatson.force9.net 
 Newsgroups: rec.food.recipes 
 Subject: Lentil and Vegetable Biryani 
 Date: 9 May 1998 06:27:22 -0600 
 Message-ID: <199805062333.XAA00522@mail.force9.net> 

Yield:  6 servings
 125 g brown or green lentils             
 4 tablespoons vegetable ghee or oil              
 2 onions; quartered and sliced
 2 cloves garlic; sliced
 1 2.5 cm cube ginger root; finely chopped
 1 teaspoon ground turmeric                    
 1/2 teaspoon chilli powder                      
 1 teaspoon  ground coriander                   
 2 teaspoons ground cumin                       
 3 tomatoes; skinned and chopped
 1 aubergine; cut in 1 cm pieces
 1.75 litres boiling vegetable stock            
 1 green or red pepper; seeded and diced
 350 g basmati rice; soaked for 30 minutes
 125 g green beans; topped, tailed, halved
 250 g cauliflower florets                
 125 g mushrooms; sliced
 60 g  unsalted cashews                   
 3 hard boiled eggs; shelled
 coriander sprigs; to garnish
 Rinse the lentils under cold running water and drain.  Heat the
 ghee or oil in a saucepan, add the onions and fry gently for 2
 minutes.  Stir in the garlic, ginger and spices and fry gently for
 1 minute, stirring frequently.  Stir in the lentils, tomatoes,
 aubergine and 600 ml of the stock.  Cover and simmer gently for 20
 minutes.  Add the red or green pepper and cook for a further 10
 minutes or until the lentils are tender and all the liquid has been
 absorbed.
 Drain the rice and put in another pan with the remaining stock.
 Bring to the boil, add the green beans, cauliflower and mushrooms,
 then cover and cook gently for 15 minutes or until the rice and
 vegetables are tender.  Remove from the and leave to stand for 10
 minutes, covered. Add the lentil mixture and the cashews to the
 cooked rice and mix lightly. Pile on to a warm serving platter and
 garnish with wedges of hard-boiled egg and coriander sprigs.  Serve
 hot.