4 lb. meat (cut) 3 cups basmati rice 2 tsp. saffron 2 Tbsp. hot milk 1 Tbsp. oil 3 onions sliced 1 tsp. cumin seeds 4 pieces cinnamon 10 cloves 12 pieces cardamom 2 bay leaves 5 cloves garlic 2 inch ginger 2 green chillies 1 Tbsp. lemon-juice 1 tsp. cayenne pepper 2 cups yogurt 1 cup coriander leaves 1 cup mint leaves 1 tsp. green chillies 1 tsp. salt (chopped) 1/4 cup raisins plumped 1/4 cup almond slivers in hot water (roasted)
Soak rice in salted water for 3 hours. Wash a couple of times. Warm milk and dissolve slightly roasted saffron in it. Heat oil, add half the cardamom, cloves, cinnamon and bay-leaves, and stir once; throw in cumin stir once; saute 2 sliced onions in heated oil over high flame until edges brown. Grind garlic, ginger and chillies to a paste with some water in a processor or blender. Add to the onion and saute for 2 minutes. Add cayenne pepper and stir once. Add meat and brown on all sides Reduce heat to a simmer, cover and cook for 10 minutes. Chop mint and coriander roughly and add to yogurt. Add green chillies and half the milk-saffron mixture to yogurt. Add half the yogurt mixture, salt, 1/4 cup water to the meat, bring to a simmer, cover and cook on a low flame for 10 minutes. Uncover, add lemon-juice and cook for an additional 10 minutes. Add 1 tsp. salt.
Meanwhile bring 2 quarts of salted water to a boil. Add drained rice and rest of cardamom, cloves, bay-leaf and cinnamon. Bring to a boil and half cook (7 minutes). Drain all the water. Transfer the meat mixture to a oven-proof casserole. Add the rest of the yogurt mixture as a layer. Layer the half cooked rice on top. Make a hole and pour the rest of the milk-saffron in it. Cover with a moist cloth or paper-towels. Cover this with aluminum foil and lid (if available).
Bake in preheated oven at 325 F for 30 minutes. Uncover and cook for 10 minutes. Garnish with almonds, raisins and browned onion slices.
Serves 8 people.