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660 Curries: Biryani Curries and Side Dishes
Table of Contents for 660 Curries
- Book Review: Raghavan Iyer’s “660 Curries: The Gateway to Indian Cooking”
- 660 Curries: What Kind of Spice Blend is Garam Masala?
- 660 Curries: Two Great Dipping Sauces
- 660 Curries: Chicken and Beef
- 660 Curries: Fish and Shrimp Curries
- 660 Curries: Vegetarian Curries
- 660 Curries: Biryani Curries and Side Dishes
One more post reviewing some recipes from the recent cookbook “660 Curries” and then I’ll quit. I promise. Really. I won’t even make you pay the ransom to get me to stop.
Once upon a time, invading hordes (Greek, Persian, Moghul, Mongol, Hun, Arab, Turk) came from many directions, over several centuries, looking for a really tasty lamb curry loot, concubines and glory. I’m not sure what they found, but they left a rich tradition in food in the form of the biryani curry.
The general structure of a biryani is rather simple. A meat (or sometimes veggie) curry is prepared by marinating and braising in various spices. A rice layer is made beginning with spiced ghee, in which basmati rice is lightly fried. Water is added and the rice is partially cooked to produce an unfinished pulao. Alternating layers of curry and pulao are placed into a casserole, and the whole thing is baked until the rice is tender.
Saffron, mint, cardamom, ginger, turmeric, garlic and more are used to flavor these wonderful casseroles. And of course, chiles: whole, chopped, ground or powdered, the chile plays a predominant role in a biryani’s flavor profile.
Here’s a couple of tasty biryani curries you can try:
Before we close completely on “660 Curries,” I want to mention the side dishes section. Not everything in Indian cuisine is a curry! Indeed, great curries, like the main actor in a movie, need a great side dishes as supporting cast or the whole production won’t be worth the price of admission. Mr. Iyer has done a nice job collecting a wide variety of salads, veggies, sauces and rice recipes.
Here are some items to have on hand for a complete curry meal, in addition to the sauces mentioned in a previous post:
- Dirty Rice with Caramelized Onions
- Cabbage and Cucumber Slaw
- Stewed Pineapple with Raisins and Chiles
If you only try one dish from this whole book, make it the Stewed Pineapple!
This brings to a close my survey of Iyer’s “660 Curries.” Whew! I hope you’ve enjoyed this tour. Get your copy of the book and try out the other 642 recipes!
Now I gotta go rest up and get ready for August’s F-BOM: The Food Blog of the Month! Until then, eat more curry and
Enjoy the (Indian Curry) Heat!
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