KING PRAWN PULAO

Ingredients:

250 gms Jumbo prawns (shelled)

1 cups Basmati rice

4 medium sized Onions

10 cloves Garlic

1 inch piece Ginger

2 Green chilli

3 medium sized Potato

3 medium sized Tomato

1/4 medium bunch Fresh coriander leaves

4-5 strands Saffron

2 tbsps Milk

1 tsp Coriander seeds

1/2 tsp Cumin seeds

1/4 tsp Caraway seeds (shahi jeera)

5 Red chilli whole

5 Cloves

1 inch stick Cinnamon

3 Green cardamom

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder

10 Cashewnut

1/2 cup Oil

5 Black peppercorns

Salt to taste

4 tbsps Desi ghee

Wheat flour dough as required

Method:

Wash rice, drain and keep aside for two hours. Shell, de-vein prawns and wash them thoroughly under running water. Drain. Peel and wash onions. Slice two of them and finely chop the remaining two. Peel and roughly chop ginger and garlic. Remove stems, wash and slit green chillies. Peel potatoes and make round slices. Leave them in water. Drain just before use. Wash and finely chop tomatoes. Clean, wash and finely chop coriander leaves. Dissolve the saffron in two tablespoons of warm milk. Grind ginger, garlic, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, caraway seeds, red chillies, cloves, cinnamon, green cardamoms, turmeric powder to a fine paste. Soak cashewnuts in half a cup of water for fifteen minutes. Drain and grind to a paste. Parboil rice in three cups of water with a little salt. When rice is half done drain water completely and spread rice in a big flat plate. Heat sufficient oil in a kadai and deep-fry sliced onions till brown and crisp. Drain onto an absorbent paper and keep aside. In the same oil add peppercorns, green chillies and coriander leaves. Add chopped onion and fry till light brown. Add the ground masala paste and fry for two minutes. Then add prawns, cashewnut paste, chopped tomatoes and one-fourth cup of water. Add salt and cook till the gravy thickens. Sprinkle saffron and milk mixture over the rice and divide into seven parts. Divide the browned onions and prawns with masala into three parts each. At the bottom of a large vessel place slices of raw potatoes. This is to keep the rice from sticking to the bottom. Spread a layer of rice over the raw potato slices. Then spread a layer of prawns and onions over the rice. Continue the layering process as follows: rice, onion, rice, prawns and so on till you end with a final layer of rice. Make four holes on the topmost layer of rice and pour one tablespoon of ghee into each hole. Cover with a tight fitting lid and seal the edges with whole wheat flour dough. Cook low heat for about one hour or till the seal breaks and steam comes out. Then take off it the heat. The emission of the steam is an indication that the dish is ready. Serve hot.