Servings: 15

100 g ghee 100 g ghee
3 onions, finely diced 3 onions, finely diced
1 Tbsp ground raw papaya 1 Tbsp ground raw papaya
1 kg mutton, cut into 2" pieces 1 kg mutton, cut into 2" pieces
250 g yoghurt 250 g yoghurt
1 tsp ground red chillies 1 tsp ground red chillies
salt to taste salt to taste
1 tsp garam masala powder 1 tsp garam masala powder
1 tsp ground caraway seeds (shah jeera) 1 tsp ground caraway seeds (shah jeera)
1 tsp garlic (ground) 1 tsp garlic (ground)
1 tsp ginger (ground) 1 tsp ginger (ground)
1 kg very fine basmati rice 1 kg very fine basmati rice
water water
4 cardamom pods 4 cardamom pods
4 cloves 4 cloves
2 sticks cinnamon, 1" each 2 sticks cinnamon, 1" each
250 ml milk 250 ml milk
1 tsp saffron, ground with milk 1 tsp saffron, ground with milk
1 bunch coriander leaves, chopped 1 bunch coriander leaves, chopped
1 bunch mint leaves, chopped 1 bunch mint leaves, chopped
6 green chillies 6 green chillies
juice of 4 limes juice of 4 limes
500 g wheat flour 500 g wheat flour
1 tsp cardamom (powdered) 1 tsp cardamom (powdered)

Heat ghee and fry onions till golden brown. Remove and crush half the onions.
Rub papaya into mutton, add curd, red chilly, salt, garam masala, caraway seeds, garlic, ginger, and crushed onions. Leave to marinate for an hour, mix well after about 25 minutes.
Soak rice in water for 20 minutes. Drain. Put cardamoms, cloves, cinnamon in water with salt and boil. Cook until half done. Drain out water and keep aside 1 ½ cups.
Spread mutton at the bottom of a saucepan. Pour half the milk, 1 ½ cups of the rice water, fried onions with ghee, ground saffron, coriander, mint leaves, green chillies and cardamom powder over the mutton. Spread remaining rice over this. Sprinkle remaining saffron milk, cardamom powder, salt, and lime juice over rice.
Cover saucepan with a well-fitting lid and seal the edges by covering the rim with a mixture of dough, made with whole wheat flour and water into a stiff paste. Stand the pan on a moderate fire and let it cook till the liquid makes slight sounds inside. Remove pan from heat, lower heat, put a griddle on it and stand the pan on the griddle.
Let it cook on this, or in low heat in the oven for 30 to 40 minutes. To see if the meat is cooked, remove the dough and open the lid. Then check by sticking a long-handled spoon into the pan. If you find liquid at the bottom, cook it a little longer till the liquid is absorbed.
Remove from heat. Keep covered till you are ready to dish out the biryani onto a serving platter.

If you don't have a tablespoon of papaya, some small amount of supermarket meat tenderizer should substitute nicely (papaine, it's mostly legit). Accent is a mostly available brand in the US, but make sure you're getting the tenderizer.  If you don't have a tablespoon of papaya, some small amount of supermarket meat tenderizer should substitute nicely (papaine, it's mostly legit). Accent is a mostly available brand in the US, but make sure you're getting the tenderizer.
The recipe says to put the mutton on the bottom ... then top with the rest of the rice. Perhaps half the rice should go on the bottom? I'll compare with other recipes before making it.  The recipe says to put the mutton on the bottom ... then top with the rest of the rice. Perhaps half the rice should go on the bottom? I'll compare with other recipes before making it.