Who does not love the rice and chicken combination? But is biryani the only option? Definitely no! Try out this fragrant chicken mint rice cooked in one pot (pressure cooker) in no time.
All you need is simple, always available ingredients – Chicken, Rice, Mint leaves and some whole spices. The detailed ingredients are mentioned below. We can use any part of chicken preferably cut in medium size (boneless and with bone). In this recipe I have used boneless thighs as they are tender and are not chewy.
The process:
To start with, we will marinate the chicken with some lemon juice and salt. Let it sit while we prepare the rest of the ingredients. Next, we will make a paste of ginger, garlic, coriander, mint, and green chilies. We will add little water to get a smooth texture. Don’t worry if you accidentally add extra water.
Then in a pressure cooker add ghee and whole spices. Once it is aromatic we will add thinly sliced onions. And when these are golden in color, we will add the chicken. We will stir fry it for a few minutes before adding the mint paste. If water is released by chicken, then we will wait for it to evaporate before adding the paste. We don’t want to over cook the mint paste otherwise it will lose its freshness. Finally we will add the rice, water and salt. Let it pressure cook for 2-3 whistles, usually 12-15 minutes. Once the pressure is released, serve it with some fresh mint leaves and raita.
Vegetarian Alternate:
You can replace the chicken with vegetables of your choice for instance we can use carrots, peas, beans, cauliflower, and even sugar snap peas. But make sure you cut the vegetables bigger as we will be pressure cooking it. If it is too small it will turn mushy.
Furthermore, you can add paneer/tofu as well. Stir fry or grill them separately in the same mint paste. Then add it to the rice once it is cooked.
Okay let’s jump to the recipe then.
Preparation Time: 15 minutes | Cooking Time: 25 minutes
Main Ingredients:
- Boneless chicken thighs – 1lb
- Rice – 1 cup
- Chicken broth or water – 2 cups (double of rice)
- Cinnamon stick small – 1
- Cardamon – 2-3
- Cloves – 2
- Black peppercorns – 3-4
- Star anise – 1-2
- Onion medium – 1 (thinly sliced)
- Lemon – ½
- Ghee – 2-3 tbsp
- Salt to taste
Mint paste Ingredients:
- Mint leaves (pudina) – 1 bunch
- Coriander leaves – ½ bunch
- Green chillies – 2 (it can be skipped or quantity can be adjusted according to taste)
- Ginger – 1inch
- Garlic – 2-3 cloves
- Water to make the paste
Steps:
- Marinate medium pieces of chicken in salt and lemon juice.
- Make a paste of ginger, garlic, coriander, mint, green chillies. Add water and grind it well.
- In a pressure cooker, heat ghee. Add the whole spices – cinnamon, cardamon, star anise, cloves and black peppercorns.
- Once the spices release aroma, add thinly sliced onions. Sauté the onions till it is slightly golden in color.
- Add the lemon marinated chicken and fry it for some time. If water is released, wait for it to evaporate before moving to the next step.
- Now add the mint paste. Give it a good stir so that everything mixes well. Let it cook for a few minutes.
- Then add rice and chicken broth (or water).
- Add salt to taste.
- Cover and cook for 2 to 3 whistles.
- Once the pressure releases, serve the Chicken Mint Rice with raita.
Do leave a comment if you try this and also share how do you like to eat chicken and rice.
