Overnight-Marinated Goat Dum Biryani

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

Bone-in goat shoulder sits overnight in a spiced yogurt marinade, then braises until it slides off the bone. Basmati is parboiled to exactly 70 percent, layered over the meat with fried onions, saffron milk and herbs, and the pot is sealed with foil for a home version of dum — the sealed steam finish that restaurants charge $60 a plate for. The real skill is timing: the rice goes on only when the goat is already tender, so both finish together.

Ingredients

• 3 lb bone-in goat shoulder or leg, cut into 2-inch pieces
• 1 1/2 cups whole-milk plain yogurt (not Greek), whisked smooth
• 3 tbsp ginger-garlic paste (or 2 tbsp grated ginger + 2 tbsp grated garlic)
• 2 tbsp Kashmiri red chile powder
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tbsp ground coriander
• 1 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
• 1 tbsp garam masala
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tbsp kosher salt
• 3 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tbsp neutral oil

• 4 large yellow onions, halved and sliced thin
• 1 cup neutral oil, for frying

• 4 tbsp ghee
• 3 green cardamom pods, cracked
• 1 black cardamom pod
• 1 3-inch piece cinnamon stick
• 4 whole cloves
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 serrano chiles, slit lengthwise
• 1 cup water or unsalted stock

• 3 cups aged basmati rice
• 12 cups water
• 3 tbsp kosher salt
• 4 green cardamom pods
• 1 2-inch piece cinnamon stick
• 3 whole cloves
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 bay leaf

• 1/2 tsp saffron threads
• 1/4 cup warm whole milk
• 3 tbsp melted ghee
• 3/4 cup chopped cilantro, leaves and tender stems
• 1/2 cup chopped mint leaves
• 1 tsp garam masala
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tsp rose water or kewra water (optional)

• 2 cups plain yogurt
• 1 small cucumber, diced
• 1/2 tsp toasted ground cumin

Instructions

1. The night before: pat the goat dry and put it in a large bowl. Add the yogurt, ginger-garlic paste, Kashmiri chile, cayenne, coriander, turmeric, garam masala, black pepper, 1 tbsp salt, lemon juice and 2 tbsp oil. Massage hard for 2 full minutes so the marinade works into the bone joints. Cover and refrigerate 12 to 24 hours; take it out 45 minutes before cooking so it loses its chill.
2. Fry the onions: heat 1 cup oil in a wide skillet or kadai over medium-high until it shimmers (about 340°F). Add the sliced onions in two batches and fry 12 to 16 minutes per batch, stirring often, until deep even golden-brown — pull them at honey-gold, because they darken as they drain. Spread on paper towels; they crisp as they cool. Reserve 3 tbsp of the onion oil.
3. Braise the goat: in a 6- to 8-quart heavy Dutch oven, heat 4 tbsp ghee plus the reserved onion oil over medium. Add green and black cardamom, cinnamon, cloves and bay leaves and sizzle 45 seconds until fragrant. Add all the marinated goat with its marinade and the slit serranos. Raise heat to medium-high and cook 12 to 15 minutes, stirring, until the yogurt breaks, the liquid tightens and fat pools at the edges.
4. Crush half the fried onions and stir them in with 1 cup water. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce to the barest simmer. Cook 1 hour 30 minutes to 2 hours, stirring every 25 minutes and adding 1/4 cup water if it looks dry, until the meat pulls from the bone with light pressure. (Pressure cooker: 25 minutes at high pressure, natural release.) The goat is ready when a fork twists a chunk off the bone with no resistance.
5. Uncover and boil the gravy down over medium-high for 5 to 10 minutes until it is thick enough to coat the meat — roughly 1 1/2 cups of sauce clinging to the goat, not a soup. Too much liquid here means mushy rice later. Taste and salt aggressively; it has to season the rice above it. Level the meat in the pot and take it off the heat.
6. Meanwhile, rinse the basmati in cool water 4 or 5 times until the water runs clear, then soak in fresh cool water for 30 minutes. Drain in a colander for 10 minutes. Soak the saffron in the warm milk.
7. Time the rice to the meat: only once the goat is braised and reduced, bring 12 cups water to a hard rolling boil in a large pot with 3 tbsp salt, the cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, cumin seeds and bay leaf. Add the drained rice and boil uncovered 4 to 5 minutes, stirring once. Test constantly after 3 1/2 minutes: a grain should snap into three pieces with a firm white core — about 70 percent done. Drain immediately in a large colander and shake dry.
8. Layer: spoon the hotter, wetter rice from the bottom of the colander over the goat first, then mound the rest on top and level gently — never press. Scatter the remaining fried onions, cilantro, mint, 1 tsp garam masala, the lemon juice, the melted ghee, the saffron milk (drizzle in streaks so you get white and gold grains), and the rose water if using.
9. Seal for dum: lay a sheet of foil over the pot and crimp it tight around the rim, then press the lid down over the foil. Set the pot over medium-high for 3 minutes to build steam, then move it to the lowest possible flame over a heat diffuser or an upside-down cast-iron skillet and cook 25 minutes. Alternatively, dum in a 325°F oven for 30 minutes.
10. Off the heat, let the sealed pot rest 15 minutes — do not peek. Unseal, and lift the biryani out in wedges with a wide spatula from the edge inward so each serving carries rice, goat and gravy. Whisk the yogurt with the cucumber, toasted cumin and a pinch of salt for raita and serve alongside.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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