Easy chicken biryani recipe

Ingredients

• 400 g basmati rice
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 tbsp light-flavoured oil
• 1 onion, thinly sliced
• 1 green finger chilli, chopped
• 6 cardamom pods, bashed
• 5 cm (2in) piece of cinnamon stick, broken in half
• 5 cm (2in) piece of fresh root ginger, grated
• 4 garlic cloves, grated
• 2 tsp garam masala
• 3 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp chilli powder
• 6 skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into bite-size pieces
• 50 g crispy fried onions
• 750 –850 ml (25–28 floz/ 3–3½ cups) boiling water
• 1 handful coriander (cilantro), chopped
• 1 handful toasted flaked (slivered) almonds
• 1 pinch each of fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 4 dollops of natural yogurt, to serve (optional)