Chicken biryani

Only the certifiably crazy would make this biriyani – a multi-layered, regal Mughal dish of spiced rice and chicken – from scratch. First there’s the basmati rice cooked in spiced stock with peas, then the marinated free-range chicken, the fried onions and crunchy toasted almonds. The final kicker? A sachet of saffron butter that melts to enrich and elevate the finished dish. Zap it in the microwave – and feast like a rajah.