Picnic on the Isar

Andreas had other plans this morning/afternoon, so I called Britta, Oliver and Claudia and proposed a picnic on the Isar. What to make? Well, let's try out some chicken biryani. Never made it before, and not bad picnic food because it is one dish - everything thrown together. (Although we had raita with cucumber and mint with it and drinks and cake for dessert - which Oliver, Claudia and Britta brought).

Critical assessment? It wasn't difficult, but took some time. My Indian friends tend to make biryani (at least parts of it) in a pressure cooker - which I don't have - and perhaps this is one of the secrets because...it seems I can't cook rice in a pot, no matter how carefully I watch it. Somehow, I always overcook it and it is a bit mushy. Nevertheless, the biryani was very tasty, if a little over-done. I marinated the chicken in garlic and ginger and chillies last night after we got back from Star Trek, and then cooked it with the rice this morning, and then headed to the gym for a bit, and then met up with everyone at 1 in the afternoon. The recipe came from an Indian cookbook one of my former MBA colleagues, Anant, gave me before we left Singapore. It was a Hydrabadi Murg Biryani version (Murg means chicken)...I guess different cities have their own versions. (And...i made a couple ...small...adjustments...so it becomes the Hydrabadi-Julie version.)

We ate directly by the river, with blankets spread out underneath us to make the rocks a bit less ...rocky - the weather has been gorgeous this weekend and didn't disappoint today. Then we relaxed and chatted in the sun for a couple hours. Oliver and Claudia both work for Microsoft, and Britta and I are huge Apple fans, so there was some friendly insult exchanges right and left...;-)

Back home now, sort of sad the weekend comes to an end.

But Britta and Mallorie and I have some plans this week, so looking forward to that...