Name: Aarthi Sampath's Winning Chicken Biryani
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 1 h 15 min
Cuisine: Indian
Ingredients: 1.5 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1.5-inch pieces; 2 cups basmati rice, rinsed until water runs clear; 1 cup whole milk yogurt; 3 tbsp ghee, divided; 2 large onions, thinly sliced; 4 cloves garlic, minced; 1 tbsp ginger, minced; 2 tsp Kashmiri red chili powder; 1 tsp ground turmeric; 1.5 tsp garam masala; 1 tsp cumin seeds; 4 green cardamom pods, lightly crushed; 2 bay leaves; 3.5 cups chicken stock; 1.5 tsp kosher salt, divided; 2 tbsp cilantro, chopped; 2 tbsp mint, chopped

Biryani is the dish that takes longest to learn and longest to recover from when you get it wrong on television.

Aarthi Sampath spent years at Junoon, the Michelin-starred Indian room in New York, before going off to build Drāvida Indian Diaspora — her own NYC restaurant slated to open in 2026. Her biryani is built in the dum style: rice and curried chicken layered in a sealed pot, finished over coal so the steam carries the aromatics into the rice instead of out into the kitchen. It is a dish that rewards exactly the kind of patience the show does not give you time for.

She made time. Bobby made rice and chicken on a stove.