Fried Onions & fried cashews for garnish (totally optional but highly recommended)

Clean the chicken thighs and cut each into 4-6 pieces and place it in a bowl. To the chicken, add some tumeric, red chilli powder, ginger & garlic paste, salt and mix well to combine. Marinate for 30mins

Chop up the onions and then wash the rice and allow it to soak for about 15mins

Once the 30mins has passed, to some heated oil add the cardamom, cinnamon, star anise and cloves and fry for a minute. Next add the onions and saute until they start to brown

Add the marinated chicken and mix well. Let this cook for 10mins on high, stir and cook till the spices are cooked through. Add the yogurt and continue to cook for a couple more minutes

Drain the soaked rice and add it to the pan. I work with the 1:2 ratio, so I added about 4 cups of water to the 2 cups of rice. Add the vinegar and required amount of salt and I gently stirred just so I don't break the rice (important!)

Bring the liquid to a boil, cover with a lid and reduce the heat to low and cook for 20mins covered. It's tempting to open up and see, but don't! :) After 20mins, the water should have been absorbed and the rice will be cooked

Garnish with the fried onions and fried cashews. Serve hot with some onion raita