Two Chicken Kabab Recipes
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A book on Indian cuisine brings us two recipes for chicken kababs. The book is full of recipes across the spectrum of Indian dishes. It's called "Easy Indian Cooking," written by Suneeta Vaswani. Here are the two recipes:
Skewered Grilled KababsSheekh KababsMakes 10 kababs
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Sheekhs (metal skewers) are used extensively for cooking tandoori foods. It is best to use slightly flat metal skewers so foods do not rotate when being turned. Dampened bread is used as a binder and helps to keep the kababs soft.
Tips
For cocktail-size appetizers, cut each kabab into 4 pieces and serve with toothpicks. Kababs can be cooked up to 2 hours ahead, cooled, covered and refrigerated until ready to serve. To serve, wrap in foil and reheat in 350°F (180°C) oven for 10 minutes.
Twice-ground meat makes softer, silkier kababs, an important feature of sheekh kababs. Ask your butcher to put the meat through the grinder a second time.
3 slices white bread
1 lb ground lamb or beef sirloin, twice ground (see Tips)
20 blanched almonds, ground to power in blender, or 3 tbsp (45mL) almond meal
1/2 cup minced onion
2 tbsp cilantro, chopped
1 tbsp minced peeled gingerroot
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp minced green chilies, preferably serranos
2 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp garam masala
3/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp turmeric
1.5 tsp salt or to taste
1 egg
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 onion, sliced into thin rounds and separated into rings, for garnish
Lemon wedges for garnish
Tips
For cocktail-size appetizers, cut each kabab into 4 pieces and serve with toothpicks. Kababs can be cooked up to 2 hours ahead, cooled, covered and refrigerated until ready to serve. To serve, wrap in foil and reheat in 350°F (180°C) oven for 10 minutes.
Twice-ground meat makes softer, silkier kababs, an important feature of sheekh kababs. Ask your butcher to put the meat through the grinder a second time.
- Preheat grill to medium-high
- 10 flat metal skewers
3 slices white bread
1 lb ground lamb or beef sirloin, twice ground (see Tips)
20 blanched almonds, ground to power in blender, or 3 tbsp (45mL) almond meal
1/2 cup minced onion
2 tbsp cilantro, chopped
1 tbsp minced peeled gingerroot
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp minced green chilies, preferably serranos
2 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp garam masala
3/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp turmeric
1.5 tsp salt or to taste
1 egg
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 onion, sliced into thin rounds and separated into rings, for garnish
Lemon wedges for garnish
- Very quickly, dip bread, one slice at a time, into a bowl of water. Squeeze dry between palms and tear into pieces.
- In a bowl, combine ground lamb, almonds, onion, cilantro, ginger, garlic, chilies, coriander, garam masala, cayenne pepper, turmeric, salt, egg and dampened bread. Thoroughly mix together by hand.
- Divide mixture into 10 portions. Form each portion into a 6-inch (15 cm) long roll (kabab) around skewer. Brush with oil. Grill for 6 to 7 minutes, turning once, until no longer pink inside.
- Garnish with onion rings and lemon wedges. Serve with chutney of your choice.
Saffron-Scented Chicken Kababs
Chicken Boti Kababs
Serves 8
Saffron adds a special touch to these succulent, bite-size pieces of chicken. They are delicious cooked on a charcoal grill.
Tip
It is not always necessary to thread kababs in Indian cooking. In this recipe, you can bake them without threading or grill them on skewers.
8 skinless boneless chicken breasts
1/2 tsp saffron threads
1/2 cup plain nonfat yogurt, avoiding as much liquid as possible
2 tbsp minced green chilies, preferably serranos, or to taste
1.5 tbsp minced peeled gingerroot
1.5 tbsp minced garlic
1.5 tsp cumin powder
3/4 tsp cardamom powder
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1.5 tsp salt or to taste
3 tbsp lemon or lime juice
2 tbsp vegetable oil (approx.)
- from "Easy Indian Cooking," by Suneeta Vaswani
Saffron adds a special touch to these succulent, bite-size pieces of chicken. They are delicious cooked on a charcoal grill.
Tip
It is not always necessary to thread kababs in Indian cooking. In this recipe, you can bake them without threading or grill them on skewers.
- 12 to 16 metal skewers, or 16 to 20 bamboo skewers, soaked in water for 30 minutes
8 skinless boneless chicken breasts
1/2 tsp saffron threads
1/2 cup plain nonfat yogurt, avoiding as much liquid as possible
2 tbsp minced green chilies, preferably serranos, or to taste
1.5 tbsp minced peeled gingerroot
1.5 tbsp minced garlic
1.5 tsp cumin powder
3/4 tsp cardamom powder
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1.5 tsp salt or to taste
3 tbsp lemon or lime juice
2 tbsp vegetable oil (approx.)
- Rinse chicken and pat dry. Cut into bite-size pieces.
- Soak saffron in 2 tbsp (25mL) hot water for 10 minutes.
- Stir together yogurt, chilies, ginger, garlic, cumin, cardamom, pepper, salt and lemon juice. Stir in saffron threads with liquid. Pour over chicken and mix thoroughly. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours or for up to 12 hours.
- To bake in oven: Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Line a rimmed jelly-roll pan or baking sheet with foil. Arrange chicken pieces on pan, discarding extra marinade. Drizzle oil evenly on top. Bake until no longer pink inside, 10 to 12 minutes. Serve immediately.
- To cook on grill: Preheat barbecue to medium. Thread chicken pieces onto metal skewers, 3 to 4 per skewer. If using bamboo skewers, wrap exposed bamboo with foil to prevent burning. Brush lightly with oil and grill, turning once, until no longer pink inside, 3 to 4 minutes.
- from "Easy Indian Cooking," by Suneeta Vaswani