Shami Kabab | Shami Kebab - Swasthi's Recipes (2024)

These Shami Kabab are crisp on the outside, succulent & tender inside. Make these with your favorite meat of choice and the best part is you can shallow fry, pan-fry, air fry or oven bake them for a healthier choice. Serve these Shami Kabab with Mint Chutney or Cilantro Chutney. Extend your menu with this Turmeric Rice, onion salad and Kachumber.

The Indian subcontinent is known for its plethora of kebabs. Some are made with various kinds of legumes and vegetables. Some are filled with paneer. Still others are made with meat.

Kababs can be simmered in a gravy, rolled into a flatbread, nestled between buns, dipped in sauces or chutneys, or served with rice or salad. One of the most popular, and famous, is the Shami Kabab.

What is Shami Kebab?

Shami Kebab is a popular type of kebab made with meat, chana dal (skinned split chickpeas), spices and fresh herbs. While mutton is the most common meat used, you will also find other kinds of meat including chicken being used.

The origins of shami kebabs are a bit hazy. Like many other foods, even these have several stories on their origin! The word shami may refer to Syria, from where many cooks migrated to the Mughal Empire of South Asia. This kind of kababs may have been cooked by them. Hence the name.

Shami kebab is an incredibly popular street food in India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. It’s often served as a snack or appetizer, with sides of sauces, chutneys, salads, breads like naan, Tandoori roti, and sometimes rice pilaf & Biryani.

More kabab recipes
Chicken tikka kebab
Chicken kebabs
Malai kabab
Hara bhara kabab
Dahi kabab

How to Make Shami Kabab (Stepwise photos)

Preparation

1. Wash ⅓ cup (75 grams) chana dal a few times and soak it for about 2 to 3 hours in ample amount of water. Later drain the water completely and add it to a pot or Dutch oven. Add the following ingredients:

• 1 inch ginger peeled and sliced
• 3 large garlic cloves sliced
• 1 teaspoon red chili powder or chili flakes
• ¼ teaspoon turmeric (optional)
• 1½ inch piece of cinnamon
• 2 to 3 green cardamoms / elaichi
• 2 dried red chilies (use more if you want)
• 1 teaspoon roasted cumin or roasted ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon garam masala or biryani masala (more if you want)

2. Add 450 grams (1 lb.) chicken or mutton (boneless, or use more bone-in) and pour ½ cup water if using chicken or 2½ cups water if using mutton

3. Cover partially and bring it to a gentle boil. Cook until the meat and lentils both are completely soft. If the pot dries out, add more hot water (in small batches) as you cook.

4. Open the lid and cook to evaporate any excess liquid. Cool this completely and remove the whole spices and bones if any.

Make Shami Kebab

5. Transfer this to a food processor or a onion chopper.

6. Process to a slightly coarse mixture. If you want super soft patties, process longer until it becomes a fine paste.

7. Next add 1 fine chopped green chili, 1 small fine chopped onion, 2 tbsps fine chopped mint leaves & 2 to 3 tbsps coriander leaves fine chopped. Mix and taste to adjust salt and heat levels.

8. Break an egg to a small bowl and whisk it well. Add small amounts of egg and bring the mixture together to form non-sticky dough.

9. It should look as seen in the picture below.

10. Divide the mixture to 8 to 10 equal parts and roll to balls. Flatten and shape them to patties. You can freeze these at this stage.

Fry Shami Kabab

11. Break an egg to a wide bowl and whisk well. You can shallow fry, pan-fry, air fry or oven bake these. I have given the instructions below:

13. Frying: Heat oil for shallow frying or pan frying in a pan. When the oil turns hot enough, dip one shami kebab each time in the egg mixture and lift it with a fork. Gently shake off the excess egg mixture to avoid the oil turning messy & frothy. Gently slide these in the hot oil. Fry on a medium heat until golden, turning to and fro as needed. When they are golden fried, transfer the shami kababs to a absorbent tissues or a wired rack.

Servechicken shami kabab hot with mint chutney or kabab chutney.

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