Shami Kebab

Shami Kebab—tender mutton kebabs made with boneless mutton, chana dal, and whole spices. Originally from the Awadh courts of a toothless nawab, now Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh, India, these kebabs are delicately spiced, melt in your mouth, and are perfect little morsels.

Kababs are something we Indians eat at every restaurant meal. A standard food order is very often tandoori chicken or any other kebab like shami kebab, butter chicken curry, and naan.

Some also translate shami kabab to evening kababs. In fact, this is a great evening snack when served with coriander or tamarind chutney. Unlike the tandoori kababs, this one doesn't need any special equipment. You will find this in every South Asian mom's freezer, ready to be fried at a moment's notice.

This recipe is from a dear old friend of my father from his Jamiya college days. I remember gathering around a table full of food and looking wide eyed at the countless dishes in front of me. Ah, what carefree days those were!

Ingredients for Shami Kabab

Here are the simple ingredients you need to make this delicious recipe

See the recipe card for quantities.

Meat—Shami kebabs can be made with any kind of meat, but mutton and beef are preferred. I like using boneless mutton cubes as in the picture. Some people prefer using ground meat, but I don't quite like the texture of it.

Dal - We need split chana dal or bengal gram, which has to be soaked for 1 hour before being cooked with the meat.

Fresh aromatics- These are added after the initial cooking stage. Chopped onions, fresh coriander leaves, and mint leaves make the basis of shami kababs.

In addition to these, we also use ginger and garlic.

Whole Spices - These add a depth of flavor to the kebabs. However, you have to remember to remove them once you have cooked the mutton and dal.

We need black cardamom, green cardamom, cinnamon, bay leaf, and cloves. You can substitute it with a teaspoon of garam masala.

Ground Spices - You only need ground red chili and ground cumin.

Ghee—The aroma of fried kababs in ghee is unbelievable. I strongly suggest using ghee; if not, use any neutral oil.

Egg—We use the egg for binding. A version of shami kebab is made by dipping the kabab in a whisked egg before frying.

How to make Shami Kebab

These kababs can be made with minced meat, chicken, soy chunks, beef, or mutton. I like using boneless mutton chunks because they give the kababs a gorgeous lattice-like texture when fried.

The shami kebab recipe has three parts: cooking the dal and meat, making the mixture, and finally frying.

Step 1: Cook Meat, Dal, and whole spices

At this step, we want to overcook the soaked dal, meat, ginger, garlic, and whole spices with water. You can use an instant pot or pressure cooker, or do it on the stovetop.

For instant pot, use ½ cup of water and pressure cook on high for 20 minutes.

For a regular pressure cooker, use ¾ cup of water and pressure cook for 10 minutes, 5-6 whistles.

Stovetop- Use a large pot with a lid. Cook the meat and dal with 4 cups of water and cook for 50-60 minutes.

The trick is using as little water as possible while overcooking the meat and dal, making them easily mashable. I strain the water before I blend the dal and meat, then add it slowly, keeping the consistency of the kebab mixture in mind.

Step 2: Shami Kabab mixture

Remove the whole spices- cinnamon, cardamoms, bay leaf and cloves. Strain the leftover liquid.

Use a stick blender to blend the dal and meat. Add the fresh ingredients, taste test the salt, and adjust if needed. Add an egg for binding.

Your shami kabab mixture is ready. You can portion it out and freeze it at this stage.

Step 2: Fry Kababs

Heat a flat pan. Make sure it's completely dry before adding the ghee.

Heat the ghee on medium flame. You want the ghee to be ½ inch deep.

Meanwhile, make balls slightly larger than golf balls. Flatten them before gently sliding them into the hot ghee. Fry undisturbed till it turns golden brown.

Very carefully, using two spatulas, turn and cook from the other side.

Storage

If you don't eat the kabab in a couple of hours, leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 5-6 days.

To reheat, simply air fry them! Or you can gently heat them in a skillet.

Freezer - These kababs freeze very well. In fact, every time I make these, I freeze a portion of it.

You can either portion the mixture into balls and freeze them on a flat tray or transfer them to a zip-lock bag to save space.

To cook, thaw the frozen mixture. Cook on a flat pan as per recipe instructions.

Serving Shami Kebab

You can serve the kebab straight out of the pan with coriander mint chutney or tamarind chutney.

The kebab can also be served as a side to dal and rice.

Or you can make rolls. There is a famous restaurant in Lucknow that makes rolls with shami kebabs, green chutney and onions. It is my personal favorite way of eating these kababs.

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Variations

There are at least 2 famous versions of shami kebab.

Kebab with egg wash - where the kebab is dipped in whisked egg before frying.

Shikhampuri Kebab - Instead of mixing the fresh ingredients - onion, coriander, and chilies into the blended meat and dal, you stuff them inside the meat mixture to make a stuffed kebab.

Then there is the popular Chicken shami kebab and a vegan version with soy chunks.