Shami Kabobs

Shami Kabobs are delicious ground meat patties blended with some yellow split peas, herbs and spices. These kabobs have a subtle earthy taste and a melting texture. The mixture is elevated with warmth of spices like coriander, cinnamon, cumin and fennel, shallow fried in vegetable oil to create a meal that is exquisite, both on your plate and to your palette. Below is my version of Shami Kabobs, which is very simple and healthier (the original recipe calls for deep frying in clarified butter).

Ingredients
1 Pound Ground Lamb/Goat or Beef
1 Egg
1 Onion (Small), finely chopped
2 Green Chilies, finely chopped
1/4 Cup Yellow Split Peas/ Bengal Gram, soaked in water overnight
2 Teaspoons Ginger-Garlic Paste
1 Teaspoon Ground Coriander
1 Teaspoon Fennel Seeds
1/4 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
1 Teaspoon Salt or to taste
1/4 Teaspoon Garam Masala Powder, optional
3-4 Sprigs Fresh Cilantro, finely chopped
1 Sprig Fresh mint, finely chopped
1 Tablespoon Lemon juice
2 Tablespoons Bread Crumbs, if needed
2 Tablespoon Vegetable Oil

Process

1. Drain the split peas and boil them in water in a covered pan on medium heat, for 15 minutes or until the split pea is tender enough to crush between your fingers. Drain and set aside.
2. In a separate pan on medium heat, add ground meat, onions, salt, green chilies, ground fennel, ground cinnamon and coriander, cumin and ginger-garlic paste. Mix everything well, cover and cook for 20 minutes or until ALL the moisture is absorbed. DO NOT ADD ANY WATER TO THE PAN. Make sure to stir after every few minutes to avoid the mixture sticking at the bottom of the pan. Let the mixture cool to room temperature.
3. Mix drained and boiled split peas to the meat mix and grind it to a fine paste in the food processor. Taste the mixture to adjust any spices if needed.
4. Add chopped cilantro and mint to the mix and a beaten egg (for binding) and form a soft dough.
5. Refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes before cooking.
6. Shape the dough into small round flattened balls. If the dough is still very soft, add breadcrumbs (very little at a time) to make the dough manageable.
7. Heat 1 Tablespoon oil on a flat pan and shallow fry kabobs, 2-3 minutes on each side. Add more oil as needed. Be careful while removing the kabobs from the pan, to avoid breaking them.
8. Let the Kabobs rest for a minute, sprinkle lemon juice and serve warm with chutneys of your choice.

Enjoy 🙂