Mouthful of kebabs

It’s that time of the year when little lanes in many parts of the country come alive in the evening. I have always enjoyed my Ramzan walks, watching parts of Old Delhi light up once people break their fasts. The lanes teem with the old and the young, and the roads are lined with stalls selling various kinds of food — from fried chicken and pakoras to biryani, korma and kebabs.

With Eid round the corner, I have been reliving those moments and planning a meal of kebabs — and only kebabs. I remember in particular the seekh kebabs that a great master called Moinuddin prepared on the roadside in Lal Kuan, and the fish kebabs that were once sold outside the Jama Masjid.

Kebabs, contrary to popular belief, are not just of a few kinds. We know our shami and seekh kebabs, and galautis and kakori, but there are other variations, too. And I love them all. My fondness for kebabs was honed by my father’s friend, Bundu Khan. When he visited us, he would prepare a delicious kebab, the taste of which I remember vividly, even after six decades. He bequeathed the recipe to my mother, and we remembered him fondly every time we could persuade her to roll out kebabs for us (she was not fond of the kitchen).

There is one kebab I can’t have enough of. This is called sutli kebab or gola kebab. It is so soft that it has to be held together with a spool of thread. Chapli kebab is another favourite. This is a large kebab, which gets its name from either the Pashto word for flat or the humble slipper, for it is shaped like one. Every winter, you could find a couple of young Kashmiri cooks in Old Delhi preparing seekh kebabs with minced meat, cooked with just a pinch of spices.

Kebabs are prepared with minced meat or pieces that have been pounded or beaten. Hyderabad’s tas kebab is made with pasandas, and korma kebab is prepared with boneless mutton pieces that are pounded well. But chefs warn us not to pound the pieces too well — the meat should not be like a paste. It should be stringy, for that adds to its taste.

Regions have their special kebabs. Though I am the chairperson of the Meerut-has-the-best-kebabs club, I enjoy the fare that Hyderabad has to offer. Its seekh qaafli kebab is special. The meat is marinated twice, once with yoghurt, spices and ghee, and then barbecued with fried onions, ghee and red chillies. Rampur has an array of kebabs, too. For bhapi kebabs, as the name suggests, the meat is fried with masalas, onions, etc, shaped, and then allowed to cook in its own steam in ghee in a lidded pan. Bihari kebab is a dish of thin slices of meat, pounded, marinated with spices, and then skewered and cooked. Bhopal has a delightful bun kebab, where a shami kebab is placed between two sweet buns with green chutney, onion and tomato slices, squirted with lemon juice, and then grilled on a pan.

Friends in Kolkata swear by something known as chelow or chelo kebab, which is supposedly an Iranian special. Restaurants serve two mildly spiced seekh kebabs on a bed of buttered rice, with a poached egg and a fried tomato on the side.

What I like about kebabs is that they can always be your main dish, too. I often prepare a kebab curry at home with seekh kebabs. I buy them from the local butcher’s, fry them lightly and then toss them in a tomato-and-chilli-based gravy. This Eid, though, I am going to try out Bundu Mian’s shami kebab recipe. It will lead to happy memories, and a pleased palate.

Bundu Khan’s shami kebab

Ingredients

Minced meat 1 kg

Onion (large, chopped) 1

Chana dal 150 g

Ginger-garlic paste 1 tbsp

Dried red chillies 2

Cloves 1/4 tsp

Black cardamoms 3

Black peppercorns ½ tsp

Cumin seeds 1 tsp

Eggs 2

Juice of lemons 2

Oil for shallow frying

Salt to taste

For the stuffing

Onions 2

Green chillies 4

A bunch of coriander leaves

A sprig of mint leaves

Method

In a pressure cooker, cook all the ingredients, barring the oil, eggs, lemon juice, and the stuffing. After two whistles, wait for the cooker to cool, then remove the lid. Now, cook it till the water evaporates. Once done, take out the minced meat and let it cool. Meanwhile, prepare the stuffing by finely chopping all the ingredients. Mix and keep it aside. Take the minced meat mix and grind it on a sil-batta. Add lemon juice to it. Make small patties. Dig a small hole in each patty, put a bit of the filling in it and then cover it with the kebab mix. Beat the eggs. Dip each patty in the egg mix and shallow fry. Serve hot.