Shami Kebabs Minced Lamb and Chana Dal Kebabs

Have you ever heard of shami kebabs? Until I met my hubby, they were an unknown to me, and oh my goodness.. had I missed out.  Crisp on the outside and soft on the inside, made with a mixture of minced meat and lentils… I made mine with lamb and chana dal… seriously; I’m drooling, just writing about it.  They are typically eaten as appetizers or snacks, but in my house, they were stuffed in pita bread with tomatoes, lettuce, and raita and devoured so quickly!!

Whole spices like cinnamon, cloves, star anise, cumin, and cardamom are sautéed with minced lamb, ginger, and garlic. Then chana dal is added, and it’s all simmered for a good 40 minutes until the moisture is evaporated.  The mixture is removed from the heat, completely cooled, and blended into a paste before adding chopped onions, fresh coriander, garam masala, green chillis, and eggs to bind it all together.  The patties are then shallowly fried to a golden crisp and served hot with raita.  

I made a quick-cheats-raita with yoghurt, a dash of Sriracha, a tsp of mint jelly, a squeeze of ketchup, and some chaat masala… I know it sounds like an odd combo, but it worked so well and complemented the kebabs beautifully.

Shami Kebabs Minced Lamb and Chana Dal Kebabs

Serves: 6 Prep Time: 40 Minutes Cooking Time: 50 Minutes 50 Minutes

Nutrition facts: 200 calories 20 grams fat

Rating: 5.0/5

( 1 voted )

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Ingredients

• 1 kg Minced Spring Lamb
• Cooking Oil
• 6 Whole cloves
• 1 Cinnamon stick
• 2 tsps Cumin Seeds
• 6 Whole Green cardamoms
• 2 Star Anise
• 3 tsps Salt
• 1½ tbsps Ginger minced
• 1½ tbsps Garlic crushed
• 400g Cooked chana dal – I used 2 x Packets OddPods Chana Dal
• 1½ tbsps Garam Masala
• 4 Green chillis chopped
• 1 Onion chopped
• Large handful coriander
• 2 Eggs

Instructions

1. Heat oil in a saucepan on medium-high heat, add cloves, cinnamon, cumin seeds, whole cardamoms, star anise, salt, and cook spices for 2-3 minutes.
2. Add minced lamb, ginger, and garlic, break up the lamb with a spoon, keep cooking, keep string until the mince is fully cooked, add the dal, cover with a lid, and simmer for 20 minutes.
3. Remove the lid and continue to cook until all the water has evaporated, another 10-15 minutes.
4. Turn off the heat and cool completely
5. Remove the cinnamon stick and star anise
6. Once cooled, use a hand blender or food processor to purée into a paste
7. Add the chopped onion, coriander, garam masala, green chilli, and 2 eggs, mix well with your hands
8. Mould into 18-20 patties
9. Shallow fry patty’s in oil but does not flip until one side has crisped up; otherwise, the patty will break as they are very soft.
10. Fry in batches until crisp and golden, drain on kitchen towels and serve with raita or chutney.

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