Fauzia's Kitchen Fun

Chicken Shami Kababs

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Chicken Shami Kababs

Deliciously spicy hot shamis are always irresistable, and these make for some of the best chicken shamis you will ever taste.  I have served them here with my mango-tamarind chutney and some lemon slices … YUM!
For beef shami kababs, check HERE.
Servings 12 Shamis

Ingredients
  

Ingredients

  • 500 gm boneless chicken cut into cubes
  • 1 tbsp. chopped fresh coriander stems
  • 1 tsp. garlic paste
  • 1 tsp. ginger paste
  • 3 green chillies chopped or to taste
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 1 medium onion chopped
  • 1/3 cup chickpea lentils/channa daal soaked for at least 4 hours
  • 1 potato peeled and cubed
  • 1 tsp. cumin powder
  • 1/4 tsp. turmeric powder
  • 1 tbsp. lemon juice

Other Ingredients

  • 1 egg lightly beaten
  • 1 tsp. garam masala
  • 2-3 tbsp. chopped fresh coriander
  • 1 tbsp. channa/lentil flour
  • 1-2 tbsp. breadcrumbs if needed
  • 1 tbsp. lemon juice

Instructions
 

  • Put the chicken with all the ingredients in the first batch into a pan.  Add half a cup of water and simmer gently until the chicken is cooked and the rest of the ingredients (lentils/potatoes/onion) are all soft. Increase the heat and dry off any excess moisture.
    Allow this mixture to cool completely.  Then grind the mixture until smooth.  Turn it out into a bowl and add the channa flour and HALF of the beaten egg.  Add the garam masala, lemon juice and chopped coriander.  Give everything a good mix.  If the mixture feels dry, you can slowly add the rest of the egg one teaspoon at a time and mix.  If it feels too sticky, add 1-2 tbsp of a breadcrumbs and mix.  At this point you can refrigerate or even freeze the mixture until needed.  I like to test fry one small shami to taste for salt and adjust if needed, you can do that if you want.
    When ready to fry, shape the kababs into flat discs and deep fry them until golden brown on both sides.  You can dip them in egg before frying if you want, but I prefer my shamis to have a nice crispy coating so I never dip them in egg.
    Enjoy!  🙂

Join the Conversation

  1. Salam. Made these a few days
    Salam. Made these a few days back. Turned out great Mashallah. A few are still sitting in our freezer waiting to be eaten soon Inshallah. 🙂 JazakumAllah Khayr Fauzia!

  2. My mix turned out a little
    My mix turned out a little bit on the wet side and this was after the addition of egg. I tried to make it dry by increasing the quantity of gram fluor and breadcrumbs but it didn’t work. The taste, however, was amazing and this was a great recipe. I just had trouble making flat kebabs and putting them in the oil, because it was wet it was breaking up in my hands and not transferring….your advice?

    1. Try adding the egg a little
      Try adding the egg a little at a time while mixing, stop when the mixture feels right. Sometimes it could be a matter of the size of egg that could make the mixture too wet.

  3. Wow lovely sis, just busy
    Wow lovely sis, just busy cooking n marinating FKF recipes since morning. U mentioned lentils here, I have whole cheakpeas at home,will that work sis?

    1. Aww, thank you! It may change
      Aww, thank you! It may change the texture/consistency of the results because chickpeas have peel which is not needed in this recipe.

  4. Thanks to u sis for sharing
    Thanks to u sis for sharing lovely, yummy recipes 🙂 Insh will buy it tomorrow ahsant

  5. Salam Fauzia! I want to make
    Salam Fauzia! I want to make kebabs but dunt have any machinery to grind the meat. And I also don’t have any idea what kind of machine that is? I saw two machines one which makes qima and the other is a so called meat chopper. Which one should I buy? Very confused..

    1. W/Salaam, ideally you could
      W/Salaam, ideally you could use a meat grinder. Please google that term to see how it looks.

  6. Hi i made these today and
    Hi i made these today and tasted great. However the first one i made was without egg and i deep fried. But it just crumbled away after a few minutes into nothing but crumbs especially when i tried to turn it over it just melted away faster. I made the rest dipped in egg and shallow fried and they were fine. What did i do wrong?

    1. Hi! Sounds like the mixture
      Hi! Sounds like the mixture might have had a bit too much moisture. Did you dry it up completely? Am glad dipping it in egg helped though. 🙂 Next time you can add a bit of breadcrumbs or channa flour to the mixture to absorb any excess moisture before shaping and frying.

  7. Fauzia plz help I made them
    Fauzia plz help I made them today n taste is very nice only probl. Is that I put too much of salt. Can I boil one potato just in plain water and add to the mixture? I’m just worried that the taste of masala will become less? Plz help and reply as soon as possible

    1. Yes it’s fine, add one boiled
      Yes it’s fine, add one boiled and mashed potato…then fry a small one and give it a taste. If it needs more spice then you can chop up a chilli and squeeze some lemon and mix it in. 🙂

  8. Thanks fauzia sis, the best
    Thanks fauzia sis, the best thing about the kababs is that my lil son also likes it. One generelle question, if we need 1 tea of galic paste or ginger ( the one from the bottles, ready made ones) how much tea spoon of fresh grated ginger ( or garlic ) would be used instead? I’m not very good with using fresh ginger or garlic it’s always too less or too much…

    1. Thanks for the feedback! I
      Thanks for the feedback! I find that fresh garlic has a better flavour and is more potent, that is what I always use. I grind it at home from scratch. So the measurements given are always of ginger or garlic made from fresh. 🙂

  9. Can I add the mixture in to
    Can I add the mixture in to food processor? I don’t have the machine to grind 🙁

  10. Will be making it tomorrow.
    Will be making it tomorrow. Have chicken and everything else lined up. Is it ok to skip potato ?

    1. I find the potatoes help hold
      I find the potatoes help hold everything together, you can try without it but am not sure how the results would be.

  11. my son is allergic to eggs..
    my son is allergic to eggs…just wondering if we can make this withou egg…or not possible?
    thanks

    1. The egg acts as a binding
      The egg acts as a binding agent to maintain the shape of the kabab, you could omit the egg and then coat the kababs with breadcrumbs and try frying one to test it out. 🙂

    1. I usually deep fry them. But
      I usually deep fry them. But if you want to shallow fry you can, although in that case it may be wise to coat them in beaten egg first before shallow frying.

  12. Assalamualaikum.can I use
    Assalamualaikum.can I use chicken qeema instead of chicken cube n is it enough to 1/2 tsp of ginger n garlic paste.pls reply.coz I’m trying it now

  13. I must say i’m so grateful to
    I must say i’m so grateful to you. Your recipes are just soo gooood!! :)Thankyouu!my Allah bless u

  14. Assalamualaikum
    Assalamualaikum
    Mashallah your recipes are awesome.Just wanted to know how can I fix my kabab mixture if it becomes too sticky?Can I add some kind of flour to it?

    1. W/Salaam, yes you can add a
      W/Salaam, yes you can add a bit of cornflour or gram flour or breadcrumbs.

  15. I had not made these in
    I had not made these in awhile and my latest batch did not turn out great….I accidentally added a little too much besan. Please, can you suggest a way to fix this? I can taste the besan in the kebabs. Also, the kebab mix is not as spicy as it always is, what can be done? I have it in the freezer now, is that ok? Please help!

    1. Yes, the mixtures is fine in
      Yes, the mixtures is fine in the freezer for now. Is it possible to make a second smaller batch of the mixture, with a bit more spice/chilli and no besan? You can then add this to the previous mixture and combine. It will help sort out the excess besan and increase the spice level for you.

  16. Hi can i make these few hours
    Hi can i make these few hours (6 7 hours before guests arrive. I have a party this sat. Looking for a dish i can make well in advance

  17. Assalamoalekum. I am on low
    Assalamoalekum. I am on low carb high fat diet. In this diet grains are not allowed. Will you please share the recipies of kabab of kamb or mutton gluten free. I left chicken. I only use lamb or mutton. I will be very thankfull to you. I will make for one week and will freez them. And will make portion size kebab. Please guide me.

  18. Can we shape the kababs and
    Can we shape the kababs and then freeze?? Will it crumble while frying if we shape and then freeze??

    1. That should be ok, just make
      That should be ok, just make sure to dip them in egg and breadcrumbs before freezing, then fry them directly from the freezer into the hot oil so they seal instantly and don’t fall apart. Alternatively you can just fry them, cool and pack them and then freeze.

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