Monday Munchies: Seekh Kebabs, easy recipe by Miss Masala!

Monday is here, but this Monday for me is a very exciting one! It's my last of work before my one month trip to India to visit the bf!


So, what better way to mix both things than doing a Monday Munchies entry with an absolutely yummy Indian recipe?


This recipe can be found in "Miss Masala: Real Indian Cooking for Busy Living" by Malika Bassu. And let me tell you, if you want to start cooking Indian dishes, and either aren't an expert cook, or don't like cooking all that much to spend hours on end in the kitchen (like myself), this IS the book you need! Also, you can check her website/blog for even more yummy recipes!


First of all, you get explanations on all sort of things important on Indian cooking, like the different spices, tricks & shortcuts you're never told in regular cookbooks, and everything that Malika has learnt in her path to enjoy her homeland food without changing her modern lifestyle!


The Seekh Kebabs recipe is the first one I've tried, mainly cause they're G's favourite dish, and I really wanted to see if I could make them easily or if we'd be resigned to only eat them at restaurants... Well, it really is a surprisingly easy recipe to put together, and a REALLY yummy one! If you don't want them too spicy, you can always play around with the quantities till you find the right balance for you! Also, the recipe uses minced mutton (lamb), but you can use other meats, I plan on making them next time with chicken. Now, onto the recipe:


Seekh Kebabs
Makes about 15 kebabs

Ingredients:

- 8 cm (3 inch) root ginger.
- 12 garlic cloves.
- 25 gr (1oz) fresh mint.
- 25 gr (1oz) fresh coriander
- 1 kg (2lb 3oz) minced lamb (or chicken, beef...)
- 1 large egg.
- 3 teaspoons Garam Masala.
- 1 & 1/2 teaspoon chilli powder.
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg.
- 2 teaspoons salt.
- 15 bamboo skewers


Method:

1. Peel the ginger & garlic, pink the mint leaves from their stems and cut off the hard ends of the coriander stalks. Beat the egg in a small bowl.
2. In a food processor, whiz together half the ginger, garlic and fresh herbs, along with one quarter of the mince and half the egg. Grind the meat to a smooth creamy paste. Remove this into a large mixing bowl and blitz another quarter of the mean with the rest of the ginger, garlic, fresh herb & remaining egg.
3. Now, add the remaining meat to the bowl, along with the spices and salt, and go in with your fingers, mixing the whole lot. You want the ground meat and the mince to integrate well together so no one notices that you cheated by not grinding half the mince.
4. Cover the bowl with a plate or cling film and chill in the fridge for at least an hour, or longer if possible. Overnight would be great too.
5. When you're ready to go, dampen your hands and divide the mixture into 15 even-sized lumps. Moistening your hands under the tap will prevent the mixture from sticking to them. Likewise, soaking the bamboo skewers in water for 20 mins will prevent them burning in the heat of the barbecue or grill (cause I doubt any of you have a tandoori oven at home). Then take each lump and shape it into a narrow sausage around one of the skewers. Keep wetting your palm to make this process as easy as possible.
6. Finally barbecue or grill each kebab at high temperature for 20 minutes, turning every 5 minutes to ensure even cooking. Serve piping hot!

Now, a word of warning, don't allow the friends or family to start trying them out before getting them to the table, they might not make it... They're that good! ;)