A vegetarian version of shami kabab made with black chickpeas, gram flour, onions, spices and herbs. They are crisp, succulent and tasty served with a side of green chutney, lemon wedges and onion slices.

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 420 minutes
  • Cook time: 30 minutes
  • Total time: 450 minutes
  • Yield: 10 · 10 Veg Shami Kabab
  • Category: Snacks
  • Cuisine: Awadhi

Ingredients

  • 1 cup dried black chickpeas
  • enough water (for soaking black chickpeas)
  • 2 cups water (or as required, for pressure cooking kala chana)
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 medium sized onion (- finely chopped or minced)
  • 1 green chili (, finely chopped)
  • 1 teaspoon coriander powder
  • ½ teaspoon red chili powder
  • ½ teaspoon garam masala
  • salt (as required)
  • 3 to 4 tablespoons gram flour ((besan) or add as required)
  • ½ tablespoon ginger paste
  • 1 tablespoon coriander leaves (, chopped)
  • oil as required for frying the kababs
  • 1 tablespoon chopped mint leaves or chopped coriander leaves

Method

Preparation

  1. First rinse black chickpeas a few times in fresh water.
  2. In a bowl soak the black chickpeas in enough water overnight or for 8 to 9 hours.
  3. Drain all the soaked water and then in a stovetop pressure cook the chickpeas with 2 cups water and ½ teaspoon salt for 10 to 15 minutes or till they are thoroughly cooked.
  4. Let the pressure settle down on its own in the cooker and then only open the lid.
  5. Check if the chickpeas are cooked well. If not cooked well, then pressure cook again for some more time.
  6. Then drain all the water very well. Do make sure that the chickpeas are dry and all the water is drained from them.
  7. In a large bowl or plate add the chickpeas and mash them with a vegetable masher or a wooden spoon.
  8. Just make a semi coarse mixture and not too smooth.
  9. Add the following ingredients - finely chopped onions, finely chopped green chili, coriander powder, red chili powder, garam masala powder, salt as required, gram flour, ginger paste and chopped coriander leaves.
  10. Stir and mix very well.
  11. Make into small round shaped kababs or patties.

Making Shami Kebab

  1. Heat oil in a pan or skillet on a medium heat.
  2. Shallow fry the kabab in medium hot oil till crisp and browned on both sides.
  3. Once done, then drain the kababs on kitchen paper napkins to remove excess oil.
  4. You can also bake the kababs with a drizzle of oil for a healthier version.
  5. Garnish shami kabab with mint leaves or coriander leaves. Serve these shami kebab hot with onion-mint salad along with slices of lime and some mint chutney or coriander chutney.

Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note

Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.