winter nights and hot skewers!!!

After having spend over two and a half decades and another in cities of Lucknow and Bhopal; i assume i have eaten through my fair share of all sorts of kebabs possible.From the very famous galawat kababs from 'tundey kababi' that simply melt in the mouth to boti kababs,shami kababs and seekh kababs;i have eaten them all and am always up for more.I also like to cook them at home for friends and family;usually over a barbeque if time and weather permits or else at my trusted iron griddle otherwise.Here is a simple recipe for seekh kabab:

Ingrediets

• minced meat(goat or lamb)-400 gms(it will make around 12 to 14 kebabs)
• chickpea flour(besan)-1½ tbsp
• grated ginger-1"inch
• garlic mince-around 8 to 10 cloves
• roasted cumin powder-2 tspn
• red chilly powder- 1 tspn(or more if you like it hot) ,you can also bash up a few green chillies and use it...but i did not.
• garam masala powder-i tspn
• grated raw papaya-1 tbsp(optional)
• egg-1
• lemon juice-1 tspn
• chopped coriander -a medium sized bunch
• salt to taste
• ghee/oil to bast

method

• The first step here is to marinate the mince for atleast an hour before cooking so as to allow the flavours to develop nicely and meat to tenderize a bit.Mix the mince with all the dry spices and add the grated ginger and garlic paste.Cover and keep aside.If the outside weather is hot ,it should be kept inside the refrigerator.
• Meanwhile roast the chickpea flour or besan over a pan on medium heat ,stirring continuously until it is fragrant.Take it out in a plate to cool down.
•  After about an hour,take the mixture out of the refrigerator and mix in the egg and salt.Carefully add the required amount of toasted besan so that it is just sufficient to hold everything together gently.Do not add more.
• Heat the skewers well if you are using metal ones over barbeque or an oven.This will help with meat sticking to the skewers well.Incase you are using wooden skewers,soak them in water for 10-15 minutes before using.This prevents the skewers from burning and wasting away all the glorious kababs.
• Take a handful of mince and try to cover the skewers in thin and even sized layer taking care not to add too much or else it will break under its own weight while cooking.Use water to wet hands while doing this to prevent the meat from sticking to your palms.Needless to say that you need to be careful of the hot skewer that can burn your hands.
• It needs to be cooked over medium to high heat as the layers are thin and cook fast.Incase you feel the need you can baste the kababs while turning them over.They should be cooked in 5 to 7 minutes.

• It should be done once all the sides are cooked to a nice golden brown.Remove the kababs from skewers into a plate.Cut them diagonally and serve them with lemon wedges, fresh mint chutney and a spicy onion salad.Eat them with parathas or chapatis for a complete meal or just on their own like i do.have fun eating!!!

Easy Chicken Roast

Ingredients:

1 Whole Chicken
Minced garlic(1 whole clove)
Cayenne/Red chilli powder - 2tspn
Crushed black pepper - 1 tspn
Dried onion powder-2 tbs*
Peanut oil/Olive oil - (3-4) tbs
Dried thyme - roughly 2 tbs
Dried oregano - roughly 1 tbs
Baby potatoes(you can leave the skins on) washed thoroughly - about 10-12
Baby onions(again you can leave the skins on if you feel they are clean) -10-12
Lemons- 2 large ones
Finely chopped coriander/parsley - about a handful

salt to taste

Preparation:

Step 1 :
Preheat the oven at 180°c.Prepare the rub by adding in the minced garlic,onion powder,cayenne powder,black pepper,chopped parsley,salt and sufficient oil to mix it all up well in a bowl.

Step 2 :
After the chicken is completely skinned,washed,cleaned and pat dried;apply the rub on it and massage it well;taking care to put some of the rub inside the cavity as well.Use a spoon or a brush if you must.

Step 3:
Prick the lemons well with a fork and place them inside the cavity.At this point you can tie the thighs together with a string to avoid the moisture from chicken escaping out and hence helping it to cook well from inside.You can skip the tying part if you wish and directly place the chicken backbone side up in the baking tray.

Step 4:
Toss the baby onions and baby potatoes in the remaining rub and just randomly place them in the tray along with the chicken.Personally i like to line the tray with aluminium foil before placing the chicken in to save on a lot of washing up later.

Step 5:
Pour a generous amount of oil over the chicken and the veggies and cover the entire tray with foil.Place it inside the oven at about 165°c for about 35-40 mnts.
After this remove the foil nd raise the temperature of the oven to 200°c and cook for another 10 mnts.This will crisp up the chicken.

Step 6:
It is a good idea to let the chicken rest for a couple of minutes after it is done.
Place the chicken on a chopping tray.Now simply use a kitchen knife to cut along the breastbone and the backbone to split it into two,and further along the joint above the thigh to make four large pieces in total.
Collect the juices from the tray nd season if needed.
Serve it hot with roasted veggies on the side and spoon the juices that you collected over it.
Bon Appetite :)

*dried onion can also be easily prepared by roasting,cooling and then grounding thinly sliced onions lined up on a baking tray on moderate heat in a conventional oven.