The seekh kebab is Awadhi court food gone to the street — spiced minced meat moulded onto a flat iron skewer (the seekh) and seared over glowing charcoal until it chars outside and stays juicy within. Lucknow’s bawarchis refined it under the Nawabs, originally from beef, now usually lamb or goat for its softer texture, and Old Delhi’s grills around Jama Masjid turned it into a late-night staple eaten off the skewer with onion, lime and green chutney. The mince must carry enough fat to stay moist, and is kneaded until it binds so it grips the skewer without slumping into the coals. This version follows Philip Hirshon of The Food Dictator, whose seekh kebab is built closely on the recipe of the late Awadhi chef Jiggs Kalra — an English-language record of the Lucknawi original.
INGREDIENTS
- 500 g lamb or mutton mince (about 20% fat)
- 1 small onion (grated and squeezed dry)
- 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
- 1 –2 green chillies (finely chopped)
- 2 tbsp chopped coriander
- 1 tbsp chopped mint
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp Kashmiri red chilli powder
- 1 tbsp gram flour (besan, dry-roasted)
- 1 tsp salt (or to taste)
- 2 tbsp melted butter or ghee (for basting)
- 1 piece charcoal and a little ghee (for the smoking trick, optional)
- sliced onion (lemon wedges and green chutney, to serve)
METHOD
- Mix the mince with the onion, ginger-garlic paste, green chilli, coriander, mint, garam masala, ground coriander, cumin, Kashmiri chilli, roasted gram flour and salt.
- Knead the mixture firmly for a few minutes until it turns sticky and binds, then chill at least 1 hour.
- For the smoking trick, sit a small bowl on the mince, drop in a piece of red-hot charcoal with a little ghee, cover for 4–5 minutes, then remove.
- With wet hands, press portions of the mince along flat metal skewers into even logs about 15cm long.
- Cook over hot charcoal (or under a hot grill, or on a fierce griddle), turning and basting with butter, until charred outside and just cooked through, 8–10 minutes.
- Rest a couple of minutes, slide off the skewers, and serve with sliced onion, lemon and green chutney.