Thursday, July 31, 2014

Sheekh Kabab With Caramelized Vegetables (Simply Delicious Veg Kabab)

Veggie Sheekh Kababs are amazingly delicious and make quite an entrance when presented to family and friends! With the colorful caramelized veggie topping, they are irresistible!! These Kababs are so delicious, we make a meal of them! Serve them as starters or with a meal. 

I had them in a restaurant and the presentation was fabulous; the kababs were topped with sauteed onions and brought to the table sizzling on a hot cast iron platter! I have recreated them here for everyone's enjoyment; I added the succulent caramelized veggies with an eye for color.

Veggie Sheekh Kababs
Notes: 
1. For nicely browned and crispy kababs, deep fry them. Alternately the kababs may be cooked in a skillet with a drizzle of oil.
2. Unripe green bananas make the best kababs - but potatoes will do if the bananas are not available. The dough may be formed into patties also and cooked in a skillet with a little oil.
3. The dough may be prepared a day or two ahead.
4.  If you don't use all of the dough, chill in fridge for a day or two; or freeze for longer storage.
5. If either chaat or garam masala are unavailable, use a little rock salt, toasted ground cumin, ground black pepper, a little cinnamon and cardamom; you may want to increase the salt a little too as chaat masala has lots of salt.

About 20 small kababs

Ingredients:

2 green unripe Bananas or 3 Potatoes
2 tsp Chaat Masala (Spice Salt)
1/2 tsp Garam Masala
1 tsp Each - ground Coriander & Cumin seeds
1-2 Green Chiles, minced (Jalapeno or Serrano)
1 Medium Carrot, minced
1/2 small Onion, finely minced
4 Tbsp Fresh Cilantro, chopped
Sea Salt to taste as needed (you might not need too much as Chaat masala has lots of salt)
1/4 tsp Turmeric
1 pinch Asafetida
4 Tbsp Besan (Chickpea flour)
Oil for cooking
Green and Sweet chutneys for serving
Caramelized Veggies for serving

Method:

Trim the ends of the green bananas and cut in half; cook in water to cover until soft but not mushy. Let cool.

When cool, remove and discard the peels; coarsely grate or mash the bananas and place in a large mixing bowl.

Add all the rest of the ingredients to the bowl except the oil, chutneys and caramelized veggies.

Knead to mix all the ingredients well; the dough should be firm and not sticky.  Form little ovals or balls and push a chopstick through to make holes in the center - this ensures thorough cooking but is not essential. Wet your hands with fresh water as needed - wet hands help to keep the dough from sticking to your hands.

Deep fry the kababs in hot oil or cook them in a skillet with a little oil.

Serve hot with the chutneys and the caramelized vegetables on the side. Enjoy!!

Caramelized Vegetables: These are great as a topping on pulavs/rice dishes, soups, bruschettas, quesadillas, pizzas, grilled sandwiches, etc.

1-2 Tbsp Oil
1 large Onion, any color, cut into slivers
2 medium Carrots, cut into thin strips
1 Jalapeno or Serrano Chile, cored and thinly sliced (optional)
1 pinch Turmeric
1/2 tsp Sea Salt
2-3 Bell Peppers (Capsicums), yellow, orange, red, or green, thin strips
1/2-1 tsp Smoked Paprika
4 Tbsp fresh Cilantro, chopped

Heat the oil in a wide skillet and add the onions, carrots, and chiles if using with the salt.

Stir and cook over high-medium heat until onions begin to soften - about 2 or 3 minutes.

Add the turmeric and bell peppers and cook stirring often until the veggies begin to brown and caramelize on the edges. Remove from heat.

Stir in paprika and the cilantro.

Serve hot over the kababs. Enjoy!!

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Wow! This is a great recipe! I have never worked with green bananas before so I am wondering about how long to cook them? I think my kids will love this and it looks as if I might be able to freeze some so that I can have a fast lunch or quick snack for them. Thank you so much!

Geetha said...

Green bananas cook faster than potatoes - about 15 to 20 minutes. Score the skins lengthwise and place the banana chunks in boiling water and cook for about 15 minutes - check to see if they are cooked by piercing with a fork; the fork should be able to pierce easily when well cooked. Green bananas are a great food high in potassium and B6 with many health benefits! Enjoy!