Smoky, spicy deliciously easy Chicken Seekh Kabab that come together in a food processor in minutes and can be made stove top! Perfect as an addition to your dinner menu or inside parathas with chutney for a delicious kabab roll!
Seekh or no Seekh
A Chicken Seekh Kabab is so named because of the "seekh" or skewer it is traditionally made on. Marinated meat is formed into cylinderical kababs around a skewer and then placed over an open barbecue laden with fiery coals. Once these popular kababs are cooked through then they are taken off the skewer with brisk ceremony.
While this recipe aims to make a Chicken Seekh Kabab accessible all year around there is a charm to the barbecued over coal version that reigns supreme.
Ingredients
The ingredients in a Seekh Kabab are simple, it is as is often with Pakistani food, the ratios in which they are combined that make all the difference in the final dish.
A note on chicken: traditionally a mix of chicken and fat is used to make these kababs. Here I have used lean chicken because it's most easily accessible.
Method: How to make Chicken Seekh Kabab
One of my favorite things about this recipe is the lack of chopping!
Simply put your onion, ginger, garlic, cilantro, and green chilies into the food processor, give it a quick whir for a rough chop. Then add your remaining ingredients and blitz till it comes together. This happens VERY quickly, you don't want to overdo it!
Tip: Make sure your chicken does not have any excess water in it! If it does then drain it before making the Seekh Kababs.
Now fry a test piece to check for seasoning. Adjust to preference if needed then shape the kababs.
You can shape them on a wooden skewer like I did if you don't have metal ones (I don't) or you can shape them into oblong kababs without the skewer too. I make mine around 5-6 inches long, but longer works too!
Tip: Greasing your hands makes this process quicker and mess free!
Stovetop instructions: Preheat your pan, drizzle a little oil, put the kababs on top and cook on medium high heat on each side for 2-3 minutes or until evenly browned. If you want a "softer" exterior then cook on lower heat, but don't go below medium! Baste with extra melted butter for extra flavour!
Barbecue: Preheat your grill to high, place kababs on the grill and cook covered for 4-5 minutes. Uncover, turn over and cook for another 2 minutes. Check one for doneness before removing the others from the grill!
Troubleshooting
If your kabab mixture is too wet then feel free to add another tbsp of besan (chickpea flour) or even some breadcrumbs.
If your kababs taste dry then cook them a little less
If you want the barbecue flavour without the barbecue then heat a coal on a gas stove and once it's red hot then place it on top of a piece of foil in a bowl with your meat mixture, and then add a little drizzle of oil. This will activate the smoke, COVER IMMEDIATELY and let it sit for ten minutes.
Serving and Menu Ideas:
While I love to make these Seekh Kababs snack sized as the perfect addition to a Pakistani tea time spread, they are also so good in a paratha with some spicy yoghurt chutney and crunchy onions.
Making them Ahead
You can shape and freeze ahead, but because they tend to splutter with ferocity when water freezes into them I like to cook them and freeze. Then just reheat before serving!
Chicken Seekh Kabab - 20 Minute Prep!
Equipment
- 1 food processor
Ingredients
- 1 lb Ground Chicken
- ¼ onion (2 tbs or so chopped)
- 1 inch ginger
- 4-5 cloves garlic
- 2-4 green chilies (I like 3)
- ¼ cup cilantro
- 2 tbsp besan (chickpea flour) see notes
- 1 tbsp yoghurt
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp chilli powder
- 1 tsp chilli flakes
- ½ tsp chaat masala
- ¾ tsp coriander powder
- ¾ tsp cumin powder
- ¾ tsp garam masala
- 1.5 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp butter
Instructions
- Add the onion, chilies, cilantro/coriander, green chilies, ginger and garlic to the bowl of a food processor and blitz till roughly chopped.
- Now add the remaining ingredients to the food processor and blend on high until a cohesive paste forms
- Grease your hands and shape into kababs either on skewers or without. I make mine 5-6 inches long.
- Barbecue: Preheat your grill to high, place kababs on the grill and cook covered for 4-5 minutes. Uncover, turn over and cook for another 2 minutes. Check one for doneness before removing the others from the grill!
- Stovetop instructions: Preheat your pan, drizzle a little oil, put the kababs on top and cook on medium high heat on each side for 2-3 minutes or until evenly browned. If you want a "softer" exterior then cook on lower heat, but don't go below medium! Baste with extra melted butter for extra flavour!
Video
Chicken Seekh Kabab from Sarah Mir on Vimeo.
Seher says
I made this but because I'm LAZY instead of using stovetop or grill, I made it in the oven 😀 Husband absolutely loved it, he's never liked anything I've cooked *this* much. THANK YOU!
My steps in case a fellow lazy person reads this:
- after I made the keema paste, I refrigerated it for a couple of hours
- I greased a sheet pan and spread the keema paste until it covered about 75% of the pan. Keema paste was in the center, it didn't touch the pan edges. I used a wooden spatula to made about 6 vertical "kababs"
- baked at 430F for 15 at lowest rack. Verified that chicken was at 165F temp using a food thermometer
- broiled for 2 mins on high setting on the highest rack
What I'll change next time:
- grease sheet pan more since my kababs were sticking to the sheet pan, specially on the top and bottom edges
- shape kababs like in the recipe because I think that'll be easier to manage
- might brush the kababs with oil and broil for 3-4 mins instead because my kababs didn't develop a brown color
- while the mixture wasn't runny at all, I'll squeeze water from onion, coriander etc mixture with a cheese cloth before mixing with meat. Maybe that'll help with browning too.
Sarah Mir says
Okay first of all thank you for making it and second of all an even bigger thank you for sharing your tips! SO helpful I am sure for people making sheet pan kababs!
Shiv S says
Hi Sarah, I don’t have chickpea flour readily available where I live. Do you recommend any substitute?
Sarah Mir says
Hey Shiv! If you are planning on cooking it stove top or baking then you don't have to have it! chickpea flour is there to bind it all together and give it a little extra flavour. If your mixture is looser and not shaping you can also throw in breadcrumbs as a sub!
Shabibi Khan says
Wow this is my favourite recipe from now on. Usually the chicken kababs I would make would dry out but this recipe is perfect. The kababs are well seasoned and turn out so moist and flavourful.
Nida says
These kababs are delicious!! I’ve made them thrice now and they’re always spot on!! I make rolls with some yogurt for my son and he says he can eat them every day! I dropped some off to my gora friend and their family enjoyed it so much! Thank you so much for this amazing recipe!!
Sarah Mir says
Nida! Thank you for your review and for inspiring my meal plan this week!
Safa says
Tried these last week and it turned out amazing. Literally, melt-in-your-mouth kebabs.
Excellent recipe with subtle flavours that even your picky toddlers will approve.
Thank you for this gem, Sarah!
Sarah Mir says
I am DELIGHTED to see this! Thank you so much Safa for sharing your review here as well!
Hadia says
Hello! I've made this recipe before, to a t and it's always turned out absolutely scrumptious.
However this time I doubled the recipe, exactly and on frying a small test kebab, it's way too salty! Any tips on how to make it less salty? Thanks in advance
Sarah Mir says
Oh no! Hmm I would add more ground chicken into it!
Sarah says
Trying this! Tips on reheating after fully cooking and freezing? I would think to let thaw a little and heat on stovetop with lid on to get it heated all the way inside but wondered if you had any tips based on experience to maintain the texture.
Sarah Mir says
You are spot on! I do like a little melted butter baste for extra oomph!
Sana Khan says
Hi could I bake these?
Sarah Mir says
Hi Sana! I would assume so - generally you'd bake kababs at 350F for 15-20 minutes! Let me know how they turn out!
Zehra says
These are absolutely perfect. Tasty, delicious and juicy. We had these as seekh kabab burgers and I was a bit nervous of making them without any egg but in Sarah we trust!
Will definitely make again. Already cooking and freezing the extra meat mixture
Sarah Mir says
Thank you thank you for trusting me, trying this, and the review!