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Instant Pot Shami Kababs in a rectangular tray with a dipping sauce and tea in the background
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Juicy Shami Kabab - Instant Pot & Stovetop

Authentic tasting, perfectly spiced and easy to make Shami Kabab made with beef or mutton.
Course Main Course
Cuisine Pakistani
Diet Halal
Servings 22 Kababs
Author Sarah Mir

Ingredients

  • 2 lbs Beef/Mutton Stewing Meat cut into cubes (900g) close to exact please!
  • 1 cup Chana Daal (200g) Soaked 4-6 hours or overnight (preferred)
  • 2.5 inch piece Ginger
  • 8 cloves Garlic
  • ½ cup Diced Onion (half a medium-large onion) 50 to 60g
  • ½ cup Water

Garam Masala

  • 1 Black Cardamom
  • 2 Green Cardamom Pods (just seeds or use ½ tsp cardamom powder) Optional
  • 1.5 tsp Whole Coriander Seeds
  • 1.5 tsp Cumin Seeds
  • 2 tsp Whole Black Peppercorns
  • 6-7 Cloves
  • Small Cinnamon Stick (2 cm or ¾ inch)
  • 2.5 tsp Salt (plus additional to adjust seasoning to taste)
  • 2 tsp tsp Chilli Flakes or 1.5 tsp Powder

Green Masala

  • ½ cup Cilantro 15-20g
  • ½ cup Mint 15-20g
  • 6 Green Chilies
  • ½ Medium Onion 50-60 g

Instructions

  • Grind all the Masalas in the Garam Masala section and set aside
    garam masala for shami kabab
  • Now quickly run your ginger, garlic and onion from the first section through a food processor/ chopper or dice by hand.
    ginger/garlic/onion minced

Instant Pot

  • Combine all the ingredients except the Hara Masala ones in the Instant Pot along with half a cup water and give it a mix
  • Close the lid, set to seal and set to pressure for 30 Minutes then natural release (that means turn the machine off and walk away till the pressure releases, then open the valve.)
  • When you open the lid to the instant pot there will still be some water left in it (see video) - turn on the saute function and cook on medium heat for 5-7 minutes until it is fairly dry - the mix will stick to the bottom.
    drying out the kabab mix

Stovetop

  • Combine all the ingredients EXCEPT the green masala ones in a pot with 2.5-3 cups of water, bring to a boil and simmer on low for 50-60 minutes or until the meat and daal are tender. Check halfway through, add water if needed.
  • Crank up the heat, dry up excess water, your meat mixture should start to stick. Set aside to cool a little.

Putting it all together

  • While it's cooling run the Green Masala ingredients through the food processor to mince. Just a few short pulses will do the trick, you want a fine dice not a paste.
    hara masala
  • Once the mixture is warm enough to handle then for extra meaty kababs you can simply go in with clean hands and mash it together or run it through the food processor to acheive a more paste like consistency (you won't lose the lovely meat texture entirely). These kababs will still be quite moreish. Process on high speed for 30 second intervals till the consistency is to your liking.
  • Stir in ALL the hara masala - it will seem like a lot but it works.
    shami kabab mix
  • Shape the kababs to your preferred size. Tip: Damp palms make this easier so keep a bowl of water near you.
  • FRY A TEST KABAB! This step is key so you know that taste and texture are on point and you can make any adjustments necessary.
  • Flash freeze on a tray then move to a freezer safe container. Keep well for 6 months.

Video

Notes

If your instant pot goes to burn quickly then feel free to up the water to ¾ cup!
Meat varies considerably. Always fry a test kabab and if your test kabab breaks then add in one egg and mix well. That should do the trick!
The flavour of kababs will mellow as they freeze, account for that in your taste adjustments!
the gram weights have been a recent addition and will reflect that cup sizes and produce vary world wide. I have given a range to make it easier to worth with. The KEY is to make sure the amounts of lentils and meat are exact.