Mid-way through Ramadan and running out of innovative recipes? Here’s the opportunity to look back at the classics, those lip-smacking dishes that will always remain popular with the young and the old. Chef SABIR, Banquet Tandoor Chef at Jaypee Greens Golf and Spa Resort (Noida, India) shares some homemade delicacies.
MUTTON SHAMI KEBAB
INGREDIENTS
500 gm boneless mutton/lamb
1 cup chana dal
10 cloves garlic
2-inch piece ginger
3 green chillies (finely chopped)
4 red chillies
¼ cup pecans (finely chopped)
3 spring mint leaves
SPICES
½ tsp turmeric
1 tsp black pepper powder
5 cloves
½ inch cinnamon stick
2 cardamom
½ tsp shahi jeera
2 black cardamom
INSTRUCTIONS
Wash and soak the chana dal for about 2 hours.
Wash the meat pieces well before cooking with soaked chana dal, turmeric powder, salt, ginger, garlic and whole spices in a pressure cooker.
Once done, pass it all through a colander and collect the stock in a separate bowl (you can use this later to make your meat curry).
Process the cooled meat and dal mix to make a fine dough. It may look fibrous because of the meat.
Add chopped onion, green chillies, mint and coriander. Mix well.
Pinch a lemon-sized ball from the mutton mix and flatten it to a round disk. Cook on a wide pan greased with oil. Repeat with the rest of the mixture.
Shallow fry from both sides till they turn dark brown in colour.
Serve with onion rings, lemon and mint-coriander chutney.
HALEEM
INGREDIENTS
500 gm boneless lamb
3/4th cup moong dal
½ cup wheat germ/dalia/cracked wheat
3/4th cup onion, fried
4 litre lamb stock
500 ml desi ghee
2 tsp ginger paste
2 tsp ginger, grated
SPICES
10 cloves
4 bay leaves
Pinch saffron
Green chilli paste to taste
½ tsp turmeric powder
Pinch mace
10 gms green cardamom
Salt to taste
INSTRUCTIONS
Wash and soak lentils and cracked wheat together for 2 hours.
Heat ghee in a heavy-bottomed pan and add cloves, bay leaf and green cardamom
When the spices start crackling, add the grated ginger and garlic paste till the colour turns brown.
At this stage, add the lamb, saffron, green chilli paste, turmeric powder.
When it is half-cooked, add fried onions.
Drain the water from the lentils and add it to the lamb along with lamb stock.
Let it cook until lamb gets tender and mixes with the lentils with a thick consistency.
Serve with your choice of bread.