Dahi ke Kebab

Dahi kabab also referred to as Dahi ke kebab is a delicious vegetarian appetizer and a popular vegetarian snack from North India. These melt-in-mouth kebabs are basically rich patties from the Awadhi Cuisine made using hung curd, paneer (cottage cheese), and some basic Indian spices. Dahi kebab has a crisp outer covering and is soft and creamy from within making it a delectable treat. The recipe is simple and easy to follow. Here, I have not used bread crumbs as a binding agent but used a secret ingredient instead. These dahi kababs are deep-fried and hence heavy on calories, making them an ideal snack on festivals and special occasions. 

What is Awadhi Cuisine?

Awadhi Cuisine hails from the city of nawabs, Lucknow which is the capital city of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Awadhi Cuisine comprises many delicious melt-in-mouth dishes both vegetarian and non-vegetarian. The dishes are influenced by Mughlai Cuisine and use exotic spices, aromatic herbs, and dry fruits. Kebabs are an integral part of the Awadhi Cuisine. Awadhi Cuisine and Mughlai Cuisine differ mainly in their cooking techniques, while the former is usually cooked on Tawa, the latter is grilled in a tandoor.

What is Kebab?

Kababs or Kebabs are various cooked meat dishes with their origin in the Middle Eastern Cuisine. Kebab dishes make up for a delightful starter dish during parties and get-together. Kebab dishes can consist of cut or ground meat, or seafood, sometimes with fruits and vegetables that are often skewered and cooked over the fire. Vegetarian kebabs are also popular and can be shaped like cutlets and either grilled, baked, deep-fried or shallow fried as per preferences. The traditional meat for kebab is often mutton or lamb but regional recipes may include goat, chicken, beef, or fish. Vegetarian kebabs can be made with mixed vegetables, lentils, paneer, etc along with flavorful and aromatic spices.

What goes into my Dahi Ke Kebab?

Dahi ke kebab are delectable starters made primarily using hung curd. These are the deep fried patties that are soft and creamy from within and crisp outer covering. These vegetarian kebabs can be easily made at home with very few ingredients. Hung curd is flavored with aromatic spice powders and given a binding to form a patty which is further deep fried to give melt in mouth dahi kebabs. Usually bread crumbs is used as a binding agent which soaks up the moisture from veggies and hung curd and helps the patty hold its shape. Here i have not used bread crumbs but used Sattu ( roasted chickpea flour) my secret inbreeding in this recipe. Sattu helps bind the kebab very well without making it too dry. Let's quickly look at the ingredients of this dahi kebab.

• Hung Curd: The key to making perfect dahi kebabs is using a thick moisture-free hung curd. I would recommend on making the hung curd a day before so that it has a perfect creamy texture without adding much moisture to the kebabs. In the post below, i have given a detailed recipe of making hung curd at home.
•  Indian Cottage Cheese / Panner:  Apart from hung curd i have used homemade paneer also in this recipe which make the kebabs all the more filling and nutritious.
• Vegetables: I have added finely chopped onion, grated carrots, finely chopped coriander and green chili which add a texture to the soft kebabs.
• Sattu:  Sattu is the main binding agent in these kebabs. It is a flour obtained by grinding the roasted chickpeas. It is not Besan, but if you cannot source sattu, you can roast the regular chickpea flour (besan) and use it instead.
• Cashew:  I have added chopped cashews also which make the kebabs all the more rich and give a delightful bite to the dahi kebabs.
• Spices:  Black pepper powder and garam masala are the only spice powders used to season these dahi kebabs but they are enough to make the kebabs aromatic and flavorful.
• Semolina:  I have used fine semolina to coat the kebabs before they are deep fried which gives them a lovely crisp texture .
• Oil: The dahi kebabs are deep-fried in oil until crisp. I have tried shallow frying them also once, but they are so delicate that they break while flipping on skillet.

Dahi Delights @FoodieMondayBlogHop

I have been associated with a Facebook group, Foodie Monday Blog Hop from last 3 years. Here a bunch of food bloggers share their recipes every Monday depending upon a pre-decided theme. All bloggers take turn to suggest themes and the other bloggers vote for any one of those themes. The theme which wins with maximum votes is then finalized . Dahi Delights is the theme for our 255th week on this group. The theme was suggested by yours truly. Do check out my fellow bloggers posst on this theme. My contribution to the theme is these dahi kebabs.                 

My family loves all dairy products especially curd to the core and following are the different ways in which we include it in our daily diet.

• Hung Curd Sandwich - a delicious cold sandwich with health goodness of vegetables and protein-rich hung curd.
  
• Curd Quinoa - A flavorful and healthy variation to the classic South Indian Thayir sadam (curd rice) where quinoa replaces rice.
  
• Dahi Papdi Chaat - A popular North Indian street food which needs no introduction at least in India.
  
• Fruit Yogurt Parfait - A delightful breakfast with layers of flavored yogurt, fruits and muesli packed in beautiful tall glasses.
  
• Strawberry Shrikhand - A flavorful hung curd dessert with strawberries
  
• No Bake Mango Shrikhand Tarts - A delectable summer dessert where mango flavored hung curd (amrakhand) is topped over biscuit tarts.
  
• Rose Lassi Popsicle -  Refreshing fragrant popsicles made with rose flavored sweet yogurt.
  
• Mishti Doi - A sweet curd dessert from Bengal
  
• Aloo Palda - Potatoes in yogurt gravy
  
• Doodhichi Koshimbir - Bottle gourd in yogurt

                                             

Preparation time: 10 minutes (time required to make hung curd not included)

Cooking Time: 30 minutes

Serves: 6 kebabs

Ingredients: 

• 2 cups curd or 3/4 cups hung curd
• 1/2 cup paneer/cottage cheese
• 1 onion, very finely chopped or grated
• 1 carrot, finely grated (optional)
• 2 tablespoon cashew, chopped
• 2 green chilies finely chopped
• 2 tablespoon finely chopped coriander
• 2 tablespoon roasted chickpea flour / Sattu 
• 1 tablespoon garam masala
• 1 teaspoon black pepper powder
• Salt to taste
• 1/4 cup fine semolina to coat the kebab
• Oil for deep frying

Preparation: Making Hung Curd at home

• Place a strainer on a deep bowl. Line the strainer with a muslin cloth or a clean dry kitchen towel. Pour the curd over it. Gather the sides of the cloth and wrap one side around the others and tie a knot. Now hang the cloth on a hook and keep a deep bowl beneath to collect the whey which drips from the curd. Allow the curd to hang for about 4-6 hours. You may alternatively keep the curd tied cloth on a strainer with a bowl beneath it in the refrigerator overnight. I prefer the hanging method as it gives a moisture-free creamy hung curd.

                                  

                                             

• After about 6 hours the hung curd will be free of all the whey. Remove it in a bowl, scrap the sides of the cloth with a spatula, to get all the hung curd. You may keep the hung curd covered in a refrigerator for a day or use it immediately to make the dahi ke kebab.

                                  

Method for making Dahi Ke Kebab

1. In a mixing bowl take hung curd, paneer, finely chopped onion, grated carrots, chopped cashew, finely chopped green chili, and coriander.

2. Mix it well. To this add salt, black pepper powder, garam masala, and sattu / roasted chickpea flour. Give all the ingredients a good mix. Do a taste test at this stage and add seasonings if required.

3. Wash your hands and roughly divide the mixture into 5-6 equal portions. Take one portion and roll it in your palms and flatten slightly to give a patty shape. You can keep it ball shape or make elongated rolls also if you wish. Take semolina in one plate and coat each patty on it from all sides, tap it well to remove the excess semolina, and keep it on a plate. Make all the patties similarly.

4. Heat enough oil in a wok and when it is really very hot, lower the flame and slide in a single dahi kebab into it to check whether it comes out well. Fry the kebab on medium heat until it is golden brown from all sides.

*(In case your kebab starts disintegrating in the oil, it means the binding is less. Remove the kebab, strain the oil, and heat it again. Add more sattu or whatever binding you are using to the kebab dough and shape the kebabs again.)

5. Fry all the kebabs similarly. Make sure you do not overcrowd them in the frying wok. Remove the fried kebabs using a slotted ladle on an absorbent paper or kitchen towel. Serve the delicious Dahi Ke Kebab with Coriander Chutney and some salad and enjoy with your loved ones.

Recipe Notes:

• These Dahi kebabs are very delicate as i have not added any bread crumbs to them so i would recommend deep-frying over shallow frying as they tend to break while flipping if shallow fried.

• Sattu is the main binding agent in these kebabs. It is a flour obtained by grinding the roasted chickpeas. It is not Besan, but if you cannot source sattu, you can roast the regular chickpea flour (besan) and use it instead.
• Always fry a single small kebab first to check whether the binding is enough or else you may end up disintegrating the full batch of kebab in the oil while deep frying. 
• *(In case your kebab starts disintegrating in the oil, it means the binding is less. Remove the kebab, strain the oil, and heat it again. Add more sattu or whatever binding you are using to the kebab dough and shape the kebabs again.)
• You may try grilling the dahi kebabs if you do not want to deep fry them.
• You may add little grated proceeded cheese also to make the kebabs more creamy.

I hope a few of you would love to try out this recipe. If you do so, feel free to share your feedback with us in the form of likes and comments in the comment section below this post. All your suggestions are also more than welcome. If you like my work and feel it is worth following, do hit the follow button at the top right corner of this blog. Your appreciation means a lot to me. For more recipes and new updates follow us on social media.

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