Mumbai Food: Two centuries-old easy-to-follow kebab recipes you can try

"We are four brothers and all of us are chefs," shares Asif Qureshi with a sense of pride in his voice. It's a busy time for the newly appointed sous chef at The Sahib Room & Kipling Bar, (The St Regis Mumbai) as he embarks on a new culinary adventure. Qureshi hails from a Lucknowi family that boasts of generations of chefs, famous across the world for their knowledge of meats. The chef, who will introduce a host of new dishes to the menu, gives us a tutorial on how to make two of his signature kebabs.

Silbatte ki shammi » Cooking time: 70 to 80 mins
Ingredients:
500gm boneless lamb leg meat without fat
2 tsp ginger garlic paste
2 tsp brown onion
4 black cardamom pods
8 green cardamom pods
2 tsp coriander seed
½ cup coriander roots cut into 1 cm pieces
5 nos clove
3 cinnamon sticks
2 tsp black pepper
3 mace flowers
4 bay leaves
1 tsp shahi jeera
4 Kashmiri chillies
100gm boiled chana dal
2 tsp red chilli powder
2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp garam masala
6 tsp ghee

Method:
' Mix all ingredients together in a deep vessel except the chana dal. Add a litre of water and cook it with the lid on till the water dries up (this will take approximately half
an hour).
' Add boiled chana dal, which acts as a binding ingredient, and cook a little more while mixing.
' Grind this on a stone mortar (silbatta) till you see a little oil separate and you have a smooth mixture.
' Shape into round tikkas. Use ghee to help it shape well.
' Pour a little ghee on a non-stick pan or a hotplate.
' Grill the kebabs on a slow flame till they turn light brown. Drizzle with ghee while cooking; the ghee will seep through the kebabs and help cook inside. This adds subtle sweetness to the kebabs.
' Serve with fresh coriander and green chilli chutney.

Doodhiya paneer » Cooking time: 35 mins
Ingredients:
10 pcs of 8-cm round paneer pieces (two slices per kebab)
3 boiled potatoes
½ cup boiled figs
1 tsp chaat masala
2 tbsp ghee
1 tsp chilli powder
1 tsp shahi jeera
1 tsp garam masala
½ chopped onion
1 tsp chopped ginger
1 tsp chopped green chilli
1 tsp chopped coriander
Bread crumbs to coat

Method:
' Lightly roast all the spices together in ghee.
' Add the spices to the potatoes, mash and mix thoroughly.
' Add fig paste and mix.
' Sputter some shahi jeera in ghee and add the mixture and cook till it turns a little dry.
' Layer the mixture between two dices of paneer.
' Coat with bread crumbs and grill on a non-stick pan with ghee.

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