These uniquely tender, aromatic, and smoky kababs remind me of my childhood in Pakistan. The smell that emanates from the grill has everyone drooling in anticipation every time I make these. Serve them with naan, sliced red onions, tamarind chutney, and green chutney. Try this unique and ancient recipe today. You won't regret it!
Ingredients
- 1/4 pounds beef tenderloin, sliced into 1/4-inch-thick strips, about 1-1/2 X 6 inches: 1 piece
- avocado oil: 0.25 cup
- onion: 0.5 piece (sliced)
- kiwi, peeled and quartered: 1 piece
- 1/2 tablespoons gram flour: 1 piece
- poppy seeds: 0.5 Tbsp
- garlic paste: 1 Tbsp
- ginger paste: 1 Tbsp
- serrano Chili pepper: 1 piece
- mustard oil: 0.25 cup
- white vinegar: 2 Tbsp
- plain full fat yogurt: 0.25 cup
- whole nutmeg seed: 0.5 piece
- whole mace: 1 Tbsp
- star anise pods: 5 piece
- whole dried red Kashmiri chilies: 5 piece
- chili powder: 1 tsp
- ground cumin: 1 tsp
- Garam Masala: 1 tsp
- black pepper: 1 tsp (freshly ground)
- salt: 1 tsp
Metric Conversion
Stages of cooking
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Pound tenderloin strips with a meat mallet until they are very thin; set aside.
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Heat avocado oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Fry onion in the hot oil until it is a deep brown, about 5 minutes. Strain browned onion into a small bowl using a slotted spoon, and set aside to use later.
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Peel kiwi, cut into quarters, and set aside in a small bowl for later.
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Heat a small non-stick skillet over medium heat, and toast gram flour until lightly browned and nutty, 2 to 4 minutes; transfer to a small bowl and set aside. Dry-roast poppy seeds in the same skillet until lightly brown and aromatic, 2 to 4 minutes. Remove to a small bowl; set aside.
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In the same skillet, dry-roast nutmeg, mace, star anise, and Kashmiri chilies together until fragrant, 2 to 4 minutes. Transfer the whole spices and chilies to a spice grinder, and grind them to a coarse powder.
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Add browned onions, kiwi, ginger paste, garlic paste, and serrano chile to the bowl of a food processor, and grind to a paste, about 30 seconds. Pour in mustard oil, white vinegar, and yogurt and pulse the food processor until everything is well blended, about 15 seconds.
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Last of all, add roasted poppy seeds, roasted gram flour, roasted ground whole spices, chili powder, cumin, garam masala, black pepper, and salt to the food processor; process marinade for 1 minute.
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Spoon marinade into a resealable plastic bag and add tenderized beef strips. Seal bag and squeeze gently to coat beef on all sides with marinade. Refrigerate for at least 6 hours, but ideally overnight.
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Remove marinated beef from the refrigerator; thread beef strips on sturdy metal skewers, packing them in tightly. Reserve any leftover marinade to baste the kababs with as they cook. This prevents them from drying out.
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Preheat an outdoor grill to 500 degrees F (260 degrees C) and lightly oil the grate.
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Grill kababs on the preheated grill, uncovered, for 5 minutes per side.
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Reduce grill temperature to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C), cover the grill, and cook kababs for 10 minutes. Turn kebabs, brush with marinade, and continue cooking until the internal temperature of the meat reaches 170 degrees F (77 degrees C), about 10 minutes more. If kababs look a bit dry at any point in the cooking process, brush both sides with a little bit of avocado oil.
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Remove skewers to a serving dish. Discard any uncooked marinade. Enjoy the kababs with naan, sliced red onions, tamarind chutney, and green chutney.
