veg shammi kabab recipe with step by step photos. shammi kabab is a very popular and delicious awadhi dish made from minced meat, lentils and spices. in this post i have shared a vegetarian version of shammi kabab made with black chana (kala chana). they are crisp, succulent and tasty.
now these vegetarian shammi kababs are not melt in the mouth. that much i can tell you, but they are delicious. few more tasty kabab recipes on the blog are:
i make these veg kababs usually with chana dal or whole black chickpeas/kala chana. the recipe posted here has been made with black chana. if you have presoaked chana handy, then making these kala chana kababs is a breeze.
veg kababs are excellent as starters and even teams up well with bread in a sandwich, with bun in a burger and with pita bread too. pita bread reminds me of the best pita bread i had made some days ago.
these veg shammi kababs are shaped into small patties and then shallow fried. you can serve veg shammi kabab hot or warm, with onion-mint-lime salad or mint-yogurt chutney that is usually served with tandoori snacks.
if you are looking for more snacks recipes then do check cheese balls, veg momos, chana dal vada, veg kathi roll, paneer tikka, aloo tikki and punugulu recipe.
veg shammi kabab recipe below:
veg shammi kabab recipe - vegetarian version of shammi kabab made with black chana (kala chana). these shammi kababs are crisp, succulent and tasty.
- 1 cup dried black chickpeas (kala chana)
- enough water for soaking kala chana
- 2 cups water or as required, for pressure cooking kala chana
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 medium sized onion, finely chopped or minced
- 1 green chili (hari mirch), finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder (dhania powder)
- ½ teaspoon red chili powder (lal mirch powder)
- ½ teaspoon garam masala powder
- salt as required
- 2 tablespoons gram flour (besan)
- ½ tablespoon ginger paste
- 1 tablespoon coriander leaves (dhania patta), chopped
- oil as required for frying the kababs
- 1 tablespoon chopped mint leaves or chopped coriander leaves
soak the black chickpeas in water overnight or for 8 to 9 hours.
drain all the soaked water and then pressure cook the chickpeas with 2 cups water and ½ teaspoon salt for 10 to 15 minutes or till they are thoroughly cooked.
- let the pressure settle down in the cooker.
open the lid and check if the chickpeas are cooked well. then drain all the water very well. do make sure that the chickpeas are dry and all the water is drained from them.
- in a large bowl add the chickpeas and mash them with a wooden spoon or a blender or your hands.
- just make a semi coarse mixture and not too smooth.
add all the rest of the ingredients except oil. mix very well.
- make into small round shaped kababs or patties.
heat oil in a pan on a medium flame.
- shallow fry the kababs in medium hot oil till crisp and browned on both sides.
once done, then drain the kababs on kitchen paper napkins to remove excess oil.
- you can also bake the kababs with a drizzle of oil for a healthier version.
garnish kababs with mint leaves or coriander leaves. serve these veg shammi kababs hot.
- serve veg kababs with onion-mint salad along with slices of lime and some mint chutney.
tips for making veg shammi kabab recipe:
- you can also make the kabab with chana dal or both chana dal and black chickpeas.
- when frying kabab, for testing first fry one kabab in the oil. if it doesn't break then you can safely fry the remaining kababs.
- if it does break, then add some more chickpea flour/besan to the mixture.
how to make veg shammi kabab recipe:
a) soaking and pressure cooking the chickpeas:
1. rinse and soak 1 cup dried black chickpeas (kala chana) in enough water overnight or for 8 to 9 hours.
2. next day the kala chana will double in size.
3. drain all the water.
4. in a pressure cooker add the kala chana with 2 cups water. also add ½ teaspoon salt. pressure cook the chickpeas for 10 to 15 minutes on medium flame or till they are thoroughly cooked and tender.
5. let the pressure settle down in the cooker on its own. then check whether kala chana is cooked or not. if not cooked well, then pressure cook again for some more time. once kala chana is cooked well then drain all the water and keep the cooked chickpeas aside. do make sure that all the water is drained well.
making veg shammi kababs mixture:
7. in a large bowl or wide dish (plate) add the chickpeas and mash them with a wooden spoon or a blender or with your hands.
8. just make a semi coarse mixture and not too smooth.
9. measure and keep all the ingredients ready for making veg shammi kabab.
10. to the semi coarse chickpea mixture, add 1 medium sized onion (finely chopped) and 1 green chili (finely chopped).
11. next add 1 teaspoon coriander powder, ½ teaspoon red chili powder, ½ teaspoon garam masala powder and salt as required.
12. also add 2 tablespoon gram flour (besan) and ½ tablespoon ginger paste.
14. lastly add 1 tablespoon chopped coriander leaves.
15. mix very well.
16. make into small round shaped kababs or patties.
making veg shammi kabab:
17. for shallow frying, heat oil as required in a pan or tawa on a medium flame.
18. when the oil becomes medium hot, then place the kababs in the pan or tawa. begin to shallow fry these shammi kababs on medium flame. you can also bake the kababs with a drizzle of oil for a healthier version. when frying kabab, for testing, first fry one kabab in the oil. if it doesn’t break then you can safely fry the remaining kababs. if it does break, then add some more besan to the mixture.
19. flip when one side is browned and fry the second side. you can flip each kabab a couple of times for even browning. fry till the shammi kababs are browned on both sides.
20. once done, then place the shammi kababs on kitchen paper napkins to remove any extra oil. shallow fry the remaining kababs in the same way.
21. serve shammi kabab hot or warm. while serving, garnish kababs with 1 tablespoon chopped mint leaves or chopped coriander leaves. serve veg shammi kababs with onion-mint salad along with slices of lime and some mint chutney.
Usha Shetty says
Hi Dassana when shallow or deep frying the tikka I found that the outside skin layer was coming apart resulting in a very shabby presentation. Any idea of how I can avoid it or correct it ? Will appreciate if you can guide me
dassana amit says
usha, try to make the kababs slightly thick and then this should not happen. hope this helps.
Shubhangi says
Do we have add roasted besan.
Because i could taste the raw flavour of besan when i tried this recipe.
dassana amit says
Shubhangi, I have not used roasted besan. When you fry the kabab then besan gets cooked. However you can also add roasted besan.
jaishri says
can we add boiled potato in kebabs?
dassana amit says
you can add.
aarzoo sobti says
hi!
what temperature and time should these kebabs be baked at?
p.s. i’ve used a lot of your recipes recently and they’re pretty great!
thanks for sharing your gift!
dassana amit says
welcome aarzoo. glad to know this. you can bake the kabab at 180 degree celsius in a pre heated oven.
Yasir Ahmad says
how besan is made? from black chickpeas or white chick peas
dassana amit says
yasir besan is made from ground chana dal, yellow split dal which we use for making dals, khichdi and pakoras. the chana dal is roasted slightly then dry grind them in a mixie for besan. this way you can make besan at home 🙂
Yasir Ahmad says
Here in pakistan ,Usually besan is made from black chick peas so what do you about result if i boil white chick peas with black chickpeas or i have to find powder form of white chickpeas ?
dassana amit says
here also in india, besan is made from black chickpeas or chana where the skin is removed. basically chana dal is from black chickpeas. take chana dal or black chickpeas where the skin is removed and its not roasted. now sun dry the chana dal or black chickpeas for a day or you can very lightly roast them. no need to brown. then give them to a mill for grinding. you can also make flour from white chickpeas. in the west this is available and is known as chickpea flour. if you want, you can use both black chana and white chana for making flour. if you boil them the it will be difficult to powder them.
Yasir Ahmad says
need clarification, how besan is made ? from chickpeas or black chick peas ?
dassana amit says
besan is made from ground chana dal.
Priyanka srivastava says
Aapki recipes awesome hoti hai sir thankyou for help
dassana amit says
welcome and thankyou priyanka 🙂
chitra says
if we use channa dal,should we pressure cook channa dal too along with kala chana?
dassana amit says
yes you need to pressure cook chana dal. chana dal should be cooked and yet have separate grains. if they get cooked too much, they will become mushy. drain them very well, so that they do not have any water residue in them.
Sonil Keshri says
Hii Dear,
I made this recipe and is so delicious,,very yumm,,,i added chaat masala over it and have these like tikki chart with dahi, imli sauce, onion, and bhujia sev over it..
dassana amit says
pleased to know this and great modification to the recipe 🙂 thankyou so much sonil.
Pooja says
Hi amit,
I made this recipe with veg pressure cooker briyani today. Rice was too good. And with the kabas I m not sure if thts the texture. Taste was good. It observed oil while frying and I had the shape but was easy to break meaning it had crumble like texture. Plz let me know where I went wrong.
Also plz let me know the temp to bake.
Thank u
dassana amit says
these kababs have crumbly melt in mouth texture. they have to be fried in hot oil, otherwise they absorb a lot of oil. also when frying, one needs to be gentle. you have not gone wrong anywhere. bake at 180 degrees celsius and preheat the oven to 10 to 12 minutes at the same temperature before baking.
Dr.sweta singh says
Wonderful your receipes are and this one has became favourite in my family. I have tried your receipe of dal makhani and it came out so nice I got lots of compliments. All thanks to you. Add me as new fan in your list.
dassana amit says
pleased to know this dr sweta 🙂 thankyou for your positive words and god bless you.
λττιτυδε κυδι says
It is da fantastic recipe.i loved it..:)
Himanya Dhawan says
Amazing recipe
dassana amit says
thanks himanya
Nivedita says
Delicious Kababs!!
I tried to shallow fry them in a pan to reduce oil, but they started to break and became very difficult to handle and flip. Finally, I deep fried them in hot oil and that’s when they came out very well without breaking. Any idea why pan fry didn’t work out?
dassana amit says
thanks nivedita. this gyan comes from my mom. whenever frying any kababs or patties, if the oil is hot, the kababs don’t break. its got something to do with the hotness of the oil which binds the ingredients and do not allow them to break. in a tawa, since we don’t fry at high temperatures, the kababs may break. but i have never had any issues while frying in a pan or a tawa. some more of besan could have been added. even binding agent like bread or corn starch can be added.
sandeep singh says
nice
najeebaansar says
it is nice recipe i like it
visit my blog too
dassana amit says
thanks. happy blogging 🙂
Rajani says
Hello i read ur blog a lot and tried many of ur recepies they r really good.thank u.and i also wanted to know wts the diff bw convection mode in microwave and the electric one. I bake all my cakes in the former.
dassana says
thanks. both convection mode in microwave and the OTG or electric oven use the convection principle of heating. so there is no difference in the heating method. there are just a few differencea like – in microwave the heating element is placed on top and it has a fan. whereas in most electric ovens, the heating element is placed on top and bottom of the oven and they do not have fans.
alh says
very good
Alpana says
Mouthwatering…I will be tring it soon. They look healthy too..
I must compliment you for the pictures…
dassana says
thanks alpana
Sunayana says
this is a v v good recipe for veg shammi kababs. thank you.
i also added a half tsp of chaat masala to the mix and i think that it added a bit more flavor.
very healthy for the kids as well.
made it twice already. once with only kala channa and once with kala channa and channa daal combo – both v good.
dassana says
thanks sunayana for sharing your tips.
Sania says
Can we freeze them ?
dassana says
no, veg shammi kabab should be eaten fresh.
jhanvi says
hi!!!
i hope you reply soon since its soooo old post dear. i tried making these kabab today.. for some reason; as soon as i added the kababs. whole oil turned white foam sort of. and the kabab absorbed all the oil and tasted so heavy and so fragile in texture. i used chana daal boiled. any idea???
🙁
dassana says
hi jhanvi, when we fry patties or even falafel or stuff which has ground chana dal, kala chana or kabuli chana, the oil does foam. but it goes after some time. did you deep fry or shallow fry.
i guess the oil was not enough hot, hence the kababs absorbed so much oil. they will become fragile if they absorb a lot of oil. i can imagine the the taste and texture since this has happened with me too.
as a rule, when frying tikkis, kababs or patties or even falafel, always add one small kabab or tikki first. if the kababs get fried perfectly and do not absorb a lot of oil, then the oil has the right temperature. another suggestion would be to pan fry the kababs. these would make them crisp as well as less oil will be used. its not due to chana dal. i even make the chana dal vadas at home and its the same consistency as these kababs.
saurabh says
these kebabs are ok but not like those veg kababs in lucknow in which they add soyabean nuggets and mesh them together with dal they totally melt in the mouth
dassana says
may be those kebabs are melt in mouth, but these are healthier. i avoid using soybean nuggets which one gets in india as they are heavily processed with no soy goodness or nutrition in them.
sunita says
Hi Dasaana
I made this on sunday and it came absolutely fantastic and delicious, i usually used to make this fried but your this recipe was too good
Take cr
sunita
dassana says
thanks sunita
Courtney Rae Jones says
I love your recipes! Everything you post, I want to make 🙂 These kababs look fantastic!
Tanvi@SinfullySpicy says
I make shaami kebabs with soy or black eyed beans. Never tried with kala chana but oh so good! Perfect for the rainy day
Asmita says
These kebabs look yum!
CaroInBerlin says
These look fantastic. I have made similar ones before with red lentils and chickpeas but these seem to have a nicer consistency.
shruthi says
The Kabab’s looks awesome Dassana, I always made kabab’s with potato mix but never tried with channa…I should definately give a try 🙂
Like you being the only vegeterain at home and cooking nonveg for everyone else feels awesome.
BTW: Your Continue Reading feature is not working.
dassana says
thanks shruthi. the continue reading feature is not for the first two posts on the home page. for these, the image or title has to be clicked to read the whole posts.
Kiran @ KiranTarun.com says
Dassana,
These kabab’s looks sooo delicious 😀 Cannot wait for the recipe on pita bread. It looks unbelievably good!
dassana says
after a long time kiran… what a pleasant surprise. will check out your blog in a while.
Sharmilee says
Bookmarked it right away..looks damn tempting
familycook says
The shaami kababs looks absolutely delicious. And now, I cant wait to read your post on the Pita Bread. You made them like a pro!
Btw, the white background looks amazing.
dassana says
thanks familycook. i have made pita bread before also but using different measurements. this time they were different from the earlier recipe i have made before and they were so good.
chinmayie @ love food eat says
My husband is non-vegetarian and cook fish and chicken for him even now. I really enjoy cooking them because i know he loves eating them. Also… I truly respect everybody food choices.
Lovely kebabs!
dassana says
even i respect everybody’s food choices and never interfere.
DiamondN says
Hi Dassana,
Can I use the normal light brown chickpea instead of the black one?
dassana says
yes you can use the light brown chickpea. you can also make these kababs from green chickpeas.
Jenny says
They look really great, and the pita looks out of this world!
dassana says
thanks jenny
sreedevi says
These are almost similar to our andhra recipe CHANA DAL VADA, but where we mix fresh coriander leaves, onion, cinnamon, cloves, ginger with soaked chanadal paste(rough). not cooked dal. But ur recipe as it cooked , we can fry in little oil which is good in health terms…………
i will definitely try it………………….
dassana says
i do make chana dal vada at home but never posted the recipe. as you have rightly pointed out the difference is in the raw and cooked method. you can just pan fry with a little oil also on the tava or non stick tava till crisp & browned on both sides.
radha says
These are similar to falafel, aren’t they? And they indeed are tasty. And as usual good pictures that make it more mouth-watering. Will await the pita bread recipe
dassana says
they are not similar to falafel. these are more denser than falafel and the taste is also typically awadhi. falafel has a different taste altogether and a lighter in texture than these kebabs.
sandhya says
wow!yummy lovely pics waiting for tempting pita bread recipe…
dassana says
yes sandhya will post soon.
Zohra Rajah says
Am sure it is good. Waiting for weekend to try it.
Looking forward to receive the pita bread recipe.
Thanks you so much
dassana says
thank you too zohra.
supriya says
Dassana the pics are awesome. The kebbabs looks perfect waiting for the Pita bread recipe.
dassana says
thanks supriya.
Richa@HobbyandMore says
i love love that first picture.. clean, white and the perfect depth! and the kababs look amazing too. i need to try these with the black chickpeas for sure. how is the fam reacting to your trying a vegan diet:)
dassana says
hubbs is ok. the rest still don’t know that i am going on a vegan diet. if they come to know i will get strange stares and great & lengthy discourses 🙂
Bhavna says
Hey Dasana lovely pics pf the pita bread waiting for the recipe…I made your normal white bread recipe it was wonderful and also made the vegan banana cake was a super hit at home …will soon try the kebabs…loves n God bless !
dassana says
hey bhavna, after a long time i am hearing from you. i hope you and your family are great. i still have to make your potato mayonnaise. thanks for making the recipes as well as your feedback. hugs and god bless you and your family too.
Ram says
In Old Karnataka area, specially Mysore and Banglore it goes by the name ” Ambode” [AmbaVade]
In that, only green chilly and red chilli powder and salt is added and then grind it to a rough dow. It is fried in oil till brown and crisp. For better taste Mint leaves are added for fragrance,before grinding. But in your receipe more masala is added which, I am sur will enhance the taste. We shall try it out. Thanks for this new receipe.
dassana says
thanks for sharing this info ram. i have heard about ambode but never made them at home. the garam masala does enhances the taste of the kababs.
Kanan says
shammi kebab with kala chana sounds interesting.. And Dassana your pita bread puffed up so nice.. I am just staring at the picture..
prathibha says
Those kebabs look very delicious and also r ur fotos..superb..
Anamika @ madcookingfusions says
Dassana both the kabab’s and the clicks are amazing….cant take my eyes off these yummy chana kababs….I make these kabab’s for my kids, only difference in your recipe is adding chickpea flour whereas I add cornflour /bread cumbs for binding, will try your version by replacing cornflour to chickpea flour, surely a better option. Waiting for the pita bread recipe :).
dassana says
thanks anamika and do try this version. me also waiting to post the pita bread recipe 🙂
Ansh says
Absolutely wonderful!! I make these with the green channa too! Perfect on a rainy day. I am waiting for you the pita recipe.. It looks gorgeous!
dassana says
thanks ansh. will post the pita bread recipe soon.