Soma Chaudhuri’s Methi-Murg Kebab, Not Just Another Chicken Kebab!

So Soma sent me her famous Methi-Murg Kebab one day. Nothing would be simpler to knock out than this chicken kebab recipe of hers.
Apparently, she stumbled onto this recipe in a tandoori cookbook many years ago in Calcutta. Since then she has played with the ingredients, and given it a Soma-touch! 

And this is something I made up of her Methi-Murg Kebab.


I have to admit, I did tweak Soma’s recipe a bit. I thought of playing around the idea of adding some yogurt in the marinade would make the kebabs more moist. Soma’s Methi-Murg Kebabs taste delicious and look really beautiful on a massive platter in the middle of a table. And the leftovers, if any can sneak into your pita/tortilla/paratha with some greens the next day for a take-to-work lunch!

Ingredients for Methi-Murg Kebabs are:

3 chicken breasts, cut in two-inch pieces
Half cup plain yogurt
3-4 tablespoons plain cream cheese
1 heaped tablespoon ginger paste
1 heaped tablespoon garlic paste
1 heaped teaspoon green chilli paste
Juice of one large lemon
Half teaspoon red chilli powder
2 tablespoons kasturi methi leaves, crushed
2 tablespoons besan
Bell pepper squares for skewering with the kebabs later
1 egg beaten, for basting
Salt
Oil

Make a marinade with the yogurt, cream cheese, lemon juice, ginger-garlic-green chilli, red chilli, kasturi methi and salt. Make sure you break down the cream cheese to mix well with the rest of the ingredients.

Now add the chicken pieces, and coat the marinade well. Keep covered in the fridge for at least 6-8 hours.

There are two steps to making this kebab. Heat a pan until really hot. Add a couple of tablespoons of oil and add the besan, quickly stirring and reducing the heat to low-medium so that we don’t burn the besan. After about 2-3 minutes of stirring the besan in the oil, dunk the marinated chicken into it (with the marinade). Cook the chicken on high for 10-12 minutes or until half-cooked, moving continuously and coating the chicken well with the besan and its marinade. Remove and let it cool for you to handle it.

Add the green (or red/yellow/orange) bell peppers to the half-cooked chicken and let it sit for 10 minutes. When you are ready to cook, heat a grill pan or you can even do this in a gas tandoor or broil.

Skewer the chicken and bell peppers alternately to go on the grill. If you are using bamboo skewers, make sure you soak them in water for sometime to prevent them from cracking under the heat. I use metal skewers, because I want mine to see me through the rest of my life!

Baste the skewered chicken and bell peppers lavishly with the beaten egg. Your grill pan should be really hot before you drizzle some oil on it.

Place each skewer gently on your grill pan and let it cook on each side for 3-4 minutes.

Turn and baste with the egg and some more oil, till you get a beautiful char on all sides.

Remove the kebabs from the pan and serve with salad, onion rings, and green chutney on the side. Preferably on that lovely platter you have been keeping away to serve a star dish.

You, Me and Michael

Have I ever told you about my huge culinary crush on Canadian chef Michael Smith? He is like the Amitabh Bachchan of the food world. Not just toweringly tall at six feet three inches, but humble, oozing that very-guy-next-door feel and extremely easy going. He’s exactly the kind of man you want in the kitchen.

He lives in a huge house by the ocean, has a pantry the size of my living room, a wife he cooks for and a son who adores him.
And just yesterday I meet this elderly lady from Pakistan in a supermarket who loves him too! Another generation smitten by him.

I watch Chef at Home, everyday at in the morning, and there have been times, I have even watched the repeat show in the evening. Yes, he can get very addictive if you love freestyle, homemade cooking.

But that is not all about city boy Michael, who has made the country his home now. He is specially kind to animals, even the ones who land up on his grill and gas.

I have made a few a few recipes of his, like the stuffed chicken thighs wrapped in bacon and just yesterday, this Smoked Salmon, Cream Cheese Sandwich. And may I add, for the second time in two weeks.

Ingredients for Michael Smith’s Smoked Salmon, Cream Cheese Sandwich are:

Slices of bread
Slices of smoked salmon
Half a red onion, very finely sliced
Half cup cream cheese, softened
Fresh dill, chopped finely
Capers
Fresh black pepper

Make a spread with the softened cream cheese, capers, chopped dill and red onion. Add freshly cracked pepper to it.

Spread the cream cheese spread on the bread, top it with the smoked salmon and close with another slice of bread. You can make triangles or squares with these. Bite into the sandwich. Subtle, smoky and very creamy.

I served these sandwiches with my latest favorite, that clear chicken soup.

Perfect for a Fall evening.

What’s your favorite Fall meal?