Chicken Seekh Kabab: Easy Pakistani Recipe

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Chicken seekh kabab is a spicy, juicy grilled ground chicken on skewers. It’s succulent and delicious as a starter with naan bread and spicy tomato chutney.

Chicken Seekh Kabab

This delicious finger food often appears as an appetiser for the spread of Pakistani food. You can also have dipping sauces such as mint yogurt chutney or spicy tomato chutney. 

It’s a popular starter choice for special occasions such as weddings, birthdays, Ramadhan, Eid, and family gatherings.

In my household, chicken seekh kabab is much loved as a substitute for sausages. So, I use the kebab to make chicken hot dogs or a chicken wrap. 

Therefore, when I make this grilled chicken meat on the skewers, I almost always make it in bulk, like 2 kilos. Once I cook them, I freeze them. They’re handy when I don’t have time to fix lunch, as they can be our quick, tasty lunch.

I can wrap the kebab in chapati/roti, naan bread, a tortilla wrap, or even a burger bun. 

If you don’t fancy some carbs, you can always enjoy the seekh kabab with salad. Try this apple salad as an idea; it indeed goes well with the kebab.

What is Chicken Seekh Kabab?

Chicken seekh kabab is ground chicken mixed with fragrant spices and herbs, then grilled on skewers. 

The word Kabab derives from the Arabic kabāb, meaning “roasted meat”. It is also called Kebab, Kabab, or Kebap in areas across the Middle East and Asia, particularly in Muslim areas. 

There are many types of kebabs/kababs. The recipe I’m sharing here is the Seekh Kebab. The ground meat is grilled on a skewer, so the kabab is rather long, like a tube. 

Don’t mix seekh kebab with shami kebab, as they’re completely different foods. The latter is a type of kebab made with ground meat, chickpeas, lentils, and spices, while the seekh kebab doesn’t use lentils as a binder. 

What’s in It?

You need chicken mince/ground chicken, onion, garlic powder, ginger powder, garam masala, red chili powder, plain flour (all-purpose flour), yogurt, and coriander leaves.

You can buy the chicken already minced, or grind it yourself in a food processor or meat grinder. If you do the latter, I suggest using boneless chicken thighs, which have a bit of fat and are more flavorful.

Apart from the garam masala, I think other ingredients are pretty straightforward.

So, for the garam masala, you can use the ready-mixed garam masala from the store. I often use my homemade garam masala; other times, I use the shop-bought packet. 

How to Make Chicken Seekh Kabab?

Essentially, you only need to do two things: make the chicken mixture and grill the chicken.

First, mix the chicken mince/ground chicken with all other ingredients until everything is thoroughly blended. 

You can mix it by hand or use a food processor. The mixture will be fine and delicate if you use a food processor. It’s nice. 

I do that sometimes, but I often mix it by hand as I like the kebab texture to be slightly meaty. It’s up to you.

Leave the meat to rest for at least half an hour. To give the flavor a chance to develop. 

Next, grill the kebabs. You can use an oven grill, griddle pan, or barbecue. The latter is the best, hah.

I use metal skewers. If you want to make seekh kebabs the way restaurants do, you’ll need heavy-duty metal skewers. Of course, you can use bamboo skewers, too. Just make sure you soak them in water for a few hours before using them so they won’t get burned when you grill your kebabs.

When you’re ready to cook the chicken, take a big handful of the chicken mixture and shape it into a cylinder around the skewers. 

Then grill the chicken mix on the skewers in your oven grill, barbecue, or griddle pan. Turn the skewers occasionally and grill until the chicken is thoroughly cooked.

What to Enjoy the Kabab With

These juicy kebabs are best served with dips such as mint yogurt chutney, cilantro yogurt, tomato chutney, or tamarind chutney. As a side, you can have them alongside a simple green salad you fancy.

If you want to eat them with some carbs, naan bread, pita bread, or even some hot dog buns will be good choices.

Take care and all the best.

Chicken Seekh Kabab: Easy Pakistani Recipe

4.98 from 42 votes

Chicken seekh kabab is spicy and juicy grilled chicken mince on the skewer. It's succulent and delicious to have as a starter with naan bread and some spicy tomato chutney.

BY: Devy Dar

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Prep : 20 minutes mins

Cook : 20 minutes mins

Total : 40 minutes mins

Servings: 10 pieces

Equipment

• Mixing bowls.
• Skewers
• Griddle pan

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Ingredients

 

1x2x3x

US CustomaryMetric

• 1.3 pounds chicken mince/ ground chicken.
• 1 medium-sized onion.
• 1 teaspoon garam masala.
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder.
• 1 teaspoon red chilli powder preferably Kashmiri red chilli powder.
• 1 teaspoon salt I use Himalayan salt.
• ½ teaspoon ginger powder.
• 2 tablespoons plain flour/ all-purpose flour.
• 2 tablespoons yoghurt.
• 2 handfuls of coriander leaves.

Instructions

• Place the ground chicken/ chicken mince in a mixing bowl.
• Peel and finely chop the onion. Add in the chicken.
• Put the garam masala, garlic powder, red chilli powder, ginger powder, salt, plain flour and yoghurt into the chicken.
• Chop the coriander leaves and add them in the chicken.
• Mix and knead the chicken until everything is thoroughly combined and mixed. If you want, you can use a food processor to mix. Just give it a few blitzes until the mince is well mixed. Leave it to rest for at least half an hour.
• Heat your griddle pan or oven grill.
• Take about 2-3 tablespoons of the meat (around 50-60 gr/ 2 oz) and shape it into a cylinder tube around the prepared skewer. 
• Cook the chicken on the skewer in your oven grill or on the griddle pan. Try to rotate and turn the skewers every so often so the meat will be evenly cooked. 

Notes

• Leave the chicken mixture to marinate for at least half an hour. But overnight is the best.
• If you use bamboo skewers, soak them for a few hours before using. If you use metal skewers, brush the skewers with a little oil before using.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 190kcal | Carbohydrates: 12g | Protein: 18g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 74mg | Sodium: 294mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g

Devy Dar

Devy founded So Yummy Recipes and Drizzling Flavor to share her love of food after exploring various cultures and cuisines for more than two decades. Her mission is to help others easily recreate traditional and non-traditional food with readily available ingredients. Her works have been featured in Reader’s Digest, Al Jazeera, MSN, Yahoo, Bon Appétit, and more.