Chickpea beetroot kabab

               Chickpea beetroot kabab 

Kabab is basically a minced meat preparation. There are various versions of kabobs  like Shaami, Gulauti, Seekh, Malai, Boti, Chapli etc. that are made with goatmeat, chicken, Turkey and Beef.

As India is a country where a sizeable number of people are vegetarians, we can find various kabobs that are made of Lentils, Kidney beans,  Chickpea flour, Kala chana or Chickpeas.

Whole Lentil kabobs I make frequently and we all love it. This time I tried Chickpea kabobs as chickpea or Garbanzo beans is very popular among our American friends. And here I added Beetroot to give it a vibrant red color. The end result was beyond expectations! The taste was even better than Lentil kabobs and everyone was delighted!

Ingredients:

1. Chickpea soaked overnight 1 cup or 1 can

2. Beetroot 1 cut into pieces 

3. Potato 1 ( I skipped it this time)

4. Crushed chillies 2 tsp.

5. Green chillies 3

6. Black pepper whole-4-6

7. Black cardamom-1 

8. Ginger 1/2" piece 

9. Onion 1 finely chopped 

10. Mint leaves-1 tbsp. Chopped

11. Salt to taste

12. Oil for shallow frying 

13. Cashew for garnishing ( Optional)

Method:

* In a pressure cooker,  add soaked Chickpea,  Beetroot pieces, potato cubes if using, salt and crushed chilli flakes. 

* Now add water upto a little above these ingredients. 

*Cover the lid and cook on slow heat upto 4 whistles. 

* De-pressurize the cooker and then open the lid.

* You can mash this hot with the help of a spatula or use food processor or food chopper. 

* If you are using canned Chickpea,  skip the pressure cooker step and directly process it with Beetroot and boiled potatoes. 

* Check salt and add ground black pepper, cardamom and cloves ( I grind these in coffee grinder).

*Also add finely chopped onion, ginger, mint leaves and green chillies. 

* Make balls of equal size and Flatten it a bit, press cashew in the middle and shallow fry on a cast iron girdle from both sides. You can use tawa or pan also.

Serve with your choice of chutney or ketchup and onion-lemon wedges.