Chapli Kebab – Pakistani Street Food

Step 1: Toast and Grind Spices

Add cumin seeds, coriander seeds, black peppercorns, and carom seeds to a dry frying pan. Lightly toast them over medium heat until fragrant, about 2-3 minutes. Once cooled, transfer the toasted spices to a spice grinder and blend until a coarse powder is formed. Set aside.

Step 2: Prepare Bone Marrow

Using a spoon, scoop out the raw, uncooked beef bone marrow from the beef bones. Cut into small chunks. Set aside.

Step 3: Chop Vegetables

Roughly chop the onion, tomato (removing the white membrane from the center), fresh ginger, garlic cloves, and deseeded green chili. Place all chopped vegetables into a vegetable chopper or food processor. Pulse until finely chopped but not pulverized, ensuring some texture remains. Scrape down the sides if needed.

Step 4: Mix the Kebab Mixture

In a large bowl, combine the ground beef, salt, the prepared spice mix, and the finely chopped vegetables. Mix thoroughly by hand (wearing gloves is recommended) to ensure all ingredients are well incorporated. The mixture should be well-worked.

Step 5: Form the Kebabs

Lightly oil a plate or use parchment paper. Take a portion of the meat mixture and flatten it into a thin, round kebab shape, about 1/2 inch thick and 4-5 inches in diameter. Place a few small chunks of bone marrow on top of the formed kebab. Repeat for desired number of kebabs.

Step 6: Heat Frying Fat

Place a cast-iron pan over medium-high heat. Add beef tallow (or ghee/oil) to the pan and heat it until shimmering and hot, ready for frying.

Step 7: Fry the Kebabs

Carefully place the formed kebabs into the hot fat. Fry for 3-4 minutes on each side until golden brown and cooked through. If shallow frying, flip the kebabs gently to cook evenly. If deep frying, they will cook submerged without needing to be flipped. Remove from the pan and place on a wire rack or paper towel to drain excess fat.

Step 8: Serve

Stack the cooked Chapli Kebabs on a serving board. Garnish with fresh lime wedges, sliced tomatoes, and a green chili. Serve hot with a side of green dipping sauce.

• Use fatty ground beef (80/20 or 'meat with charbi') for juicier kebabs.

• Add bone marrow pieces on top of the formed kebab just before frying to prevent them from breaking apart during mixing.

• Make kebabs smaller for easier handling and flipping during frying.

• For deep frying, ensure enough fat to completely submerge the kebab; for shallow frying, use less oil and flip carefully.

• Freshly ground spices provide the best flavor for the spice mix.

• If you don't want to grind whole spices, you can use pre-ground cumin, coriander, black pepper, and carom seed powders.

• If bone marrow is unavailable, you can skip it, though it adds significant flavor and richness.

• Use ghee or any cooking oil for frying if beef tallow is not preferred or available.

• For a finer texture, blend the ground beef, bone marrow, and chopped vegetables together in a food processor.

• Serve with Indian green chutney (yogurt-based or mayo-based) as a dipping sauce.