Gola Kabab

Tender positively adorable kababs that are richly spiced and can be prepared stovetop or barbecued!

I will be honest and confess to you that I didn't think I would ever make my own Gola Kabab. Then I found myself sitting the other day and trying to remember when I last had Gola Kabab that I enjoyed and decided it was high time to start. A test round or two later I've arrived at my perfect Gola Kabab combnation.

These Gola Kababs are easy to shape, richly spiced, and tender. Bonus points if you have a piece of charcoal lying around to give the marinated meat that smoky aroma. Double bonus points if you have two. More on that later though.

What is a Gola Kabab?

The word Gola literally means round. Ergo a Gola Kabab is a rounder Kabab than it's cylinder relative the Seekh Kabab. These petite creations boast many of the same flavours as a Seekh Kabab, but are more tender (hello papaya paste) and always have that distinctive empty cylinder running through them.

Historically it is difficult to pinpoint the exact origin other than to say they were (like many popular meat dishes) a legacy of Mughal times.

Now, traditionally that empty space is reflective of the skewers they were barbecued on. February in Canada isn't exactly peak barbecue season, but I form the same shape with a little trick.

Gola Kabab Ingredients

Now that we have established what the ingredients look like, lets pay a little attention to a few shall we?

Keema: Now usually I am team extra lean, but here you want a little fat on here. The more fat you have the juicier your kabab will be, but it will also shrink so I still lean towards the leaner keema at 20% fat. For dishes like Aloo Keema I prefer extra lean keema.

Papaya: Now, hear me out. If you have ever shopped at a desi (Pakistani/Indian) store then know that they stock Papaya paste in a jar. It definitely works here. The reason you need it is because you want the kababs to have a texture that is softer than a Seekh Kabab and smoother than a Chapli Kabab.

Ghee: Usually I'd just pour a lug of oil and call it a day, but here ghee does good things for texture and flavour. Can sub with butter.

Prefried Onions: These will give the kababs their rich, caramelly taste. As I said in my Chicken Korma post the kind you buy is key. The prefried onions you purchase should only have two ingredients: onions and oil. No coated ones please.

Coal Smoke: Or Dhuaan dena as we call it in Urdu. This gives the kababs their smoky irresistible vibe.

Gola Kabab How To

This is funny easy, but let's do a little recap anyway shall we?

We will take all the ingredients listed in the Kabab mixture category and run them through the food processor to form a cohesive mix/ paste. Fry a small chunk and adjust seasoning. It will soften as it marinates, but you want the spices to be on point for you. Good to go? Now transfer it to a bowl for which you have a lid.

Now it's time for a little coal smoke action. If you have a gas burner then you can simply place the coal directly onto the flame and let it burn until its bright red, flip and then let it heat on the other side until that is red. For a ceramic cooktop I use one of these handy dandy grills and place my coal on top and just let one side heat up. I don't move it around to avoid embers flying around.

Now place a piece of foil or an onion peel in the middle of your meat marinade to create a bowl for the coal. Place the coal right on top, drizzle with a little bit of oil, it will smoke up instantly, and shut it. Leave it be for 15 minutes or as long as it takes for the smoke to dissipate.

I like to shape my kababs and leave them overnight before cooking for optimal flavour/texture.

Now we move on to the shaping: take a straw, a dowel, or even a pencil covered in plastic wrap and build your kababs around it with greased palms.

TIP: Grease the instrument you are using as well for quick kabab making.

How to Freeze & Use Your Gola Kabab

Put them out on a sheet and freeze them for later, I make this sized batch so I can eat half and freeze half. Once they are frozen solid then I transfer them to a ziploc bag.

When it's time to cook then heat about ½ inch of oil in a skillet on medium heat and fry the kababs or barbecue them if you can. Fried kababs will get a darker hue than barbecued or baked ones!

I love to serve these on top of a sauteed/ charred bed of onions and green chilies. To make those, drain most of the oil from your pan, crank your heat up to medium high, turn your exhaust on high and saute some sliced onions and green chilies. You may want to open the windows as well.

They also happen to go SO well with this Yogurt Mint Chutney!

Want more recipes with punchy flavours?

I got you!

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Chicken Seekh Kabab

Behari Chicken

Kachay Keemay ke Kabab