Afghan Culture Unveiled

Khalida's Lamb Kebab with Creamy, Spicy Chutney

 

By Humaira

 

Jeja (my mom) spends a good part of her day surfing the Afghan TV channels.  Yes, in the United States you can watch several Afghanistan-based television programs.  Since we purchased the satellite TV for Jeja, her life has changed.  After 30 years of living in the United States her heart and identity are still in Afghanistan.  The television allows her a little window into her homeland.  She watches soap operas in Farsi, learns about homeopathic medicines and gets world news from Afghan reporters.  She recently informed me that one of her Afghan channels features a reality cooking show similar to ones we see in the US.  The claim to fame of the most recent winner is a mastery of 15 rice and 30 kebab recipes. 

 

So, it is with Afghan TV on the brain that I share this kebab recipe.  It is from a Khalida Rashid, an Afghan television personality I met at a café in Laguna Beach.  After my sister informed me that she is an excellent cook and used to host a cooking show I was in hot pursuit of a recipe from her.   She was cautious at first, but after checking out our blog she agreed to offer one of her recipes to us.

 

The recipe is for lamb kebab made with a marinade that takes less than five minutes to pull together and is quite delicious.   The chutney that accompanies the kebab is a little different than what I’m used to eating.  Hers includes a few spoonfuls of lebni, which is essentially a very thick yogurt.  It adds a little body and creaminess and offsets the heat of the sauce in a very pleasing way.   

 

Needless to say Jeja was very excited when Khalida mentioned our blog on Tamasha, her Wednesday morning television program.  We hope to get more recipes from the accomplished cooks in our Afghan community, so if you have a favorite, please share it with us. 

 

Khalida’s Lamb Kebab with Creamy, Spicy Chutney

 

½ yellow onion, peeled and halved

1 medium jalapeno pepper, stem and seeds removed, cut in half lengthwise

2 cloves garlic, peeled

¼ cup olive oil

1 tsp. Kosher salt

½ tsp. black pepper

2 lbs. lamb stew meat, cut into 1 ½-inch cubes

 

Put the onion, jalapeno, garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade.  Process until smooth.  Mix the blended onion with the lamb in a bowl, cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.

 

Remove the lamb from the refrigerator a half hour before you are ready to grill.  Thread the lamb meat on metal or wooden skewers and grill until cooked through but still tender. 

 

Creamy Cilantro Chutney

 

2 small bunches fresh cilantro, stems removed

1 medium jalapeno pepper (more if you like it really spicy)

2 tbsp. lebni (or Greek yogurt if you can’t find lebni)

¼ cup white vinegar or lemon juice

½ tsp. Kosher salt

 

Combine all of the ingredients in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade.  Blend until smooth.

 

Serve kebabs with nan or pita bread that you have warmed on the grill along with chutney.

 

Serves 4 to 6

Afghan Mustard Chicken

By Humaira

Ok, so this dish does not have an Afghan name since it’s not a traditional Afghan dish.  Mustard Chicken, as my family fondly calls it, was created by a friend of a friend who is an accomplished Afghan cook.  Although it is not an authentically Afghan dish, it uses a lot of the traditional spices.   At first I was not sure if this recipe should become a blog post.  But after my friend’s son, David Rupright (age 12), declared it “Afghan enough” I decided to share. 

 

Over the years I have noticed Afghan ladies such as my mom and her friends not only adapt their cooking to their American kitchens but they have integrated ingredients they have found in the U.S. to their cooking.  This is the natural evolution of food and cooking so it should be honored.

 

Mustard Chicken is a low-fat and very flavorful dish.   I’ve experimented with different kinds of mustard but came to the conclusion that your basic, inexpensive yellow mustard works best.   I like to serve it with warm pita and a simple salad.  It reminds me a little bit of Mexican fajitas, only with Afghan seasonings and pita instead of tortillas.  We hope you enjoy this dish.

 

 

Afghan Mustard Chicken

2 lbs.  skinless, boneless, chicken breast

14 oz. yellow mustard

½ tbsp. ground coriander

1 tsp. cumin

½ tsp. black pepper

1 tsp. Kosher salt

2 tbsp. olive oil

1 medium yellow onion, peeled and sliced thin

1 medium green bell pepper, seeded and sliced thin

1 medium red bell pepper, seeded and sliced thin

 

After washing and drying, cut chicken in thin long strips, similar to fajita meat.  Combine the chicken, mustard, coriander, cumin, pepper and salt in a bowl.  Mix well, until all pieces of chicken are coated with mustard.  Cover with plastic wrap and marinate for 1 hour.  This dish can be marinated for many hours or overnight if you like.

 

Heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan over high heat.  Add the chicken, stir well so it doesn’t stick and drop the temperature to medium high.  Cooking, stirring regularly, until just cooked through, around 10 minutes.  A thick sauce will form.  Add the onions and peppers to the pan and stir fry in the sauce for 5 minutes or until they are slightly tender.   If you like your veggies softer,  you can cook  for another 5 minutes.

 

Serve with pita bread and a nice crispy salad.

Serves 4-6

 

 

 

Tender Lamb Kebab with Cinnamon

 

By Katie

 

My first job at age 16, not counting a brief stint at a burger joint from which I was "laid off" (who gets laid off at 16?), was working the cash register at a gourmet food store.  The place was changing owners, my new boss having just arrived from Korea with little English and no experience in the retail food business.   He grappled to understand this foreign concept called “gourmet”.   His first day on the job was spent wandering the aisles, pulling food from the shelves, looking up, brows creased, and asking “is this gourmet?”  Duck liver pate? (yes), canned tuna? (no), organic carrots? (sort of), caviar (definitely), and so on it went as he worked his way through the store’s inventory.

 

I felt a little like my kind-hearted Korean boss recently when I was trying to wrap my mind around the Afghan concept of a kebab.   To me kebabs are one thing:  skewered meat or chicken, sometimes threaded with onions or cherry tomatoes, cooked on a hot grill.   In Afghanistan, it seems, kebabs can be virtually anything:  meat or chicken, skewered or not, barbecued or oven baked or pan fried, cut into chunks or ground or eaten as a chop.  Yikes.  Having prepared and eaten a number of different varieties,  I can only surmise that a kebab is some kind of cooked animal protein served with nan bread.  Done.

 

This recipe here comes from Humaira’s sister Nabila, who is a talented home cook in her own right.  It is distinctly un-kebab-like according to my Western definition.  What’s important is that, kebab or not, it is divine.  Sliced onions and hefty chunks of lamb marinate a good long while in Greek yogurt, fresh garlic and coriander, and then bake in the oven at a high heat until fork tender.  The juicy results are sprinkled with cinnamon and served with nan bread and hopefully something crunchy like a crisp salad or sliced cucumbers.     It’s a completely no-fuss dish that could very well be my new favorite on the Afghan food front (watch out Chicken Lawang!).  

 

Tender Lamb Kebab with Cinnamon

 

½ cup Greek yogurt

2 tbsp. olive oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp. dried ground coriander

½ tsp. black pepper

2 tsp. Kosher salt

2 lbs. lamb stew meat, cut into 2-inch chunks

2 large onions, peeled, sliced thin

Ground cinnamon

 

In a large bowl mix together the yogurt, oil, garlic, coriander, pepper and salt and stir well.  Add the lamb and onions and coat evenly with the yogurt mixture.  Cover and refrigerate at least an hour, preferably overnight. 

 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Pull the lamb out a half hour before you a ready to cook.  Put the lamb into large pot or Dutch oven and cover with a lid.  Put it into the oven and cook until the lamb is very tender (about 1 ¼ to 1 ½ hours).  Remove the lid, give it a stir, and continue to cook another 20 to 30 minutes until some of the liquid has reduced and you have a thick, oniony sauce.

 

Sprinkle the meat lightly with cinnamon and serve with warm nan bread and plain yogurt.  You can season the yogurt with a little salt and stir in some grated cucumbers or chopped mint if you like.

 

Serves 4

 

Brother’s Best Chicken Kebab – Kebab e Murgh

By Humaira

 

I have vivid memories from my childhood of walking by kebab stalls in my neighborhood in Kabul and being intoxicated by the delicious aroma of sizzling kebabs.  I always wished I had 10 Afghani, (the Afghan currency) to buy a skewer.  The kebabs were usually sold from simple shacks where the cooks would keep busy fanning the hot coals and showcasing their mouthwatering delicacies. 

 

Most kebabs sold on the streets of Kabul are made of lamb and served on Afghan flat bread called lawausha or nan.  You can buy a coke or a Fanta drink to wash down the savory meat.  The kebab sellers, known as the kebabi, wrap the bread around the meat and pull it off the skewer.  A few simple condiments such as salt, pepper, sumac and red pepper flakes are available to garnish the kebabs.  Some kebabis have a few wooden tables and chairs to sit on, but most people take their kebabs to go, wrapped in a newspaper. 

 

When I was in Kabul in 2006 I saw some very modern kebab shops with blindening fluorescent lighting, screened windows and loud, screechy Afghan pop music playing for our listening pleasure.  Unfortunately my cousin Ghani Jan, who was our host, did not think it would be safe for us to eat in such public places.  I found it strange that there were several kebab stalls right next to each other.  I wondered if they all served the same thing or if each had their own delicacy.

 

To most Americans cooking kebabs usually involve a skewer.  But that is not always the case with Afghan cooking.  Kebabs can include meats that are cubed, on the bone or ground.  They can be fried, grilled or cooked slow in an oven or tandoor.  Though they can be served with rice, it is traditional to eat Afghan kebabs with bread. 

 

Kebabs are served for special occasions in Afghanistan as well as for picnics and other family gatherings.  My family rarely made the kebabs themselves, relying instead on one of the many kebab houses in Kabul.  Things are different here in the U.S. and we’ve learned to adapt.  My brother Tamim has become the master kebab maker in our family, always experimenting with various recipes and ingredients.  Anytime we stop over for a visit he has the grill fired up and ready to go.  This recipe is his.  He recommends marinating the chicken overnight and using the thigh meat over any other cut because it turns out the most juicy and flavorful.  Tamim always serves his kebabs with a big salad, pita bread or Afghan bread.  We hope you will make this at your family barbeque.

 

Tamim’s Yogurt Marinated Chicken Kebab –

Kebab e Murgh

 

3 cups plain, whole milk yogurt

5 cloves garlic, chopped

1 tsp. ground coriander

1 tsp. ground cumin

1 tbsp. salt

1/4 tsp. black pepper

dash garlic powder

3 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken thighs

 

Put all the ingredients except the chicken in a large bowl and mix well.  Add the chicken and mix until all pieces are covered with yogurt.   Pour the contents of the bowl in a sealable plastic bag or a container with a tight lid.  Marinate for at least 24 hours.

 

Pull the chicken out of the fridge 30 minutes before you are going to grill.  Get the barbecue good and hot.  If you are using a gas grill, let it heat up for a good 10 minutes.  In the meantime, pour the chicken into a colander and wipe the marinade off as best you can.

 

Grill the chicken over a medium-high flame about 7 minutes a side until it’s cooked through.  Once cooked, wrap the chicken in aluminum foil and let it sit for 5 minutes.  Serve warm.

 

Serves 6
Recipe by Tamim Ghilzai

 

Juicy Afghan Burgers - Chapli Kebab

 Food sytlist, Waheed Ghilzai

By Humaira

My first memory of eating chapli kebab was when I was in my 20s at the home our good friend Jawade Khan who is from Pakistan.  The burger patties were  juicy and very flavorful,  and tasted amazing with challaw.  I was hooked.

 

A chapli kebab in Afghanistan, and in much of  the middle world, is essentially a small amount of ground meat  formed into patties, and then grilled.  While most kebabs are cooked and served on skewers, these chapli kebabs are not.  Chapli means sandal in Dari, so a chapli kebab is meant to be as thin as the sole of a sandal.  This is not exactly an appetizing image but someone must have thought it a good description.

 

Jeja (my mom) is not big on making kebabs.  But, my sister Nabila is a great cook with many traditional as well as innovative Afghan-inspired kebab recipes.  I have always made chapli kebab using the recipe that Jawade Khan shared with me, which calls for tomatoes.  But Nabila informed me that an Afghan style chapli kebab does not use tomatoes.   I took advantage of her visit during mother’s day so she could share her chapli kebab recipe with me. 

 

I am always nervous about feeding Jeja my Afghan dishes.  She usually points out one or two things I could have done differently.  Fortunately she LOVED this chapli kebab.  Not only did she rave about it, she asked for the recipe and asked me how to cook the meat; a high compliment.  So, if it’s good enough for Jeja, you all must try this recipe for your warm weather barbecues. 

 

Juicy Afghan Burgers

Chapli Kebab

 

2 lbs. ground beef (no less than 20% fat)

1 ½ cups finely diced green onion (both white and green parts)

1 cup finely chopped cilantro (stems are fine)

1 egg

1 ½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. black pepper

1 tsp. minced fresh ginger

1  tbsp. ground coriander

½ tbsp. finely chopped garlic

½ tsp red pepper flakes (optional)

Pinch of ground cinnamon (optional)

 

Fire up the grill until it’s nice and hot.

 

In the mean time mix all ingredients in a large bowl and mix by hand for at least 5 minutes. Pretend it is bread dough and knead the meat.  Set the timer so you won’t cut the time short.  It’s very important that all the ingredients are mixed well and the meat takes on a smooth texture.

 

Divide the dough into eight pieces and roll into balls.  Pat the meat to form burgers that are about 1/4-inch thick and 4 inches in diameter, or larger if you like.  Cook each side on your BBQ for about 5 minutes or until its cooked all the way through and juicy.  While there is no “medium rare’ in the Afghan vocabulary, be careful not to overcook them.   If you don’t have a bbq, no worries, simply cook the kebabs in a lightly oiled skillet for about 5 minutes per side. 

 

Serve with warm pita bread, salad and a dollop of yogurt.

 

Makes 8 patties

 

Mini Lamb Kebabs with Cilantro Mint Chutney

 

By Katie

 

When Humaira and I throw a dinner party, we opt for dishes we can make ahead of time.   The point of having friends over, after all, is to enjoy their company, not be squirreled away in the kitchen fussing over canapés.    

 

These mini lamb kebabs are just perfect for entertaining.  They’re prepped and marinated a day ahead, and then grilled before guests even cross the doorstep, freeing you up to enjoy the party without fretting that something’s burning in the kitchen.

 

Truth be told, these mini kebabs aren’t properly Afghan.  Traditionally the lamb would be cut into larger chunks, speared onto long, heavy metal skewers and served in a heap on a large platter for the main course.  Teeny little finger food isn’t exactly the Afghan way.  However, the meat, the marinade and the cooking are all very true to the cuisine. 

 

The chutney that accompanies kebabs in Afghanistan has no relation to the sweet and savory, fruit-studded preserves with which most of us are familiar.  The Afghan version is a thin, herbaceous, acidic sauce.  I tinkered with the traditional recipe by adding fresh mint to the mix.  It makes a perfect tangy counterpart to the rich lamb. 

 

Serve the skewers on their own or with little wedges of pita or nan bread for a mini kebab sandwiches.

 

Mini Afghan Lamb Kebabs with Cilantro Mint Chutney

Serves 10 to 12 as an appetizer or 4 to 6 as a main course

4 large cloves garlic, minced

¾ cup plain yogurt

1 tsp. ground cumin

1 ½ tsp. ground turmeric

2 tbsp. lemon juice

1 tsp. Kosher salt

1 tsp. black pepper

2 lbs. boneless lamb, cut into 3/4-inch cubes

Small wooden or metal skewers*

Ground sumac (optional)

Cilantro Mint Chutney (recipe below)

 

In a medium bowl mix together the garlic, yogurt, spices, lemon juice, salt and pepper.  Add the lamb and mix well.  Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours, preferably overnight. 

 

An hour before you are ready to cook, pull the lamb from the refrigerator.  If you are using wooden skewers immerse them in water for 20 minutes. 

 

Spear 3 to 4 pieces of lamb on each skewer and set aside until you are ready to cook.  Grill the kebabs over a medium-high flame until cooked through but still pink in the center.  If you don’t have a grill, cook the kebabs under a broiler in your oven.  

 

Coat the bottom of your serving platter with a few tablespoons of chutney.  Set the kebabs on top of the chutney with a little crock of the remaining chutney in the center.  Lightly sprinkle sumac over the top if you like.

 

*If you can’t find small wooden skewers, cut the larger ones in half using a sharp chef’s knife.

 

Cilantro Mint Chutney

 

½ cup roughly chopped green onions, white and green parts

1 cup roughly chopped cilantro

½ cup roughly chopped fresh mint

½ cup white vinegar

½ tsp. Kosher salt

½ tsp. black pepper

 

Whirl all of the ingredients in a blender or food processor until smooth.

An Afghan Twist on an American Classic

By Katie

Afghanistan is a meat loving country; its people embrace all manner of animal protein so long as it's halal/kosher.  Pork is of course the exception since as Muslims, Afghans abstain from anything of the porcine persuasian.  And unlike neighboring India where entire swaths of  the population are devoted vegetarians, you'd be hard pressed to find an Afghan eager to give up her carnivorous habits.  

At the same time, Afghans are thrifty people.  This is a poor country and meat is considered quite dear, often reserved for special occasions.  But Afghans have long  found innovative ways to have their proverbial meat and eat it too.  

Beans, legumes and grains of many varieties are a significant part of the Afghan diet.  These inexpensive staples are eaten on their own but also used as extenders for meat dishes.  For example, chick peas are ground and added to chicken kebabs for flavor and to minimize the amount of chicken needed in the dish. 

Substituting beans and grains is a smart thing to do not just for economic reasons, it's also a healthier way to eat that treads a little lighter on the earth.  This concept is heartily embraced in Almost Meatless, a new cookbook I recently discovered by Tara Matazara Desmond and Joy Manning.  Tucked in the pages of the chapter titled Beef in Moderation is a recipe cleverly named the B4 Burger (beef bulgur bean burger).  The recipe is a very American take on what Afghans have been doing with meat for centuries. 

I tinkered with the recipe just a bit -- adding a few classic Afghan spices, making the patties a little smaller, more akin to a kebab, and serving them in mini pita breads toasted on the grill.  I also used a cucumber yogurt sauce instead of ketchup.  Cilantro sprigs took the place of  lettuce leaves.  The result was wholly satisfying with a flavor that is decidedly more Middle Asia than Middle America.   

 

The B4 Burger with an Afghan Twist

Serves 4 to 6

1 cup cooked black beans (1 15-ounce can, drained and rinsed)

1 cup chicken stock  or water

1/2 cup bulgur wheat (coarse or medium grind)

1 clove garlic, minced and mashed to a paste with 1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt

3 scallions, white and green parts, minced

1 tbsp. whole grain mustard

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

1/2 tsp. ground coriander

1/2 tsp. ground turmeric

1/4 tsp. Kosher salt

1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

1 egg, beaten

8 ounces ground beef

8 mini pita breads (or 4 regular pitas cut in half) 

1 1/2 cups plain yogurt

1 small cucumber, peeled and diced

1 bunch fresh cilantro, rinsed and dried

 

Preheat grill to medium-high and oil the grates.

 

Pulse the black beans, garlic paste, scallions, mustard, cumin, coriander and turmeric several times in a food processor until a chunky paste forms. (Alternatively, mash the beans well with a fork or potato masher). Transfer the beans to a large mixing bowl and set aside.

 

 Bring the stock to a boil in a small saucepan. Stir in bulgur wheat, cover, and reduce heat. Simmer over low heat for 15 minutes. Remove from heat, fluff with a fork. Season with salt and pepper to taste and let cool slightly.

 

 Add the egg, bulgur and ground beef to the beans and stir to combine the ingredients evenly. Form into 8 equal patties, 1/2-inch thick each.

 

Grill burgers over medium-high flame for about 5 to 6 minutes per side.  Meanwhile, make the yogurt sauce by combining the yogurt and cucumber in a small bowl.   When the burgers are almost done, quickly heat the pita bread on the grill.  Tuck the cooked burgers into the pita, add a large spoonful of yogurt sauce and a few sprigs of cilantro.  Alternatively, the burgers can be cooked in a pan coated with non-stick spray.

Reprinted with permission from Ten Speed Press and the authors
--

Kebabs: Afghan Street Food Ideal for a Summer Cookout

 By Katie

With Memorial Day the offical kickoff to the summer barbecue season, it seems an appropriate time to talk about some of my favorite grilled food:  Afghan kebabs.  While nothing could be more ordinary in American culture than the backyard barbecue, in Afghanistan grilling is more typically the domain of street vendors and restaurants.   Walk through Kabul or Kandahar and you will be greeted with the sizzling sounds and rich smells of beef, lamb and chicken seasoned with garlic, onions, peppers, and a host of spices, speared onto metal skewers.  The street vendors (Kebabis as they are called) wrap warm nan bread around the meat and serve it with chutney, cilantro and chives.   While it would be rare for an Afghan to own the kind of barbecue we are accustomed to, they are brilliant at rigging a makeshift grill set over hot coals for picnics or other outdoor outtings. 

It's simple to translate this faraway and seemingly exotic treat for grilling at home.  Humaira and I cooked up kebabs over the weekend for a group of 15; it was an easy way to entertain and a total crowd pleaser.  Below is a picture of Humaira carrying the goods to the table followed by our recipe for chicken kebabs.  While Afghan restaurants sometimes achieve the signature golden hue to their chicken by adding food coloring, we've found  a little dose of turmeric works just as well, and is tasty, too.   Serve the kebabs with plenty of plain yogurt, nan, lavash or pita bread, and a chopped salad with equal parts cucumber, tomato, red onions and cilantro, with a squeeze of lemon and plenty of salt.

 

 

Lemony Chicken Kebabs with Turmeric

2 lbs. skinless, boneless chicken breasts

1 medium yellow onion, peeled and quartered

4 cloves garlic, peeled

3 tbsp. fresh lemon juice mixed with 1 tbsp. water

1 tbsp. olive oil

1 tbsp. ground coriander

2 tsp. ground turmeric

1 tsp. Kosher salt

1 tsp. ground black pepper

wooden or metal skewers

Instructions:

Cut chicken into 2-inch chunks and put in a bowl.  Puree remaining ingredients in a food processor.  Pour marinade over the chicken and mix thoroughly.  Cover and put in the refrigerator for at least three hours, preferably overnight. 

If using wooden skewers, immerse them in water for at least 20 minutes before using.

Put 4 to 5 pieces of chicken on each skewer.   Grill over a medium flame until done.  If you don’t have a grill, you can cook the kebabs under a broiler for a few minutes per side or bake them in a 400 degree oven until cooked through. 

Serves 6