Beef Bihari Boti Kebab.

Kebabs are a huge speciality for South Asians. If one had to list out all the different varieties of kebabs, there would be a long list of it. Each and every one of them has it's own distinct flavour and taste that tingle your taste buds in ways you'd have not previously imagined. In fact the subcontinent takes a lot of pride in the kebabs it has in it's repertoire. 

One of the more popular kebabs I'm sharing with you today is known as Bihari boti kebab. The word 'boti' implies 'piece of meat' in Urdu and Hindi, and as the name implies, the dish's origins come from the eastern state of Bihar, India. While largely similar to North Indian and East Indian cuisine, they place more emphasis on vegetarian dishes as opposed to the non-vegetarian ones, but whatever meat dishes it has, they are simply tantalising and a must try. All in all, Bihari cuisine is one that packs a lot of flavour.

The secret of Bihari boti lies in the marination. It's marinade comes from a mixture of fried crushed onions, yoghurt, the spice blends it comprises of and the natural tenderising of the meat chunks by using natural tenderiser like papaya. Papaya has long been considered a great meat tenderising agent that helps in cooking red meat especially beef. Raw papaya is most ideal for the tenderisation, but if you are devoid of finding papaya in your area, you can always use dried papaya powder (Which can be found in most food stores - some of the popular brands we have here in the UK are Shan and Rajah) or any other alternative meat tenderiser you might have. The longer you marinate the meat the better the results you'll get, but as a general rule of thumb, you have to marinate for at least 3 hours and can go as long as 24 hours. 

While cooking Bihari boti kebab is commonly done on charcoal grills, not everyone has the luxury of having a barbecue in their households. But fear not as you can attain similar results by using your oven. What you end up with eventually are these soft, tender, spicy melt in your mouth kebab meat with an truly irresistible kick for your tastebuds.

Bihari Boti Kebabs are a very popular staple within barbecue parties. But I also tend to enjoy them in another way, namely turning them into paratha rolls using layered parathas which we call as 'lachaydar' parathas. While I haven't made those from scratch (Something for a future recipe perhaps), you can easily find them in supermarkets or food stores (Here in the UK we have brands like Shana, Humza and others that sell frozen parathas in their frozen aisle). For the rolls, I made a special cheese sauce that goes perfectly with these bihari botis. Think of it as a south asian equivalent of a steak and cheese roll. But no matter how you eat them, you are bound to enjoy it loads and keep coming back for more.

Here's the recipe:

Beef Bihari Boti Kebabs:

Ingredients:

- 1kg of beef (cut into small cubes) - I prefer to use brisket but use any good cuts with a little bit of fat.

- 3 medium onions (around 200gms) - finely sliced.

- 150gms of grounded / mashed raw papaya or meat tenderiser powder

- 1/2 cup of cooking oil. 

- 2 tbsp of ginger & garlic paste. 

- 1/2 cup of yoghurt.

- 2 tbsp red chilli powder.

- 1 tsp salt

- 2 tsp ground poppy seeds.

- 1/2 tsp star anise powder. 

- 2 tsp garam masala powder.

Preparation:

- First fry the onions in oil until they are browned. Take them out and put them on a paper towel and let it cool. Once cooled and crisp, coarsely ground them either manually or via your food processor. 

- Next add the crushed onions, yoghurt, oil, raw papaya (or meat tenderiser), ginger / garlic paste, salt and all the spices into the meat and mix everything well together until it's well incorporated. Set it aside and let it marinate for a minimum 3 hours (Or 24 hours for maximum flavour).

- Preheat oven to 175 degrees C (Or 347 degrees F). Thread the meat onto skewers and keep them close together. Set them on a baking pan with the skewers hanging from the edges of the pan so that they are elevated and not lying on the base of the pan.

- Cook them for around 30 mins, turning them halfway during cooking time. For the last 2 to 3 minutes turn on the broiler so that you get a charred finish. 

- Serve them with sliced onions, lemon wedges and either with your choice of naan, parathas or rice.