Welcome to our first post in ‘The Indian-inspired Grills and Kebab Series’.
Did you know? The popular Indian clay-oven called ‘Tandoor’ can reach temperatures of 900F (480C)… and it never gets turned off, there is always a slow fire burning at the base of the tandoor to maintain core temperature. As the predecessor to modern day grills, this essentially Indian above-ground barbeque pit uses high temperature convection cooking to sear and char food, simultaneously sealing in the flavors and juices.
So an ideal start to our Indian-inspired Grills and Kebab Series is the well-known restaurant favorite, ‘Chicken Drumsticks or Tangdi Kebab’ (the word ‘tangdi’ literally means leg in Hindi), also known as ‘Kalmi Kebab’ in India. These kebabs are marinated with yogurt, lemon and spices for a few hours and are best cooked on the outdoor grill (an ideal replacement to a tandoor) to render a succulent kebab.
Chicken Drumstick Kebabs With Cilantro-Yogurt Chutney & Spiced Onions
Our chicken kebabs are served with a simple Cilantro-Yogurt chutney (recipe below), which takes its flavors to a new level. At the end of this post, you will find accompaniment ideas to make the chicken drumstick kebabs a perfect meal experience.
Worth knowing: most restaurant versions of this kebab achieve the signature red-orange look of the drumstick kebabs by using orange food color. We use a natural spice to get that ‘Indian kebab color’, read on to find out.
Chicken Drumstick Kebabs
2 lbs chicken drumsticks, skin removed
1½ tablespoon thick yogurt (use Greek yogurt, if possible)
1 teaspoon ginger garlic paste (or 2 cloves minced garlic, ¼ inch ginger minced)
2 tablespoons lemon juice
½ teaspoon red chili powder or cayenne pepper
¼ teaspoon garam masala
1/8 teaspoon turmeric
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon smoked paprika*
*Smoked sweet paprika or smoked paprika is the magic spice that lends an amazing natural red color and smoky flavor to the kebabs without increasing the spice-levels. It’s available in the spice-seasonings section of grocery stores and is worth having in your pantry to add a delicious smoky touch to meats and vegetables.
Chicken Drumsticks – marinated with Yogurt, Lemon & Spices
Marinate the chicken drumsticks with yogurt, ginger garlic paste, lemon and spices/salt. (A convenient and hygienic way to marinate meats is to use a new Ziploc bag, this helps the meat marinate uniformly.) Leave the chicken drumsticks to marinate in the refrigerator for 4-6 hours.
Preheat a charcoal or gas grill to 500F. Grease the wire rack and lay the drumsticks directly on the rack. Cook them; turning halfway through the cooking process. The meat should have a charred kebab-look and an internal temperature of 180F. Immediately, drizzle fresh lemon juice on the hot drumsticks. Cover with a foil and let them stand for 5 minutes before serving.
Don’t have an outdoor grill? Use your oven…
Oven-baked Chicken Drumstick Kebabs
Preheat the oven to 425F. Grease a baking sheet with a wire rack on it. Lay the drumsticks on the rack and cook for 20-25 minutes till drumsticks are done (internal temperature 180F).
Cilantro Yogurt Chutney
1 cup cilantro leaves
7-9 mint leaves
2 garlic cloves
¼ teaspoon cumin powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1½ teaspoon sugar
3 teaspoons lemon juice
4 tablespoons thick yogurt (use Greek yogurt, if possible)
In a mini food processor, blend the cilantro leaves, mint leaves, garlic cloves, cumin powder, salt and sugar till you get a thin paste consistency (add a teaspoon of water at a time to help the blending process.) Then add lemon juice and yogurt and pulse a few times to bring the chutney together. Serve as a dipping sauce along with any Indian kebab. (I like to use this chutney as a sandwich spread too.)
Accompaniments and Serving Ideas:
- Chicken Drumstick Kebabs are best served with the Cilantro-Yogurt Chutney and a side of sliced onions with a dressing of lemon juice, a pinch of red chili powder and salt.
- The classic Indian flatbread Naan is an ideal accompaniment to kebabs. In case you feel like making the naan yourself, there is a simple homemade naan recipe on Food Network. However, Naan is now found easily at every supermarket. Heat them on the grill for about a minute each before serving.
- In India, it’s unheard off to serve kebabs without a glass of chilled beer or a cocktail. I’m sure there’s something for everyone in these 15 fresh, simple cocktails for spring on Kitchn.com. My favorite is the Watermelon-Cucumber Refresher… and check out the Kachumber Cooler with delicious Indian-inspired flavors.
So kick up your heels…a glass of chilled beer or cocktail in one hand and a chicken drumstick kebab in the other.
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Can’t wait to try out this cilantro chutney – so healthy and so pretty too!
Thanks for visiting:) the cilantro chutney just about goes with anything and the mint in it adds that element of freshness…hope you enjoy it.
Was just over at your blog and loved the recipes out there…will definitely be back!
I wish I had an oven. Darn.
Try it on a griddle on the stove top on a medium flame…once the drumsticks are cooked, increase the flame to high so you char the outside for that kebab-look. I have cooked drumsticks on the stove, it does work:)
Making me hungry all over again, after my Balti Chicken, recipe on my blog!
I’m with you on that one…now I want to make Balti Chicken after reading your post:) My craving for Indian food never ends…
oh that looks truly amazing!!! yum …i LOVE inidian cooking!
Thanks for visiting…always happy to hear that:)
Your post on tea caught my attention, I’m a great fan of tea…you might find something similar to your grandmother’s chai recipe in my post for Ginger Spiced Chai here:) And I love the transparent tea pot, its beautiful…
ah thank you …..ok will check out the recipe!
Thanks for stopping by my blog! These look delicious
Thanks for visiting…the foods looks great on your blog too:) I like the Lamb and lentil soup.
This is a much needed, healthy recipe for summer!
Thanks…it is simple too, kind off a ‘marinate and put away till ready to eat’ recipe that we all need for summer:)
I enjoy your blog and have nominated you for a One Lovely Blog Award.
http://afternoonpopcornsnack.com/2012/05/13/one-lovely-blog-award-2/
Congratulations on your award, Amy…and Thanks for nominating Peri’s Spice Ladle for the One Lovely Blog award…a pleasure to be recognized by a wonderful blog such as yours:) I enjoy reading your posts…keep them coming.
I will and you do the same.
Already salivating just looking at them !! Will certainly try the kebabs with the smoked
paprika which sounds ……….smoky & swell
Thanks Hilla…the smoky flavor and red color can’t be beat:) we get it at the bulk spice section at central market…happy grilling!
Love the smell of these kebabs!! The smoked paprika sounds very exciting Peri, I wonder if I can get in England, will look out for that. Love the similarities again with Turkish cuisine, we love marinating with yoghurt too
Really looking forward these kebab series Peri, many thanks for sharing – happy grilling : )!
Thanks Ozlem…we have been finding smoked paprika pretty easily around here especially in the bulk spices section. My guess is just good ole paprika will do the trick too but it will also add some spice to the dish, so reducing red chili/cayenne might help there.
I’m always happy to see the similarities between Turkish and North-Indian flavors, I guess there is a geographical-migration reason behind that…I remember seeing it in your last kebab post, the marination is along the same lines…and also the sliced onions with sumac are so similar to the sliced onions with red chili powder and lemon:) I like the lemony sumac flavor in onions.
Hope you enjoy the kebabs…happy grilling to you too, dear friend.
I may have trouble finding garam masala here in far far away land. Suggestions? This looks so so delicious! I can’t wait to try it!
Thanks, you must try it out, the kebabs taste really good:)
Here’s a suggestion on garam masala: it’s a blended ground spice – generally with a combination of all or some of cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, peppercorn, coriander seeds, nutmeg. If you have some of these, its worth putting the ones you have in your pantry together in a bottle for yourself – your own blend:) Just always remember to use only a pinch of this spice since they are all strong warm spices.
Hope this helps some:)
These look lovely, Peri. I’m glad you included an oven variation because we rarely grill anything in our cool, foggy climate.
Thanks! Glad the oven cooking method helps. I have to include an oven variation…lucky to have readers in all parts of the world, especially in urban India, where an outdoor grill is impractical and a luxury:)
Yum… Your Tangdi Kebabs look amazing
Thanks…hope you manage to try them out.
We’ll be trying them. We’ve been working on the yogurt chutney and had made something up that seemed to work – however, reading your ingredients list, we now know what was missing. Thanks so much.
Thanks for trying them! Let me know how they turn out…the yogurt chutney can get tricky, especially since consistency and taste depend on the type of yogurt you use:) we like our chutney a bit spicier, so I add half a Serrano pepper to the initial paste!
We do too – so thanks for the extra tip!