Lamb Shaami Kabab

Ingredients (Makes 15)

1/2 cup chana dal (bengal lentils)
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
2 cloves
2 green cardamom
1/4 tsp fennel seeds
1 bay leaf
2-3 whole dry chillies, broken (adjust to tolerance)
2 fat garlic cloves, roughly chopped
1/2" fresh ginger shoot, roughly chopped
1/2 " cinnamon stick
1 lb ground lamb
Salt to taste
2 tbsp fresh mint leaves, finely chopped
Oil/ghee for pan frying

For Stuffing

3 tbsp finely chopped onion
3 tbsp fresh cilantro finely chopped
1-2 Thai green chillies, finely chopped (adjust to tolerance)
Julienne ginger
2 tbsp golden raisins, cut into small pieces
Salt

Method

Wash the chana dal 2-3 times in a stream of running water. 
Soak the dal in 1 cup of water for (not more than)15  minutes. 
While the dal is soaking, coarsely crush black pepper, cumin, cloves, fennel, and cardamom using a mortar and pestle.

Once  the dal has soaked, drain all the water and transfer it to a pressure cooker 
along with the crushed spices, bay leaf, red chilies, garlic, ginger and cinnamon. 
Add the lamb mince and about a 1/2 tsp salt. 
Using a fork or with fingers, gently mix everything together. 
Close the lid of the pressure cooker and steam on medium - low heat for about 20-25 minutes (about 3-4 whistles). 
Note - This time will depend on how coarse or fine ground the lamb is, adjust accordingly. 
If you do not have a pressure cooker, you can cook on open stove till the lentils are tender (but not mushy) and the lamb is cooked. 
Do not stir the mixture when it is hot.

Put aside the cooked lentils and lamb to cool down completely. Meanwhile, in a small bowl mix together the stuffing ingredients and set aside.

Once cold, take out the bay leaf and cinnamon,discard. 
Transfer the mix into your food processor fitted with the metal blade and pulse 3-4 times. 
At this point you need to decide how coarse or smooth you want the kabab, process accordingly.

Take out the processed mince into a bowl, add the mint leaves, check and adjust the salt, knead (do not squeeze) gently for 5-8 minutes 
so that everything comes together.

Apply some oil on your palms and divide the kabab mixture into equal portions, flatten each portion and stuff with 
about a teaspoon or less of the stuffing.
Pinch on all sides to close and  shape into little patties. 
Do not press too much. 
At this point you can refrigerate for at least 20 minutes so that they are firm. You can freeze if you want. 

When ready to fry, heat a cast iron skillet and pan fry the kabab on both sides with a 1-2 teaspoon oil/ ghee 
flipping to get golden brown on both sides. 
You can lightly flatten them as you fry them

Serve with green chutney, onion rings, cucumber slices, lemon wedges or a sprinkle of chaat masala.