Chicken Boti Kabab (Boti Kebab)

Kebabs are an integral part of Awadhi cuisine (or Lucknowi cuisine). Lucknow is popular for its non-vegetarian dishes like Kebabs (Kakori Kebabs, Galawat ke Kebabs, Shami Kebabs, etc.), and Lucknowi biryani.

Similar to Chicken Shashlik, this Chicken Boti Kabab recipe is quick and easy to make at home. The process is simple. The meat (lamb or chicken) is marinated in yogurt and cooked on skewers. You can make it either on a pan, grill, tandoor, or in the oven.

About this recipe

Chicken Boti kabab, also known as Murgh Boti kabab or Boti Kebab is an Indian chicken dish made with boneless chicken pieces marinated with yogurt and Indian spices, skewered, and cooked until char marks appear on them. This brings a smoky flavor to them.

"Boti" means the piece of meat. Kababs have their origin in Middle Eastern cuisines. They are basically cooked on a skewer over a fire or open grill/tandoor.

Traditionally, mutton or lamb meat is used to prepare Boti kababs but nowadays they are prepared with chicken too.

It tastes amazing, the chicken is super crisp outside and tender and juicy inside. This chicken kabab is moderately spicy and tangy with an amazing aroma.

Why you will love this recipe

• Quick and easy to make at home - You can cook it within 30 minutes.
• All the ingredients are easily available in the kitchen pantry.
• Make-ahead recipe - You can marinate the chicken, transfer it to an airtight container and freeze it. Stays good for a month. Thaw it and fry it on a tawa or a pan.
• You can cook it either on a Tawa (griddle), or pan, or in an oven.
• Gluten-free

If you like this recipe, you may also like these other amazing chicken appetizers

• Chicken Shashlik
• Chicken Manchurian
• Homemade Chicken Nuggets
• Chicken 65
• Chili Chicken
• Chicken Pakora

Ingredients and Substitutions

• Chicken - For this recipe, you need boneless chicken. I have used chicken breast. You can also use boneless chicken thighs.
• Yogurt - Use thick curd/yogurt for this chicken Boti kebab recipe. If the yogurt is not thick then the marinade will come out while cooking the kebabs. If you do not have thick curd/yogurt, no worries, hung yogurt in a muslin cloth for 30 minutes to drain off the excess water from it, and then use it.
• Gram flour (besan) - It gives a binding to the marinade. Do not use raw besan/gram flour. Heat a pan at low medium heat and lightly roast the besan until it is aromatic and slightly starts to change color. Immediately remove it to a plate. Let it cool down little and then use it. Do not skip it.
• Flavoring - Ginger-garlic paste, cumin powder, coriander powder, garam masala powder, and cardamom powder.
• Kashmiri red chili powder - It gives a bright red color to the dish and is not spicy. In restaurants, red food color is used to give bright red color to kababs. Food color is not healthy, better to use Kashmiri red chili powder. You can substitute it with any other red chili powder but you will not get the color. If substituting, add red chili powder according to its spiciness.
• Lemon juice - It brightens up any dish. I have used fresh lemon juice. You can also use bottled lemon juice. Or substitute it with vinegar.
• Oil - You can use any cooking oil that you prefer. If you want that authentic North Indian (Dhaba style) taste, add mustard oil.
• Ghee/Clarified butter - It brings richness to the dish. Traditionally, this Boti kebab is made only with Ghee. Here, in this recipe, we have used a combination of oil and ghee for cooking the chicken. You can substitute ghee with butter (use unsalted butter). Or skip it if you prefer to reduce calories in this dish.

Step by step instructions with photos

Preparations

• Marinating the chicken - In a mixing bowl, combine the chicken with the marinade ingredients. Cover and keep it in the refrigerator. Marinate for 30 minutes to an hour.
• Soak the wooden skewers in water for 15-20 minutes. Take out the skewers from the water, dab them with kitchen tissue and they are ready to use.
• Take out the marinated chicken one by one and thread the chicken pieces onto the skewer.

Making the Chicken Boti Kabab

• Heat oil and ghee in a heavy bottom pan/griddle over medium heat.
• Once the pan is hot, place the kababs. Let it cook for 2-3 minutes.
• Now pour some oil on top. Turn it and cook on the other side for 2-3 minutes or until char marks appear on it.
• Keep rotating the skewers and cook until the kababs are cooked.
• Chicken Boti kababs are ready. Serve it with green chutney, onion slices, and lemon wedge.

Tips to Make the Best Boti Kebab

• Marinate the chicken for at least 30 minutes to an hour. For best flavors, marinate it overnight. The longer it marinates the better it tastes. It makes the chicken juicy and tender.
• If you are using wooden skewers, soak them in water for 15-20 minutes. Otherwise while cooking the kababs the skewer may burn.
• Use thick curd or yogurt. Pour the yogurt into a muslin cloth and hang it for 30 minutes. The excess water from the yogurt will drain off.  Now you can use it in the marinade.
• Addition of besan/gram flour gives a binding to the kabab’s marinade. Do not skip it. It helps to make the kabab crispy outside.
• Roast the besan before adding it to the marinade. Never use raw besan/gram flour while making the kabab.
• Keep rotating the skewers and cook the Boti kababs until they are evenly cooked from all sides and some char marks appear on them. It will bring some smoky flavor to the kababs. You will get the same tastes as those served in restaurants.
• Kashmiri red chili powder gives a bright red color to the dish and is not spicy. If you want to make these kebabs spicy, add spicy red chili powder to the marinade, as per taste.

Serving suggestions

• Serve chicken Boti kabab as an appetizer with some onion rings and lemon wedges.
• You can serve it as a side dish with jeera rice and dal fry.
• Serve it as a side dish with chicken biryani in pressure cooker or pressure cooker vegetable pulao.
• You can wrap it in tortillas with some stir-fried veggies. Drizzle some hot sauce and mayo and make a delicious chicken wrap.

Storage suggestion

• If planning to store the chicken Boti kababs, store them within 2 hours of cooking them.
• Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Stays good for 2-3 days.
• For longer shelf life, you can freeze the kababs. Stays good for a month. Thaw it properly, reheat and serve.

Variations that you can try

• You can use lamb meat to make mutton Boti kabab.

If you make this chicken Boti kabab recipe, please leave a comment and a starred review below.

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