Hara Bhara Kebab
Nov 20, 2014, Updated Mar 18, 2018
Hara Bhara Kebab made with Spinach, Green Peas and Potato. Full of greens, delicious & vegan!
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So how many of you love your greens? I do for sure and if you do too then you will love this recipe. Kebabs are a popular snack in Asian countries, I know in India the chicken kebabs are hugely popular where minced meat is mixed with onion, tomatoes and lots of spices. It is then deep fried or grilled over hot coal. But since I’m a vegetarian this recipe is for vegetarian hara bhara kebab and very green one on that! Hara means “green”in hindi and bhara is “full”, so basically these kebabs are full of greens!
What makes this kebab green? Spinach, green peas and coriander leaves. You can also add green bell pepper, I would have definitely added it (I love bell peppers!!) but I did not have it in my refrigerator the day I made these. These are popular vegetarian kebabs in India, however in restaurants these are almost always deep fried. If you are one of those who like their kebabs deep fried then you must do that. I am very lazy when it comes to deep frying, I do it only when it’s absolutely essential else I just pan fry.
Potato acts as a binding agent in these kebabs and so does cornstarch. Besan (chickpea flour) will work well too. Also, I added some bread crumbs in the dough. You can even roll the kebabs in bread crumbs before frying them, they would be crispier that way!
If you have been reading my blog for a while, you would know that I am not a big fan of spicy food. I cannot eat food which is very hot and so I always use little green chili or red chili powder in my recipes. If you love spice, you should modify my recipes to your taste.
Hara bhara kebab is a great snack for any party, goes well with chai. It can also be used as patties in sandwiches or burgers. These kebabs are vegan, full of greens and easy to make. They are not only delicious but nutritious as well. Go make them now!
Method
Wash spinach leaves and place them in a pan on medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of water and let them cook for 2 minutes. After 2 minutes, the leaves will be all shriveled up. This is called blanching the spinach. Remove from pan and wash the leaves under cold running water. Set aside. [Washing under cold water helps spinach in retaining its color]
In the same pan, add 1.5 teaspoon of oil on medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add chopped ginger and green chili and saute for 30 seconds.
Add green peas (I kept frozen peas in warm water for 2-3 minutes before adding to the pan) and blanched spinach leaves.
Cook the peas and spinach leaves till there’s no or very little moisture left. This will take 2-3 minutes. As you can see in the 1st picture to the left below, the bottom of the pan looks dry, that’s what we are looking for.
Let the mixture cool down a bit and then transfer it to a blender. Add coriander leaves to it.
Grind the mixture to a paste.
Transfer the mixture to a bowl and add boiled potato to it. Crumble the potato and also add salt, chaat masala, amchur (dry mango powder) , cornstarch and cumin powder. Using cumin powder is optional.
Now add bread crumbs to the mixture.
Mix everything together till it forms a nice dough.
Take little dough of the size of a lemon in your hand and form a round pattie. Repeat till dough is finished. I was able to get 5 patties out of this mixture.
Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a pan on medium heat. Once hot, place the patties on the pan.
Pan fry till golden brown from both sides.
Serve hot with coriander chutney or tomato ketchup.
* To make crispier kebabs, roll them in bread crumbs and deep fry the kebabs.
* If adding green bell pepper (capsicum) to the kebabs, cook it till it softens and then grind with the mixture.
* The kebabs can also be baked at 350 F degrees for 25-30 minutes. Bake till golden brown from both sides, flipping the kebabs once mid way.
Hara Bhara Kebab
Ingredients
- 2 cups spinach i used baby spinach
- 1 potato large, boiled
- 1 cup green peas
- 1.25 teaspoon chopped ginger
- 1 green chili or adjust to taste
- 3 tablespoons coriander leaves
- 3-4 tablespoon bread crumbs
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon cumin powder optional
- ½ teaspoon chaat masala
- ¼ teaspoon amchur powder dried mango powder
- salt to taste
- 2 tablespoons + 1.5 teaspoon oil
Instructions
- Wash spinach leaves and place them in a pan on medium heat.
- Add 1 tablespoon of water and let them cook for 2 minutes. After 2 minutes, the leaves will be all shriveled up. This is called blanching the spinach.
- Remove from pan and wash the leaves under cold running water. Set aside.
- In the same pad, add 1.5 teaspoon of oil on medium heat.
- Once the oil is hot, add chopped ginger and green chili and saute for 30 seconds.
- Add green peas (I kept frozen peas in warm water for 2-3 minutes before adding to the pan) and blanched spinach leaves.
- Cook the peas and spinach leaves till there's no or very little moisture left. This will take 2-3 minutes.
- Let the mixture cool down a bit and then transfer it to a blender. Add coriander leaves to it and grind to a paste.
- Transfer the mixture to a bowl and add boiled potato to it.
- Crumble the potato and also add salt, chaat masala, amchur (dry mango powder) , cornstarch and cumin powder (if using).
- Now add bread crumbs to the mixture.
- Mix everything together till it forms a nice dough.
- Take little dough of the size of a lemon in your hand and form a round pattie.
- Repeat till dough is finished. I was able to get 5 patties out of this mixture.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a pan on medium heat. Once hot, place the patties on the pan.
- Pan fry till golden brown from both sides.
- Serve hot with coriander chutney or tomato ketchup.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Hara Bhara Kebab
