Restaurant Style Chicken Kalmi Kabab | High Protein Smoked Chicken Kabab
Author: 
Recipe type: Appetizer
Cuisine: Indian
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 2 Servings
 
Ingredients
  • Chicken drumsticks - 6, skinless
  • Lemon - 1
  • Greek yogurt - ½ cup
  • Cream - ¼ cup
  • Ginger - 2-inch piece
  • Garlic - 10 to 12 cloves,
  • Green chilli - 2 (adjust based on your preference or skip completely)
  • Turmeric ½ tsp
  • Cumin powder - 1 tsp
  • Garam masala - ½ tsp
  • Mustard oil - 2 tbsp
  • Egg - 1
  • Kasuri methi - 1 tsp
  • Salt to taste
  • Fresh coriander leaves to garnish
Instructions
  1. Wash and pat dry the chicken drumsticks. Using a sharp knife, make a cut at the thickest part of each drumstick to let the marinate go deep inside the meat.
  2. Drizzle juice of one lemon and half a teaspoon of salt over the chicken drumsticks and give them a good massage.
  3. Leave them for 15 to 20 minutes for the seasoning to penetrate deep inside the meat. This step will ensure that the meat is well seasoned and remains soft & juicy even after being cooked at high temperature.
  4. Make a smooth paste of ginger, garlic and green chilli in your blender. You can also use readymade ginger and garlic paste; then make a green chilli paste only if you like the heat.
  5. In a large mixing bowl, add all the marinating ingredients - Greek yogurt, fresh cream, ginger-garlic-green chilli paste, mustard oil, egg, turmeric powder, cumin powder, garam masala, kasuri methi and salt to taste.
  6. Using a wire whisk, give everything a good mix to evenly combine all the spices & aromatics with yogurt & cream.
  7. Now drop the chicken drumsticks into the prepared marinade and massage each drumstick with the yogurt mixture to cover them with a thick coating on all sides. This will ensure the flavors penetrate deep inside the chicken.
  8. Once you are happy with the marination, you may leave them overnight in the refrigerator or let them sit at room temperature for at least an hour for the flavors to mingle.
  9. When you are ready to grill your chicken kalmi kabab, start preheating your air fryer at 190 C / 375 F and set the timer to 20 minutes.
  10. After the air fryer is nicely preheated, take the basket out, brush/spray the bottom surface with oil and place the marinated chicken drumsticks in a single layer inside the basket.
  11. Reserve any leftover marinate in the bowl; we will use it for basting the chicken in between.
  12. Start air frying the chicken kalmi kabab. At halfway through cooking time, take the basket out and flip over each chicken drumstick.
  13. Now brush the flipped side with leftover marinating mixture. Return the basket to the air fryer and continue cooking for the remaining time.
  14. Check the doneness of the chicken drumsticks at the end of 20 minutes. If the thickest part of meat cuts easily with the edge of a knife and there is no pink trace left, your chicken kalmi kabab is done. If not, air fry them for 5 more minutes.
  15. Your chicken kalmi kabab is ready! Serve them on a platter, sprinkle freshly crushed black pepper on top and garnish with freshly chopped coriander leaves aka cilantro.
  16. Squeeze fresh lemon juice over the smoky chicken kalmi kabab and enjoy!
Notes
Pro tip: However, If you feel that the drumsticks are not charred enough to your liking even though they are cooked thoroughly, then also you can continue air frying them for another 5 minutes to impart that beautiful charring on the edges.
Recipe by Flavor Quotient at https://flavorquotient.com/2025/11/chicken-kalmi-kabab/