Snacks & Street Food
Sekuwa
सेकुवा
Sekuwa is meat marinated in mustard oil, timur and hand-ground spice, threaded onto skewers and grilled over open charcoal until the edges blacken. Roadside sekuwa corners from Dharan to Kathmandu build their reputation on the marinade and the fire, fanning the coals as the fat drips and flares. It arrives on a steel plate with beaten rice, raw onion and a lime wedge, and is meant to be eaten standing up while the next batch cooks.
- Prep
- 30 min
- Cook
- 20 min
- Total
- 50 min
- Serves
- 4
- Difficulty
- Medium
At the stove
Method
Dry-roast the timur and cumin separately in a hot pan until they smell sharp and nutty, then grind them fresh.
Whisk the mustard oil, ginger-garlic paste, roasted spices, chilli powder, turmeric, garam masala, fenugreek, yoghurt and salt into a thick marinade.
Add the meat and work the marinade in with your hands until every cube is coated. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight.
Soak bamboo skewers in water for 30 minutes if you are using them, and light the charcoal well ahead so it burns down to steady grey embers.
Thread the meat on tightly, three or four pieces per skewer, keeping a little fat on each so it bastes as it cooks.
Grill close to the coals, turning every two to three minutes and brushing with a little extra mustard oil, for 12 to 18 minutes depending on the cut.
Let the fat drip and flare briefly — that smoke is what makes it sekuwa — but move the skewers aside if the flames take hold.
Check the meat is cooked through and the outside is charred in patches, then squeeze over the lime and scatter with coriander.
Serve straight off the skewer with beaten rice, raw onion and extra lime.
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