Mark Wiems: Ultimate CHAPLI KEBABS! | Extreme Pakistani Street Food in Mardan, Pakistan

Culture, Media, General Food Media and News
,
1

Mark Wiems’s notes on his youtube video:

I can say with certainty, chapli kebabs are probably the best form or shape of any kebab or meat patty formation that I’ve ever had in my entire life. This was my first time to try this Pakistani food speciality, and I was blown away with every bite. Chapli kebabs are extraordinary!

Islamabad - Capital Pakistan - So we started off the day in Islamabad, but the plan for the day was to drive to Mardan, eat along the way, and eat our way through Mardan, but mostly focusing the day on chapli kebabs.

Mian Jee Restaurant - One the way to Mardan we stopped at Mian Jee, a very famous restaurant know for all sorts of dishes, but especially their world famous dal. It’s so thick and creamy it’s almost the consistency of peanut butter. And yes, it’s rich and delicious.

Mardan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan - We arrived in Mardan in the early afternoon and headed straight to eat chapli kebabs for the first time.

Chapli Kebab - Mardan - The first place we are chapli kebab was a local favorite spot in Mardan city. I’m not exactly sure of the name, but it’s a very popular spot and known by locals. They had the massive podium fryer, filled with melted fat, and made medium sized burger patties, with big chunks of bone marrow to make this even better. Their chapli kebabs (kababs) were seasoned perfectly with a balance of tomato and cumin. It was an eye opener for me.

Falooda - Next we stopped in Mardan to eat falooda, and from what I understand, Mardan falooda is pretty famous.

River View Restaurant - Next on this day of Mardan and Peshawar, we drove to River View Restaurant, mainly to go on a boat ride in the Kabul River. The river ride was fun, and it was amazing to be cruising down the Kabul river. The restaurant also had delicious food.

Rambail Chapli Kebab, Taru Jabba - But for our real dinner we needed to get another dose of chapli kebabs. On the way, almost to Peshawar city, we stopped at Rambail Chapli Kebab, Taru Jabba, possibly the most famous of all chapli kebab in the world. And when you see their bonfire and podium of a cooking station, you’ll know why it’s the best. They make larger sized patties, filled with spices, and bone marrow, and again fried in their own fat.

The chapli kebabs were so unbelievably delicious, I could hardly control myself. It was an amazing day of Pakistani street food in Pakistan, and an intro to chapli kebabs from the source.

1 Like
2

Cool video. How does that guy not burn his hand when sliding the meat in?

2 Likes
3

I kind of really LOVE his whole youtube channel!! Especially because he visits places i have never been- and may never go to.

2 Likes
4

Yep, got me at that bit.

5

Yum. Nuff said.

6

Mark has a great job. As he’s running hus bread through the hot bowls of food I am wishing I was there.

7

He did a great job capturing the true chapli kabob experience. Even most Pakistanis haven’t had this type of chapli kabob. I only learned of it because a guy from Peshawar used to sell them out of a shack at one of the smaller mosques in Baltimore. I didn’t fully believe him that the original way was a sort of deep fry until I saw this video. The common restaurant versions are differentiated from seekh kabobs only by a few seasonings and cooking method. (That being said, if you are in Philly, the chapli at Kabobeesh on Chestnut Street is very good.) Chapli is my favorite kabob, too, although the rest of the family prefers shami kabobs.

Edit and off-topic: sometimes you can have a better food experience as a tourist. When staying with family, there are a lot of limitations. I can’t ever get them to take me to Mardan (too dangerous) or even old Lahore (too dirty, we’ll get sick.) And everyone has their opinions on what is the best, and 95% of the time it is not close to the best. We’ve identified some distant relatives who are for real, and our next trip to Pakistan will be covert. We won’t tell any close relatives, just a quick 2 weeks of dangerous and dirty eating with those distant relatives and then back.

3 Likes
8

Mark Wiens did two recent videos from Lahore on this Pakistan trip:

3 Likes
9

Quite eye-opening to this sheltered Anglo, the use of china as serving dishes here. Very cool.

10

Mark Wiens - Street Food in Peshawar - AMAZING PAYA + CHARSI TIKKA | Pakistani Food Tour!

from the youtube description:

PESHAWAR is the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, and it’s a must-visit city in the world for food lovers.

Of all the cities I visited in Pakistan, Peshawar was one of the most special, a city of immense history, culture, and some of the most incredible meat dishes of anywhere in the world. People have huge hearts, and a great taste of delicious food. Thank you Waqas and Peshawar for an amazing street food tour!

Halwa puri - We started off this Peshawar street food tour with first breakfast, halwa puri, something that is loved throughout Pakistan. Their version was one of the best, fried in pure desi ghee, and what I loved most was the chana, chickpeas stew.

Nika Seri Pai - Breakfast number two was one of the best dishes I ate in all of Pakistan - Peshawari seri paye, this version made with stewed cows feet. The stew was so rich and incredibly thick - like one of the most rich things you could possibly eat. What I loved so much about Peshawari paye is that it had an incredible garlic flavor. The meat was fall apart tender melting as well.
Price - 500 PKR ($3.73) per bowl

Sir Cunningham Clock Tower - After breakfast we headed to walk around and explore Peshawar, which has some ancient history, and is a fascinating city to explore. Masjid Mahabat Khan is one of the oldest and landmark mosques in Peshawar that’s well worth a visit.

Brains masala - 90 PKR ($0.67) - After having some amazing Peshawari tea, we then continued on to eat brains masala, which he literally whipped up in minutes, and we had a fresh plate of cow brains masala. It was delicious especially with the added chutney.

Pomegranate juice 200 PKR ($1.49) per cup - This is a cup of juice I could hardly even believe. It was the best, freshest, and perfectly sweet and tart cup of pomegranate juice I’ve ever had.

Peshawari pulao - 185 PKR ($1.38) per plate - Next on this Pakistani street food tour of Peshawar, we had Peshawari pulao, which is quite similar to Kabuli pulao. The rice was lightly seasoned, cooked with meat and chickpeas. It was awesome.

Saag and lassi - 50 PKR ($0.37) - Another highlight from this amazing street food tour of Peshawar was the saag and lassi sold by an extremely friendly man right outside the pulao restaurant. The saag was so healthy and fresh, and the lassi was freshly whipped up.

Kaptaan Chappal - One of the best things I brought back with me from Pakistan are Kaptaan Chappals, the locals sandals made in Pakistan. We went to the same shop that Mr. Imran Khan, Prime Minister of Pakistan, is famous for buying his sandals that he wears almost everyday.

Nisar Khan Charsi Tikka Shish Mahel - Finally, a food trip to Peshawar wouldn’t be complete without eating at Nisar Khan Charsi Tikka, the most famous restaurant in Peshawar for meat, specifically lamb. Everything was incredibly good, and I especially loved the lamb chops.
Total price - 2,600 PKR ($19.38)

An amazing day in Peshawar, it was one of those days where everything is fascinating, everywhere you look and everything you taste.

2 Likes
11

Do you know if Mark went to Sindh or Balochistan? The local culinary traditions of those regions are unknown to my (Punjabi) relatives. Everyone I know acts like it’s the Wild West, so I’m very curious to see if he travels there. I have Sindhi-speaking cousins who will never venture outside Karachi.

12

bmorecupcake,

here’s a link to all his videos and the 7 most recent were done in Pakistan:

1 Like
13

Thanks. He hasn’t been to those regions, yet.

14

Mark Wiens: Unique Food in Baltistan - 14 TRADITIONAL DISHES in Skardu | Pakistani Food in Gilgit-Baltistan!

from youtube description:

Serena Shigar Fort (https://www.serenahotels.com/serenash…) - It was about a 30 minute drive from Skardu to Shigar, and it was a spectacular drive through the mountains until we emerged into Shigar, another lush valley. The scenery was other-worldly. We checked into Serena Shigar Fort (thanks to them for sponsoring our stay). Baltistan Food - The real highlight of the day was having a local Baltistan food dinner where an amazing family prepared 14 different traditional dishes. Many of the dishes included whole grains, fresh goat, and plenty of apricot oil for seasoning and flavor. It was an amazing meal, and fellowship, and just a taste of the Baltistan, Pakistan.

15
16

How can you not enjoy this guys happiness level. Mark, man if you are reading this-well done!

As the mouth fills and the eyes bulge…food happy!

1 Like
17

Yes. He is always so happy. That’s what struck me the most when I saw his Thai Muslim Food videos last year (I knew I had seen him before.) But he will give an honest opinion, too, if he really doesn’t like something.

2 Likes
18

His wife, Ying, and their son, Micah, seem happy too.

19

How does the marrow not turn to liquid? It could be dumb question as I’ve never cooked it myself.

20

I wondered the same. Maybe it’s not fried long enough.