Mishkak – Oman’s Favourite Street Food

Taking influence from Persian, Indian, Mediterranean and North African dishes, Omani cuisine is an exquisite blend of marinades, spices and herbs. Lamb, mutton, chicken and rice are all staples of Omani menu, with saffron, nutmeg, cardamon and ginger all used heavily in seasoning.

With the countries position, along the Arabian Sea, seafood is popular and shark is a local delicacy. Around the streets of the cities, such as Muscat, you’ll find plenty of street vendors serving up fast food, Oman style.

Mishkak

A traditional Omani dish, extremely prominent among the street vendors is mishkak. Taking cubes of marinated meat and skewering them, the meat is then grilled to perfection.

Using beef, chicken or mutton, the marinades incorporate salt, black pepper, cloves, ginger, curry powder, cumin, coriander, cardamon, cayenne pepper, oil and tamarind paste.

The longer the meat is marinated, the better the flavour, although the key to a good mishkak is taking it off the grill at just the right time. The meat should be well done, but not too dry.

Served with tamarind chutney, chilli sauce, fresh salad or even inside warm bread as a sandwich, the mishkak is also fairly versatile as a dish.  

The Perfect Mishkak at Home

You will need

• 1 kg beef steak/mutton/chicken (cubed)
• 4 tbsp grated raw papaya 
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp red chilli powder
• 3 tbsp oil
• 1 tbsp garlic paste
• 2 tbsp ginger paste
• 2 tbsp fresh coriander paste
• 1 tsp cumin powder
• 1 tsp black pepper powder
• 3 tbsp tamarind paste or lime juice
• 4 tbsp vinegar

Method

Mix all the ingredients together ensuring the meat is properly covered. Leave to marinate over night at a minimum (48 hours recommended). Skewer the meat, then cook under an over broiler or over a hot charcoal oven.

You can brush the meat at periodic times throughout the process with oil and be sure to turn regularly. Cook until charred on the outside. This is your indication that the mishkak are ready, if you leave them for too long, they will be dry.  

Serve with either tamarind sauce, fresh salad, chilli sauce or warm bread.

MLS Mishkak

To save you time, you can buy fresh mishkak from MLS. Either cubed, skewered or even marinated, using only the finest meats, from Australian beef to New Zealand Lamb.
Why not try our Australian Lamb Boneless Cubed Mishkak, or our local style mishkak which incorporates fat cubes for added flavour. Whilst the local mishkaks are marginally smaller than the boneless mishkaks, they pack plenty more flavour!

To see our full menu, you can follow this link. You can also visit any of our MLS Gourmet butcher shops to buy fresh meat in-store.