Rukmini Iyer's Speedy and Easy Spicy Paneer and Potato Skewers with Mint-Lime Dressing – Method

One learned that the South Indian spice mix podi – a rubble of intensely spicy, coarsely crushed spices, which you stir into a little oil and use as a accompaniment for dosa or idli – is also known as “gunpowder” seasoning. That’s not a misnomer if you were using my grandmother’s home-dried chillies, but it would be charitable to say that I’m far less daring with chilli, so here I suggest red pepper flakes instead. It’s an remarkably tasty marinade for these paneer and potato skewers.

Spicy Paneer and Potato Skewers with Lime-Mint Dressing

Gather six to eight barbecue sticks (if made of wood, immerse them in water for 10 minutes first).

Prep a quick 10 minutes
Cook 30 min
Serves a couple

Four hundred grams firm potatoes, sliced into 4cm chunks
Two hundred twenty-five grams paneer, cut into 0.8-inch cubes
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
Half a teaspoon fennel seeds
One teaspoon cumin seeds
1 tsp black peppercorns
1 tsp chilli flakes
1½ tsp flaky sea salt, with more for serving
Two garlic cloves, skinned and shredded
Two and a half centimeters piece fresh ginger, prepared and minced
about 3 tablespoons mild oil
One red onion, peeled and cut into eight wedges, then halved crossways

For the dressing
Zest and juice from one lime, finely grated
Ten grams fresh mint leaves, minced
½ teaspoon flaky sea salt
One hundred grams natural yoghurt

Boil the potatoes for about 10 minutes, then remove the water and let them dry from steam for a minute. In the interim, put the paneer cubes in a pot of hot water for 5 minutes, then strain and blot dry.

Add the cumin, coriander, and fennel seeds into a grinding bowl or mill, add the peppercorns, chilli flakes and sea salt, then pound or blitz to a chunky blend.

Transfer to a sizable container with the minced ginger and garlic, add the oil, then carefully mix in the cubed paneer, cooked potatoes and red onions to coat. Thread the vegetables and cheese on to barbecue sticks, then place on a tray and keep ready – if you like, you can at this stage cover and refrigerate the skewers.

Whisk all the sauce elements in a mixing bowl. Turn on the grill to its highest setting, then bake the sticks for five to seven minutes on each side, until the paneer is crispy and the potatoes are getting slightly burnt. (This may take a variable duration depending on the heat of your broiler, so monitor closely, especially when cooking the first side.)

Offer the grilled sticks immediately, scattered with a little more salt and the sauce on the side for serving.