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

One was delighted to discover that the south Indian blend podi – a coarse mix of intensely spicy, roughly ground spices, which you combine with a little oil and use as a sauce for dosa or idli – is also known as “gunpowder” blend. That’s not a misnomer if you were using my grandmother’s homemade dried chilies, but it would be charitable to say that I’m far less bold with chilli, so here I suggest chilli flakes instead. It’s an extraordinarily good marinade for these paneer and potato skewers.

Gunpowder Paneer and Potato Skewers with Mint-Lime Dressing

You will need six to eight metal or wooden skewers (if wooden, let them sit in water for 10 minutes first).

Prep a quick 10 minutes
Cook 30 minutes
Serves a couple

400g waxy potatoes, sliced into 1.5-inch chunks
Two hundred twenty-five grams paneer, cut into 0.8-inch cubes
1 tsp coriander seeds
½ tsp fennel seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
One tsp black peppercorns
One teaspoon chilli flakes
One and a half teaspoon flaky sea salt, plus extra to serve
2 garlic pieces, peeled and grated
1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated
about 3 tablespoons neutral oil
1 red onion, peeled and cut into eight wedges, then cut in half horizontally

For the dressing
Finely grated zest and juice of 1 lime
10g fresh mint leaves, minced
½ teaspoon flaky sea salt
100g natural yoghurt

Simmer the potatoes for 9 minutes, then pour off the liquid and allow to air dry for a minute. Meanwhile, put the paneer cubes in a bowl of boiling water for a short while, then drain and pat dry.

Tip the coriander, fennel and cumin seeds into a pestle and mortar or blender, add the peppercorns, chilli flakes and sea salt, then mash or process to a coarse mixture.

Place in a medium-large bowl with the shredded aromatics, add the oil, then gently stir in the cubed paneer, cooked potatoes and red onions to coat. Arrange the paneer, potatoes and onions on to barbecue sticks, then transfer to a baking sheet and keep ready – if desired, you can at this stage store in the fridge the skewers.

Stir all the dressing components in a medium bowl. Preheat the broiler to its maximum heat, then bake the sticks for five to seven minutes on each side, until the paneer is crispy and the potatoes are beginning to blacken. (This may take a variable duration depending on the fierceness of your grill, so monitor closely, especially when cooking the first side.)

Present the skewers warm, scattered with a little more salt and the sauce on the side for serving.