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

I learned that the South Indian spice mix podi – a rough grind of fiery, roughly ground spices, which you mix with a little oil and use as a dip 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 adventurous 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 Lime-Mint Dressing

Gather six to eight skewers made of metal or wood (if bamboo, let them sit in water for 10 minutes first).

Prep 10 minutes
Cook 30 minutes
Serves 2

Four hundred grams starchy potatoes, sliced into four-centimeter chunks
Two hundred twenty-five grams paneer, cut into two-centimeter cubes
One tsp coriander seeds
Half a tsp fennel seeds
One tsp cumin seeds
One tsp black peppercorns
One teaspoon chilli flakes
One and a half tsp flaky sea salt, with more for serving
2 garlic cloves, skinned and shredded
2½cm piece fresh ginger, prepared and minced
Forty milliliters mild oil
1 red onion, skinned and sliced into eight wedges, then cut in half horizontally

For the dressing
Zest and juice from one lime, finely grated
10g fresh mint leaves, minced
½ tsp flaky sea salt
100g natural yoghurt

Simmer the potatoes for nine minutes, then drain them and leave to steam dry for a minute. At the same time, put the paneer cubes in a pot of hot water for a short while, then drain and pat dry.

Pour the spice seeds into a pestle and mortar or blender, add the seasonings, then crush or grind to a coarse mixture.

Transfer to a large mixing bowl with the shredded aromatics, add the oil, then carefully mix in the cubed paneer, cooked potatoes and red onions to coat. Thread the paneer, potatoes and onions on to six to eight metal or soaked wooden skewers, then move to a sheet pan and reserve for later – optionally, you can at this stage cover and refrigerate the skewers.

Beat all the dressing components in a container. Preheat the broiler to its maximum heat, then bake the sticks for 5–7 minutes on each side, until the paneer is crispy and the potatoes are getting slightly burnt. (This may take a little more or less time depending on the heat of your broiler, so watch carefully, especially when cooking the first side.)

Serve the skewers hot, scattered with a little more flaky salt and the dressing alongside for dipping.