🔗 Share this article

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

Gunpowder Paneer and Potato Skewers with Citrus-Mint Dressing

Prepare six to eight barbecue sticks (if wooden, soak them in water for 10 minutes first).

Prep a quick 10 minutes
Cook half an hour
Serves a couple

Four hundred grams waxy potatoes, sliced into 4cm chunks
Two hundred twenty-five grams paneer, diced into 2cm cubes
1 tsp coriander seeds
½ teaspoon fennel seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
One tsp black peppercorns
One tsp chilli flakes
One and a half tsp flaky sea salt, and additional for garnish
2 garlic cloves, skinned and shredded
2½cm piece fresh ginger, prepared and minced
about 3 tablespoons mild oil
1 red onion, prepared and divided into eight wedges, then sliced across

For the dressing
Finely grated zest and juice of 1 lime
Ten grams fresh mint leaves, minced
Half a tsp flaky sea salt
One hundred grams natural yoghurt

Boil the potatoes for about 10 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 spice seeds into a grinding bowl or mill, add the peppercorns, chilli flakes and sea salt, then mash or process to a rough rubble.

Place in 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. Arrange the components on to the prepared skewers, then move to a sheet pan and keep ready – optionally, you can at this stage store in the fridge the skewers.

Whisk all the ingredients for the dressing in a container. Preheat the broiler to its highest setting, then grill the skewers for 5–7 minutes on each side, until the paneer is browned and the potatoes are starting to char. (This may take a different amount of time depending on the intensity of your oven, so watch carefully, especially when cooking the first side.)

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