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One learned that the South Indian blend podi – a rubble of searingly hot, roughly ground spices, which you stir into 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 personally dried peppers, 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 Lime-Mint Dressing

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

Prep 10 minutes
Cook half an hour
Serves 2

400g waxy potatoes, sliced into four-centimeter chunks
225g paneer, cubed into two-centimeter cubes
One tsp coriander seeds
Half a tsp fennel seeds
One tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp black peppercorns
1 tsp chilli flakes
One and a half tsp flaky sea salt, with more for serving
2 garlic pieces, peeled and grated
2½cm piece fresh ginger, prepared and minced
Forty milliliters neutral oil
One red onion, skinned and sliced into eight wedges, then sliced across

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

Cook the potatoes for about 10 minutes, then drain them and leave to steam dry for a minute. At the same time, put the paneer cubes in a bowl of boiling water for a short while, then strain and blot dry.

Pour the cumin, coriander, and fennel seeds into a grinding bowl or mill, add the salt, chili flakes, and peppercorns, then mash or process to a coarse mixture.

Place in a large mixing bowl with the minced ginger and garlic, add the oil, then gently stir in the ingredients to coat. Arrange the vegetables and cheese on to the prepared skewers, then move to a sheet pan and keep ready – if you like, you can at this stage cover and refrigerate the skewers.

Beat all the ingredients for the dressing in a container. Heat the grill to its top temperature, then bake the sticks for a short time on each side, until the paneer is golden brown and the potatoes are getting slightly burnt. (This may take a different amount of time depending on the fierceness of your grill, so watch carefully, especially when cooking the first side.)

Serve the skewers hot, scattered with a little more sea salt and the sauce on the side for serving.