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One was delighted to discover that the South Indian spice mix podi – a rubble of intensely spicy, roughly ground spices, which you mix 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 personally dried peppers, 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 exceptionally great marinade for these paneer and potato skewers.

Gunpowder Paneer and Potato Skewers with Mint-Lime Dressing

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

Prep 10 minutes
Cook half an hour
Serves two people

Four hundred grams waxy potatoes, chopped into 4cm chunks
8 ounces paneer, cubed into 2cm cubes
One tsp coriander seeds
Half a tsp fennel seeds
One tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp black peppercorns
One tsp chilli flakes
One and a half tsp flaky sea salt, and additional for garnish
2 cloves of garlic, prepared and minced
Two and a half centimeters piece fresh ginger, skinned and shredded
Forty milliliters flavorless oil
One red onion, peeled and cut into eight wedges, then cut in half horizontally

For the dressing
Lime zest and juice, freshly prepared
Ten grams fresh mint leaves, diced small
Half a tsp flaky sea salt
One hundred grams natural yoghurt

Cook the potatoes for nine minutes, then drain them and allow to air dry for a minute. At the same time, put the paneer cubes in a container with heated water for a short while, then drain and pat dry.

Tip 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 rough rubble.

Transfer to a medium-large bowl with the grated garlic and ginger, add the oil, then gently stir in the cubed paneer, cooked potatoes and red onions to coat. Skewer 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.

Whisk all the dressing components in a container. Turn on the grill to its maximum heat, then cook the skewers for five to seven 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.)

Offer the grilled sticks immediately, scattered with a little more salt and the accompaniment for drizzling.