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I found with joy that the traditional Indian blend podi – a coarse mix of searingly hot, crudely milled spices, which you stir into a little oil and use as a dip for dosa or idli – is also known as “gunpowder” spice mix. It's aptly named if you were using my grandmother’s personally dried peppers, but it would be generous to say that I’m far less adventurous with chilli, so here I suggest red pepper flakes instead. It’s an extraordinarily good marinade for these paneer and potato skewers.

Spicy Paneer and Potato Skewers with Mint-Lime Dressing

You will need six to eight barbecue sticks (if bamboo, let them sit in water for 10 minutes first).

Prep 10 min
Cook 30 min
Serves two people

Four hundred grams waxy potatoes, chopped into four-centimeter chunks
8 ounces paneer, cubed into two-centimeter cubes
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
½ teaspoon fennel seeds
One tsp cumin seeds
One tsp black peppercorns
1 tsp chilli flakes
One and a half teaspoon flaky sea salt, plus extra to serve
2 garlic cloves, peeled and grated
Two and a half centimeters piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated
40ml flavorless oil
One red onion, skinned and sliced into eight wedges, then cut in half horizontally

For the dressing
Finely grated zest and juice of 1 lime
0.35 ounces fresh mint leaves, diced small
½ tsp flaky sea salt
100g natural yoghurt

Simmer the potatoes for 9 minutes, then drain them and leave to steam dry for a minute. In the interim, put the paneer cubes in a container with heated water for 5 minutes, then strain and blot dry.

Tip the coriander, fennel and cumin seeds into a grinding bowl or mill, add the peppercorns, chilli flakes and sea salt, then pound or blitz to a coarse mixture.

Transfer to a sizable container with the shredded aromatics, add the oil, then carefully mix in the paneer cubes, boiled potatoes, and onion wedges to coat. Arrange the paneer, potatoes and onions on to the prepared skewers, then transfer to a baking sheet and set aside until needed – optionally, you can at this stage store in the fridge the skewers.

Beat all the ingredients for the dressing in a mixing bowl. Turn on the grill to its highest setting, then bake the sticks 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 fierceness of your grill, so watch carefully, especially when cooking the first side.)

Present the skewers warm, scattered with a little more salt and the accompaniment for drizzling.