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I found with joy that the south Indian seasoning podi – a rough grind of fiery, crudely milled spices, which you stir into a little oil and use as a sauce for dosa or idli – is also known as “gunpowder” blend. This is accurate if you were using my grandmother’s homemade dried chilies, but it would be generous to say that I’m far less bold with chilli, so here I suggest crushed chilies instead. It’s an exceptionally great marinade for these paneer and potato skewers.

Spicy Paneer and Potato Skewers with Lime-Mint Dressing

Prepare six to eight skewers made of metal or wood (if wooden, soak them in water for 10 minutes first).

Prep 10 minutes
Cook 30 minutes
Serves a couple

400g starchy potatoes, chopped into four-centimeter chunks
Two hundred twenty-five grams 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, plus extra to serve
Two cloves of garlic, skinned and shredded
2½cm piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated
40ml mild oil
1 red onion, peeled and cut into eight wedges, then sliced across

For the dressing
Finely grated zest and juice of 1 lime
10g fresh mint leaves, minced
Half a tsp flaky sea salt
3.5 ounces natural yoghurt

Boil the potatoes for nine minutes, then drain them and leave to steam dry for a minute. In the interim, put the paneer cubes in a bowl of boiling water for five minutes, then remove water and dry gently.

Tip the cumin, coriander, and fennel seeds into a mortar or spice grinder, add the peppercorns, chilli flakes and sea salt, then mash or process to a rough rubble.

Place in a large mixing bowl with the minced ginger and garlic, add the oil, then carefully mix in the cubed paneer, cooked potatoes and red onions to coat. Arrange the vegetables and cheese on to the prepared skewers, then move to a sheet pan and reserve for later – if you like, you can at this stage store in the fridge the skewers.

Beat all the dressing components in a container. Turn on the grill to its highest setting, then bake the sticks for 5–7 minutes on each side, until the paneer is crispy and the potatoes are starting to char. (This may take a variable duration depending on the intensity of your oven, so watch carefully, especially when cooking the first side.)

Offer the grilled sticks immediately, topped with a little more salt and the sauce on the side for serving.