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I learned that the south Indian blend podi – a rough grind of fiery, crudely milled spices, which you mix with a little oil and use as a accompaniment for dosa or idli – is also known as “gunpowder” spice mix. This is accurate if you were using my grandmother’s home-dried chillies, 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 extraordinarily good marinade for these paneer and potato skewers.

Spicy Paneer and Potato Skewers with Mint-Lime Dressing

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

Prep 10 minutes
Cook 30 min
Serves a couple

400g waxy potatoes, chopped into 1.5-inch chunks
225g paneer, cut into 2cm cubes
One tsp coriander seeds
Half a teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
One tsp black peppercorns
1 tsp chilli flakes
One and a half teaspoon flaky sea salt, with more for serving
2 garlic pieces, skinned and shredded
1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated
40ml flavorless oil
1 red onion, skinned and sliced into eight wedges, then cut in half horizontally

For the dressing
Lime zest and juice, freshly prepared
0.35 ounces fresh mint leaves, finely chopped
½ tsp flaky sea salt
One hundred grams natural yoghurt

Simmer the potatoes for nine minutes, then pour off the liquid and allow to air dry for a minute. At the same time, put the paneer cubes in a bowl of boiling water for 5 minutes, then strain and blot dry.

Tip the coriander, fennel and cumin seeds into a grinding bowl or mill, add the salt, chili flakes, and peppercorns, then mash or process to a rough rubble.

Place in a sizable container with the shredded aromatics, add the oil, then carefully mix in the cubed paneer, cooked potatoes and red onions to coat. Arrange the vegetables and cheese on to barbecue sticks, then place on a tray and keep ready – if you like, you can at this stage cover and refrigerate the skewers.

Whisk all the ingredients for the dressing in a container. Heat the grill to its maximum heat, then grill the skewers for a short time on each side, until the paneer is golden brown and the potatoes are beginning to blacken. (This may take a variable duration depending on the intensity of your oven, so keep an eye on them, especially when cooking the first side.)

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