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One learned that the south Indian seasoning podi – a rough grind of searingly hot, coarsely crushed spices, which you mix with a little oil and use as a sauce for dosa or idli – is also known as “gunpowder” seasoning. It's aptly named if you were using my grandmother’s home-dried chillies, 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.

Gunpowder Paneer and Potato Skewers with Lime-Mint Dressing

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

Prep 10 minutes
Cook half an hour
Serves 2

14 ounces firm potatoes, cut into 1.5-inch chunks
225g paneer, cubed into 0.8-inch cubes
One teaspoon coriander seeds
Half a tsp fennel seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 tsp black peppercorns
One tsp chilli flakes
1½ tsp flaky sea salt, and additional for garnish
Two garlic pieces, skinned and shredded
2½cm piece fresh ginger, skinned and shredded
40ml neutral oil
One red onion, peeled and cut into eight wedges, then sliced across

For the dressing
Zest and juice from one lime, finely grated
0.35 ounces fresh mint leaves, minced
½ teaspoon flaky sea salt
100g natural yoghurt

Cook the potatoes for 9 minutes, then pour off the liquid and allow to air dry for a minute. In the interim, put the paneer cubes in a bowl of boiling water for a short while, then remove water and dry gently.

Add the cumin, coriander, and fennel seeds into a pestle and mortar or blender, add the peppercorns, chilli flakes and sea salt, then pound or blitz 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. Skewer the components on to the prepared skewers, then place on a tray and set aside until needed – if desired, you can at this stage store in the fridge the skewers.

Whisk all the dressing components in a mixing bowl. Heat the grill to its maximum heat, then bake the sticks for 5–7 minutes on each side, until the paneer is golden brown and the potatoes are beginning to blacken. (This may take a different amount of time depending on the heat of your broiler, so monitor closely, especially when cooking the first side.)

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