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I found with joy that the traditional Indian spice mix podi – a rough grind of searingly hot, roughly ground 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 home-dried chillies, but it would be kind to say that I’m far less adventurous with chilli, so here I suggest crushed chilies instead. It’s an remarkably tasty marinade for these paneer and potato skewers.

Gunpowder Paneer and Potato Skewers with Lime-Mint Dressing

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

Prep a quick 10 minutes
Cook half an hour
Serves a couple

400g waxy potatoes, cut into 1.5-inch chunks
8 ounces paneer, cubed into 0.8-inch cubes
One tsp coriander seeds
½ tsp fennel seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 tsp black peppercorns
One teaspoon chilli flakes
One and a half tsp flaky sea salt, and additional for garnish
Two garlic pieces, peeled and grated
2½cm piece fresh ginger, skinned and shredded
Forty milliliters neutral oil
One red onion, skinned and sliced into eight wedges, then cut in half horizontally

For the dressing
Zest and juice from one lime, finely grated
10g fresh mint leaves, diced small
Half a teaspoon flaky sea salt
One hundred grams natural yoghurt

Cook the potatoes for 9 minutes, then remove the water and leave to steam dry for a minute. Meanwhile, put the paneer cubes in a container with heated water for a short while, then drain and pat dry.

Add the cumin, coriander, and fennel seeds into a pestle and mortar or blender, add the salt, chili flakes, and peppercorns, then pound or blitz to a rough rubble.

Transfer to a large mixing bowl with the minced ginger and garlic, add the oil, then lightly combine with the paneer cubes, boiled potatoes, and onion wedges to coat. Skewer the components on to six to eight metal or soaked wooden skewers, then transfer to a baking sheet and reserve for later – if desired, you can at this stage wrap and chill the skewers.

Stir all the sauce elements in a container. Preheat the broiler to its maximum heat, then grill the skewers for a short time on each side, until the paneer is crispy and the potatoes are beginning to blacken. (This may take a little more or less time depending on the heat of your broiler, so monitor closely, especially when cooking the first side.)

Serve the skewers hot, sprinkled with a little more flaky salt and the dressing alongside for dipping.