Saunfia Paneer Tikka (Cottage Cheese Squares in Fennel Seed)

Name: Saunfia Paneer Tikka (Cottage Cheese Squares in Fennel Seed)
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Mughlai (Delhi & Lahore)
Ingredients: 0.75 inch piece gingerroot; 2 tsp oil; 0.5 tsp cardamom powder; 3 saffron strands; butter; 1 tbsp lemon juice; 1.5 tsp chat masala; 2 tbsp gram flour; 0.5 tsp turmeric powder; 1 tsp white pepper powder; salt; 1 tbsp lemon juice; 0.5 tsp fennel; 500 g cottage cheese; 1 cup fresh cream; 5 garlic cloves; 2 medium red capsicums

Fennel, cottage cheese and chat masala come together in this South Asian dish, fragrant with cardamom and saffron and grilled. Finish with chaat masala powder and lemon juice.

35 min · Serves 4 · Medium

Method

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Time: Prep 15 min · Cook 20 min · 35 min total
Difficulty: medium

1
Wash and cut paneer into one and a half inch sized squares of half-inch thickness. Peel, wash and grind ginger and garlic. Wash, remove stalk, halve, deseed and cut capsicums into one and a half inch sized squares. Heat oil in a pan. Add besan and cook until it emits a fragrant aroma, remove from heat and add turmeric powder.
2
Cool flour and transfer into a bowl. Add ginger-garlic paste, white pepper powder, salt, lemon juice, green cardamom powder, fennel powder, saffron and fresh cream. Whisk well to make a batter.
3
Add paneer cubes to the batter and marinate for at least an hour. Thread paneer cubes and caspicum squares onto skewers.
4
Roast in a tandoor/charcoal grill for five minutes, basting with melted butter occasionally till the tikkas are golden in colour.
5
Alternatively you can cook the tikkas in a convection oven or on a grill. Preheat the oven to 220°C and cook for three minutes on either side, basting once with butter in between.
6
Remove and sprinkle with chaat masala powder and lemon juice. Serve with chutney of your choice.