Paneer Tikka, a marinated and grilled Indian cheese and vegetable skewer, is a delicious, easy, and flavorful grilled Indian dish everyone loves!
This post originally appeared on SweetCsDesigns.com, where I guest blogged.
Just like how spring blossoms are synonymous to spring, barbeque / grilling and outdoor eating is synonymous to summer, for me. We have a little deck that goes out from the breakfast nook and that is the single most over used space in summer. We have our grill there and we grill something or the other most days and eat outside on those days. Other days, we just take our food outside and sit there and eat, till it gets too dark to see anything or till one of us has to get up to go get the kiddo ready for bed.
Paneer Tikka is a tandoori dish, which means, it is traditionally grilled in the clay tandoor over. Growing up in India, the only time we ate this was when we went out to restaurants. Grilling or barbeque–ing at home was not really the culture.
I did not know anyone that owned a grill!
So, when I moved here to Seattle several years ago and was invited to a friend’s house for a barbeque, I was excited. I did not know what to expect. Being a vegetarian, I could not think of many things one could make in a grill and I really hoped that I did not come back hungry. I had these paneer tikkas there for the first time, the kind grilled, but not in a tandoor.
It was delicious and I could not believe that this could be made at home.
From then on, this simple yet flavorful and filling dish has been a favorite and our go-to for an Indian style barbeque and they are also great to take with us on camping trips. We would marinate the paneer and the veggies and put them in a Ziploc and freeze them.
That way, they remain cold enough and slowly defrost by the time we get to the campsite, set up and are ready to start with dinner. This is such a versatile recipe and you can easily substitute the paneer with chicken to make it more omnivore friendly.
Paneer Tikka
Ingredients
- 16 0z paneer cubed into 1-2 inch cubes, about 15-16 cubes
- ½ green bell pepper cut into chunks
- ½ red bell pepper cut into chunks
- 1 red onion cut into chunks
- cooking spray
For the marinade:
- ¾ cup whole milk yogurt
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- ½ teaspoon cumin powder
- ½ teaspoon coriander powder
- ¼ teaspoon crushed ginger
- ¼ teaspoon crushed garlic
- ½ teaspoon cayenne (skip or reduce quantity to reduce heat)
- salt to taste
For granish: (optional)
- minced cilantro
- lime
- chat masala
Instructions
- Mix all the ingredients for the marinade together in a large bowl.
- Toss the paneer cubes, onions and peppers and mix to coat well.
- Chill for at least 20 mins in the refrigerator.
- Preheat the grill. Skewer the paneer and the veggies alternatingly.
- Spray a non-stick grill pan with cooking spray and place the skewers on it.
- Turn them around every 5-10 mins or so and they will be done once you don't see any raw marinade on them.
- Sprinkle some minced cilantro and chat masala and squeeze a lime wedge just before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Agness of Run Agness Run says
Yum! Such an exquisite recipe! Can't wait to give it a try!
Manju says
Thank you Agness!
Chaya Biswas says
Everything looks yum. Will have to try out.
Manju says
Thank you! Do let me know if you try it ?
Juliana Fendez says
So it’s a nice recipe but I would add a tablespoon of chickpeas flour to help the marinate coat and stay on the paneer cubes.
afra says
These were fabulous! Total hit at my last bbq. When I was shopping I remembered the recipe incorrectly and bought halloumi instead of paneer but it was FABULOUS! This recipe is a keeper!!
Manju says
Thank you! 🙂
Kate says
I'm planning on making this on a camping trip this weekend. How long can I marinate the paneer (days?)? And, is it better if it's marinated longer?
Manju says
You can definitely marinate longer. We have made it while camping too and it can easily be marinated overnight.