Grilled Chilli Paneer Cubes | Easy Starter Recipe | Bachelor’s Cooking | Gluten Free | Finger Food | Step Wise

Hi All!

As I have mentioned in my Mango & Dark Chocolate Trifle Post, that the kid is 14yrs old now and what I didn’t mention was that he is in the 9th grade and due to which the study pressures are very high. His school hours have got extended by an hour now and post school he rushes for his coaching class, so he is invariably out for 11-1/2hrs and by the time he comes home, he is very tired and hungry. Though, I ensure that he carries two lunch boxes but at a growing age, the children are always hungry and they need to eat food at short intervals.

Since he reaches home at add hours when he can not have dinner straight away, I ensure to give him a protein rich snack or finger food which would keep him satisfied for some time. And he is at an age where he is once again picky about his food and wants something spicy or tangy to eat most of the times.

This preparation is protein rich, quick to make and cook, it’s a finger food which is gluten free and most importantly, it’s made of cottage cheese/paneer. The kid is a huge fan of cottage cheese and it’s easy to lure him with his favourite food ingredient.

It’s a very simple preparation made using ingredients easily available at home. These are so easy to make that even bachelors and children can make them. I have used most minimum oil to cook it, so one can call it low oil preparation also and it’s made with cow milk cottage cheese so it’s low in calories too. One is free to make use of butter or more oil when they try the recipe and use high fat cottage cheese too. Texturally and taste wise too, the high fat cottage cheese would definitely yield better results.

I have made this as a finger food but these can be an excellent appetiser/starter for parties and get together.

Grilled Chilli Paneer Cubes

ग्रिल्ड चिली पनीर क्यूब्स​

Preparation Time: 5mins | Marinating Time: 15mins | Cooking Time: 5mins per batch | Makes:12-13 |Serves: 3-4 | Difficulty Level: Easy

Ingredients (in the order of use)

4-5 garlic cloves/1tbsp finely chopped garlic
juice of a lemon
2-3tbsp finely chopped coriander
about 1/2cup finely chopped spring onion greens
2tsp tomato ketchup
2tbsp red chilli sauce
1/4tsp finely crushed black pepper powder
2-3tsp vegetable oil/olive oil
salt to taste
400gms cottage cheese cut into one inch cubes
olive oil spray for grilling or more oil for grilling
&
Non stick pan or Grill Pan
toothpick

 

Method

Mix all the ingredients mentioned other than the cottage cheese and ingredients mentioned after that, to prepare the marinade.

Trim the edges of the cottage cheese or paneer and cut into 1inch cubes. Put the cubes in the marinade and mix gently with clean hands, coating the marinade all over the cottage cheese.

The minimum time to marinade is 15minutes but one can marinade them up to 2-3hrs inside the refrigerator. The more the time for marinating, more flavours gets imbibed by the cubes and better the taste. For 15mins one can leave the cottage cheese outside ensuring it’s covered. Post marinating, one will find a slight change in the colour of the cubes.

Heat the grill pan and spray it with olive oil or brush oil lightly on it. Place 4-5 cottage cheese pieces and grill them on a medium-high flame from all the sides. While grilling ensure that the cube is turned only when it’s cooked completely at the bottom, else it sticks to the pan. Also, do not over grill else the cheese will turn chewy.

Insert tooth pick in each grilled cube and garnish with freshly cut spring onion greens. Serve hot with a light mayo dip or green chutney.