Sunday 19 July 2015

PANEER TIKKA

PANEER TIKKA

In South Africa and in many southern African countries barbecue is called braai. Braai word came from the Afrikaans language which is now one of the official languages of South Africa. This language was spoken by early Dutch settlers of Africa. This language has adopted words from many African and European languages (such as Portuguese and English), and now is widely spoken in South Africa and Namibia.


After my long stay in southern Africa, now I am so much used to this word- braai, that I am finding barbecue is a long word to pronounce. Anyhow I will have to get used to it, as the proverb says – “When you are in Rome do as Romans do”.


When I talk about braai I mean barbecue, I remember one incidence of the early 90s, when I was teaching in Africa, in my school there was a party for teachers, in which they were planning to do a braai in the evening. It was a social gathering for all staff members of the school, and they had no idea of roasting anything for vegetarians like me. I thought I will attend the party for a short time and then will go home and eat my dinner later at home.


While I was thinking about that, a colleague of mine said, “You don't know what are you missing, because you do not eat meat, what are you going to eat this evening, are you going to roast cabbage”? I felt offended but was not in a mood to answer him back then and there. In the evening, when we were chatting in the braai gathering, I asked the same colleague of mine, “Do you smoke?”, he quickly answered “No, not at all”, then I told him, “Oh no, you do not know what are you missing because you do not smoke”. He looked at me and realized his mistake and said “sorry, I didn't mean to offend you”.


20 years ago, being vegetarian in Africa was a twofold challenge. One is to get vegetarian food in social gatherings and another one was to convince people about vegetarianism so as to have a respect for it. But now things are changing in Africa, people are slowly becoming conscious of vegetarian food and their importance for good health.


Coming to the recipe, this is a very good, and a very well recognized Indian barbecue recipe - Paneer Tikka, which is available in many Indian Restaurants in India and Abroad. In Restaurants, it is mainly served as starters to increase the appetite. This can also be served as a side dish with other light meals or salads during a barbecue party.

RECIPE


INGREDIENTS-

  • 500 grams Paneer, cut in big square pieces
  • 2 big red pepper, chopped in big pieces
  • 2 big green pepper, chopped in big pieces
  • 200 grams pineapple (fresh or tinned), chopped in big pieces
  • 200 grams baby potatoes
  • 2 big onions chopped in big pieces

To marinate
  • ½ L dahi (yoghurt)
  • 4 cloves of garlic
  • a small piece of ginger
  • 2 tbs chat masala
  • salt to taste

Method

  • Mix all the spices well in yoghurt.
  • Take all the vegetables and wrap this mixture separately and leave them aside to marinate for 2-3 hour.
  • Arrange them in the same order in skewers as shown in the picture.
  • Roast on barbecue stand for 15-20 minutes, turning occasionally till they are roasted.
    Serve hot with other salads or as the starter.


50 comments:

  1. lovely recipe and great presentation dear !

    ReplyDelete
  2. Being a vegetarian is a lot easier now than it used to be for sure. Thanks for joining us for Meatless Monday as usual your recipe looks lovely.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes Deborah, you are right, I am happy that you like my recipes, thanks.

      Delete
  3. I feel like every week I learn so much from you Sadhna, and I love it! Not just about cooking, but about other cultures! I love it :) Thanks so much!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Tina for not only liking my recipes but also for reading my post.

      Delete
  4. Yummy colorful grilled tikka. Awesome.

    ReplyDelete
  5. This sounds delicious, perfect for summer grilling, I will have to give it a try if I can get my hands on some paneer! Thanks for sharing at What'd You Do This Weekend?!

    ReplyDelete
  6. My mouth is watering...wish I could grab a few of them!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Paneer tikka looks sooooooo Delicious. A perfect starter

    ReplyDelete
  8. Oh these look and sound so good!! I am not a vegetarian but I do eat a lot of vegetarian meals. I am going to see where I can get some paneer from. Thank you for joining in with #CookBlogShare x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Kiesty, You can get paneer at Indian grocery store in the fridge section.

      Delete
  9. I am definitely going to try this. I love flavorful food. My husband is from Trinidad, so curry is a house staple! Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Sheryl for your comment and for visiting my blog.

      Delete
  10. I love meat+veggie skewered dishes! Please keep these recipes coming Sadhna; I love everything you post! Everything always looks so incredible. Thanks for sharing this at #FoodandFitnessFriday!

    Jebbica
    http://jebbicasworld.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Awww Jebbica hanks for your lovely comment. Yes i will join you next week.

      Delete
  11. Lovely - thanks for entering these into Treat Petite

    ReplyDelete
  12. I like the word "braii" but we do call barbecue "bbq" as well. I love kebobs because you can use so many different veggies/fruits and even meat. Thanks for sharing with Fiesta Friday!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Judi for your comment, I am so much used to this word braai..

      Delete
  13. Hi Sadhna,
    Another wonderful, healthy and tasty recipe. I love the idea of doing the skews on the grill but haven't done any this year since we have had a lot of rain. I love the idea of veggies, fruit and meat but I know that you practice vegetarian so I respect that. Thanks for sharing on Real Food Fridays. Pinned & twitted.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Marla, thanks for your lovely comment and for pinning and twitting.

      Delete
  14. Sadhna, I know that I say this all the time, but I love the way you weave stories into your recipe posts. I have never been to India or South Africa, and I get to travel there with you each time I visit! Thank you. I love kabobs, with or without meat, and the barbecue flavor definitely enhances the flavor. What is paneer? Is it similar to tofu?

    Thanks so much for linking this to "What are you working on?" Wednesday, I am inspired by you each week!

    Pinned and tweeted!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Awww really, that is awesome, i am so happy to know that. Thanks you so much. Paneer is a Indian cheese, looks like tofu or halloumi cheese. Thanks again for pinning and twitting.

      Delete
  15. What an interesting experience you had in Africa- I enjoyed reading about it. I love this vegetarian kebab too! Happy Fiesta Friday!

    ReplyDelete
  16. These look so good! Can almost smell them cooking on the grill:-) Thanks for linking up and sharing with us at Funtastic Friday. Please join us again this week.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Sherry for your lovely comment, yes I will join next week.

      Delete
  17. You make this look so tasty! The masala in the marinade must be wonderful.

    Thanks for sharing on Tasty Tuesdays link up. Hope to see you back next week.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Yummy my all time fav dish and nice recipe !!

    ReplyDelete
  19. It must have been very challenging to get anything vegetarian in South Africa back in the nineties, Sadhna, but I loved your reply to your colleague! This is such a delicious vegetarian dish for a barbecue - love the addition of the pineapple and the marinade is very tasty too! Pinned and shared. Thank you for being a part of the Hearth and Soul hop!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks April for visiting and reading my post, your comments are always encouraging and appreciating my post. Thanks for pinning and sharing.

      Delete
  20. Who can resist this healthy and delectable Southern African dish! I remeber how challenging it was to be vegetarian when I visited African countries! Thank you so much for sharing your
    Paneer Tikka recipe with us at the Healthy Happy Green and Natural Party Blog Hop. I'm pinning and sharing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Deborah for your lovely comment and for pinning and sharing.

      Delete
  21. Yummy! Thanks for sharing on My 2 Favorite Things on Thursday!! I love having you! Hope to see you again on Thursday! Pinned!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Elaine for your comment, I will join this week.

      Delete
  22. Thanks for sharing the paneer tikka at my last Fabulous Friday, I am taking a break from this party and doing another party where I co host and its called Dream Create and Inspire. Stop by if you have a few minutes
    Thanks Maria
    http://www.simplenaturedecorblog.com/dream-create-inspire-link10/

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Maria, I will definitely check Dream create and inspire. Name sounds very good.

      Delete
  23. Good information on Indian recipe. its quite different from other posts,,,,Thanks.. it looks amazing kathi roll & kebabs

    ReplyDelete
  24. What are you talking about soya chop, i didn't get it.

    ReplyDelete