Veggie and Paneer Kababs

Summers are meant for barbecues and lazing by the pool side. Or at the beach. Well, we planned to do that all summer too but never really got around to it. School started back on but we were not the ones to let go of the idea just as easily. Its still a little hot out there and technically it still is summer. Why not make use of it, right? So, our group of friends planned to do a barbecue party over the weekend. And our family is the only one vegetarian one in the group. So the minute the barbecue was being planned, I knew I was going to get my favorite paneer kababs. I've posted a simple recipe of this before on the blog but this time wanted to make it a little more detail with all the step by step pictures. So, here we go.

This is a really easy recipe but it takes a little planning to marinate the veggies ahead of time. But with just a little effort, the reward is plenty. Imagine yourself sitting on a lounge chair, sipping on some beer or margarita in hand, chatting with your best buddies while the kids are busy by themselves. And in between every sentence, you get to bite into a juicy tangy piece of grilled paneer or veggie dipped in a flavorful mint chutney. I mean, are these not why weekends are made for? To stop and smell the roses or at least the kababs?

Let's get going with the marinade. Prepare this marinade a day ahead so the veggies and paneer get to soak in them for hours and pull in the flavors.

I was doing this for a big batch of kababs. Please adjust the quantity according to your needs.

Take about 2-3 cups of slightly sour yogurt in a mixing bowl. Add salt to taste.

Add 1/2 tsp of turmeric powder to the curds.

Then add about 1-2 tsp of red chilli powder - this will also add spice to the kababs not to mention the color.

In a small pan, dry roast these ingredients -

2tbsp of Coriander seeds
1 tsbp of Cumin seeds
2-3 dried red chillies

Grind the dry roasted ingredients above to a coarse powder.

Add the powdered spices to the yogurt mixture.

And now for the flavor kick, add about 3-4 tsps of ginger -garlic paste to the yogurt mix. This adds a whole ton of flavor to the kababs. I've made kababs before without this stuff but trust me, this version is definitely better. So, unless you don't eat garlic, don't skip this step. And if you are not a garlic person, at least add fresh ginger paste.

Whisk all the ingredients with the yogurt and make a smooth paste.

Finally add about 1-2 tsps of chat masala and whisk together well. Set aside. The marinade is ready. Now on to the veggies chopping.

These veggies tend to hold up well to grilling and maintain a good texture to eat.

Onions
Bell Peppers - Green, Red, Yellow
Zucchini

You can also use eggplants - my friend had bought a few grilled eggplants and they were absolutely delicious - so I'm adding them the next time for sure.

Wash and chop the veggies into big bits and move all the pieces to a ziploc bag where you can marinate them overnight.

Here's the zucchini chopped up.

Also chop paneer into big thick chunks that hold up well on skewers and offer a good bite.

Get all your veggies into individual ziploc bags. Or if you want it easier, just mix them up all together and soak together in one big bowl. But I somehow always like it when they are individually marinated. Makes me feel happy for them that each of them has its own space. Its my choice - so you decide what you want to do.

Pour equal amounts of the yogurt marinade into each of the bags and give the veggies a gentle rub so that the sauce gets in between spaces.

Seal tight and refrigirate the packets overnight. Every maybe 6-8 hrs, just pick them up and give a gentle rub so that all sides are mixed well.

When you're ready to barbecue them, arrange the veggies in order (or not!) on skewers. You can also get the kids to do this if you want to keep them entertained. I'm sure they'll enjoy getting their hands messy. I did these though - not the kids - they were no where to be seen - they just showed up when food was ready!

Grill on medium to high heat for about 20-30 mins or until you see them well done. Save some of the marinade and brush on top as your barbecue for added flavor.

Turn the skewers around in between so that all sides get cooked evenly.

They turn from this -

- to this in about 30 mins.

So get your grill going and start up some veggie panner kababs. And yes, don't forget some grilled corn on the side - make sure you rub that with a wedge of lemon dipped in salt and red chilli powder for a perfect bite.

You can either serve them on skewers itself or just remove the veggies from the skewers and serve alongside with some green coriande-mint chutney.

You can also serve these kababs along with some simple saffron tinged pulav. They go great with just plain jeera rice or ghee rice too. We actually had some simple Kadhi Chawal along with all the barbecued stuff and it was a perfect summer evening. Good food. Good friends. Great evening!

So wait no more - get kababing before the sun goes down!

Enjoy. Peace Out!