Hariyali Paneer Tikka (Oven & StoveTop)

4.8 from 5 votes

This is a delicious grilled hariyali paneer tikka made in oven and on tawa (stovetop).

Prep Time40 mins

Cook Time20 mins

Total Time1 hr

Course: Snacks, Starters

Cuisine: North Indian, Punjabi

Servings:

Calories: 250kcal

In a small blender jar take ½ cup rinsed coriander leaves and ¼ cup rinsed mint leaves.
Add 1 teaspoon chopped ginger, 1 teaspoon chopped garlic and add 1 teaspoon chopped green chili.
Then add 3 tablespoons fresh curd.
Grind to a smooth paste without adding any water.

Take the ground green paste in a bowl.
Add the following - ¼ teaspoon carom seeds, ⅛ teaspoon turmeric powder or 1 to 2 pinches turmeric powder, ¼ teaspoon red chilli powder, ¼ teaspoon cumin powder, ¼ teaspoon coriander powder, ¼ teaspoon garam masala powder, ¼ teaspoon dry mango powder and ¼ teaspoon chaat masala powder
Then add 1 tablespoon rice flour. You can also use 1 tablespoon besan or corn flour instead.
Next add ¼ teaspoon black salt and ¼ teaspoon regular salt or add as required.
Now add 1 teaspoon lemon juice.
Mix everything very well.
Now add paneer cubes (200 grams).
Gently mix the paneer cubes with the marinade.
Cover and marinate for minimum 30 minutes at room temperature or a couple of hours in the fridge. Below is the pic after marinating for 30 minutes at room temperature.

Now thread the paneer cubes in a bamboo or metal skewer. Place the skewers on a metal rack or on a tray.
Keep the tray in an oven which is already preheated at 250 degrees celsius for 10 minutes. Keep in center rack and grill at 250 degrees celsius with only the top heating element on.
Halfway through grilling, remove the pan from oven, roughly after 8 to 10 minutes.
Brush some oil on the paneer cubes. You can skip oil if you want.
Turn over and brush oil on the other side too.
Keep the pan back in the oven and continue to grill for 8 to 10 minutes or till you see a few charred spots at the edges of the paneer cubes. Overall you need to grill the tikka for 16 to 20 minutes.
Serve hariyali paneer tikka with mint-curd chutney or coriander chutney. Sprinkle some chaat masala on the tikka before serving. Also accompany some onion slices and lemon wedges.

Heat 2 to 3 tablespoons oil in a tawa. Coat the paneer cubes well with the marinade and place them on the tawa. Pan fry paneer cubes on medium flame.
When one side is crisp and golden, turn each paneer cubes and fry the second side.
Fry the second side also till crisp & golden. Flip a couple of times for even frying. Do add more oil if required. This way fry the paneer in batches of two or three.
Remove the paneer cubes in a plate. You can place them on kitchen paper towels to remove extra oil.
Once the heat is enough to handle, then you can thread them on tooth picks. Or you can just serve them directly with small fork or toothpicks.
Serve crispy paneer hariyali tikka made on tawa with mint chutney or coriander chutney. Sprinkle some chaat masala on the tikka before serving. Also accompany some onion slices and lemon wedges.

Veggies like onion, tomato and capsicum (bell pepper) can be added in the marination along with paneer cubes.
Oil can be skipped if you want.
You can add spice powders more or less as per your preferences.
Tofu can be substituted instead of paneer.