Paneer cubes or fingers marinated in a curd, coriander, mint, lemon, green chilli, and chaat masala mix before being grilled on a pan. Crisp on the outside and soft on the inside, this tangy and spicy Hariyali Paneer Tikka is an absolute delight as a starter.
Spoon 3 tbsp curd into a soup strainer or a tea strainer and let the whey drain for about 10 mins. I got about 1.5 tbsp of hung curd.
Alternative to Hung Curd
Quickly drain what water you can from the curd and then add 1/4 to 1/2 tsp of besan to the curd.
Making the Marinade
Grind 1/4 cup fresh coriander, 1 tbsp mint, 1 green chilli, 1/2 tsp ginger, 1 clove of garlic,and 1.5 tbsp of lemon juice to a smooth paste. If you do need to add some water, add as little as possible.
Mix together the green paste, 1 tsp chaat masala, hung curd, and a pinch of turmeric. The marinade should be thick in consistency. I did not add any salt because the chaat masala is quite salty.
If the marinade is thin or runny, add just a little besan and mix till it in. Beware of adding too much besan because then the marinade will taste of besan.
Making the Hariyali Paneer Tikka
Cut the paneer into 1" cubes or then into fingers about 1" wide and 2" long like I did.
Add the paneer pieces to the marinade and mix well till all paneer pieces are well coated with the marinade.
Set aside for 30 mins. I sometimes marinate the pieces for about 1 hour. I think they taste tangier that way. :)
Over medium flame, heat a non-stick pan or a tava.
Grease the tava with a few drops of ghee or oil. I used ghee as it lends a wonderful flavour to the Hariyali Paneer Tikka.
Place the marinated paneer pieces on the pan and cook till the side touching the pan is golden brown. Grill in batches so as not to crowd the pan.
Flip the pieces over and grill the other side.
Serve the Hariyali Paneer Tikka warm as a starter.
Notes
Ways to Use the Leftover Marinade
I mixed about 1/3 cup thinly sliced onion with the leftover marinade and served this onion with the Hariyali Paneer Tikka.
You can also lightly pan-fry the marinade-coated onion and then serve it with the grilled paneer.
You can add 1 cup chopped mushrooms or bell peppers to the marinade, and then grill those. :)